Lehman, Arthur W., 1917-2009

Arthur W. Lehman played euphonium with the U.S. Marine Band from 1947 to 1971. He is widely credited with raising the standard of euphonium playing and technique. He preferred a newer instrument, the Boosey and Hawkes self-compensating euphonium, which is more practical for modern use than the previous standard, the C.G. Conn double-bell euphonium. Lehman was born on September 24, 1917, in Doylestown, Pennsylvania, and studied electrical engineering at Penn State University, graduating with a bachelor of arts degree in 1940. He was drafted into the United States Army upon graduation, and although initially assigned to an aircraft factory based on his engineering background, wound up playing euphonium with an Army band from 1944 to 1946. Lehman studied with Simone Mantia, soloist of the Sousa Band, and Harold Brasch, euphonium soloist of the United States Navy Band. He also played with the Penn State Varsity Band and the Philco Band of Philadelphia during his studies. Retiring from the U.S. Marine at the rank of Master Gunnery Sergeant, Lehman also served as the Band's personnel manager from 1956 to 1964 and additionally as assistant recording engineer. He was a very articulate and prolific writer, serving as a sort of documentarian of the Marine Band. A meticulous list maker, he documented his solos with the Band, indicating piece, date, and location, and made inventories of his recordings. He wrote the obituaries of deceased band members, penned stories in a column entitled “I Remember…” and generally gathered information for, made copies of, and distributed “the Bandwagon,” the official newsletter of the Association of Retired and Reserve Members of the U.S. Marine Band, an organization for which he also served as Treasurer. Lehman wrote other essays about band activities such as tours and performances at military funerals. He also wrote two volumes about euphonium technique in the cheekily titled "The Art of the Euphonium," published in the early 1970s by Robert Hoe, and later by the Tuba Press. Lehman continued to publish in professional journals such as the International Tuba Euphonium Association and online.

Upon retirement from the Band, he performed with the National Concert Band for twenty-four years, also memorializing his time there with writings. Lehman retired from playing altogether in April 2002. Lehman also developed a deep, large-bore paraboliccup mouthpieces generally known today as the "Lehman Special," a change from earlier shallower mouthpieces. With his performances on the Boosey and Hawkes euphoniums and his "Lehman Special" mouthpieces, Lehman is widely credited for transforming the typical American euphonium sound from the lighter continental sound of the John Philip Sousa days to the rich, dark, and resonant sound common today. Lehman lived with his mother until her death, then married Frieda DuPaul in 1992. They had no children. He died June 19, 2009, in Camp Springs, Maryland, of pulmonary fibrosis.