Dakota Datebook: Merton Utgaard's Band Camp

Dec. 19, 2018 — If you went to International Music Camp between 1956 and 1983, you most definitely remember the tall, silver-haired gentleman who ran the show. He was Merton Utgaard, the camp’s founder. He was born in Maddock in 1914, and today marks the anniversary of his death.

Experiencing Dr. Utgaard as a music conductor was at once terrifying and awe-inspiring. Tryouts were torture. Joe Alme,...