John Allen Seidel, a Ball State professor for 24 years, passed away Friday, June 10, 2016, at the age of 67. He was born Oct. 1, 1948, to Charles Seidel and Elsie (Reinert) Seidel in Reading, Pennsylvania.
Seidel was an accomplished trombonist and associate professor of trombone who met and fell in love with another musician, pianist Liz Seleski. They married on July 7, 1979, in Reading, and the couple pursued their love of each other and classical music across the Midwest.
Several students, past and present, shared posts of mourning for their professor on social media.
Jalen Reese, a student of his, called Seidel "one of the most memorable humans you would have ever encountered."
"BSU won't be the same without you," he said in a Facebook post. "Thanks for the memories and the knowledge over the last 4 years. You were truly one of a kind."
Max Johnson, a Ball State alumnus, called the professor an incredible human being on his Facebook page.
"It is a little difficult to think about him not being around Ball State, let alone not being around at all," Johnson said in his post. "Dr. Seidel was someone who shaped me a great deal while I attended Ball State, and I know his influence will have a lasting impact on myself and many others for years to come."
Seidel performed as a soloist and as a chamber musician, and appeared regularly with several orchestras in Indiana, including the Indianapolis Symphony and the Fort Wayne Philharmonic Orchestra.
He performed and recorded with the Indianapolis Chamber Brass Choir, and he was a founding member of the Indiana Brass Quintet. For two seasons, he was the bass trombonist for the Duluth Superior Symphony Orchestra.
He taught previously at the University of Wisconsin-Superior and at Miami University in Oxford, Ohio. He received the Doctor of Musical Arts degree from the University of North Texas.
Earlier in his career, he was a member of the Orchestra Society of Philadelphia and principal trombonist with the Reading Symphony Orchestra.
Seidel is survived by his wife, his children Jonathan (Lauren) and Christine Seidel, his granddaughter Sydney Seidel, his sisters Liz (Jack) Allen and Sue (Dan) Pfeiffer, as well as many other loving family members, friends and students. He is preceded in death by his parents.
A memorial service will be planned in Muncie in the near future.
The calling hours are 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. Friday, June 17, at Stitzel Family Funeral Home, 3300 Kutztown Road, Laureldale, PA, 19605. Services will be held 4 p.m. Saturday, June 18, at Christ Lutheran Church, 325 Covered Bridge Road, Oley, PA, 19547. Burial will immediately follow the services.
In lieu of flowers, the family is asking for donations in Seidel's name to the Reading Symphony Orchestra, 147 N. Fifth St., Suite 4, Reading, PA, 19601, or to the St. Vincent Hospital Foundation, designated for the St. Vincent Seton Specialty Hospital, 8402 Harcourt Road, Suite 210, Indianapolis, IN, 46260.
Update: A memorial service for John Seidel has been scheduled for 2 p.m. Friday, June 24 at the First Presbyterian Church, 1400 W. Riverside Ave in Muncie. A reception will follow the service.
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