Jim McCarthy, 2024 Madison Scouts Hall of Fame Inductee.
Jim McCarthy Jim McCarthy marched with the Madison Scouts from 1954 through 1958. As a 16-year-old rookie in 1954, he was a soprano soloist. Also, that year, his trumpet teacher, Don Marcoulier, arranged for Jim to play with the University of Wisconsin Band, where he sat in the second chair. In 1958, Jim became the Madison Scouts' first solo and ensemble “National Champion” and was known in the drum corps activity as “Mr. High G.”
Jim received his undergraduate degree in music education at the University of Wisconsin, a Master's in Music Education from San Jose State University, and a PhD from Michigan State University. He would teach at Whitelands College, University of London, and the University of Kentucky before landing at Western Michigan University in 1975. Jim’s trumpet-playing career ended with a hearing issue, but his professional interests shifted toward writing and publishing computer applications for music theory and aural comprehension. During a sabbatical year at Stanford University, he developed an online course in music theory fundamentals, the first online program offered at Western Michigan University. In 1987, Jim obtained funding for an open computer music lab in the Dalton Center at WMU, the first of its kind at any University. Jim pioneered applying computer technology to music. Sadly, he passed away in 2023 after a long illness.