Moses Carreker, Class of 1972, has distinguished himself as a musician, educator, and marathon runner. His most significant contributions and achievements have occurred in instrumental music, where his study and career currently span over seven different decades.
On October 18,1952, Moses Lawrence Carreker was born at OSU Hospital, the oldest of three sons, who include Ray (1973), and Mark (1978). Shortly afterward, his parents (his father was a World War II veteran) moved to a farm near Marysville. Although Moses began elementary school at Fornof Elementary, in the Marion-Franklin HS area, the family settled at 380 Midland Avenue in the Hilltop in December of 1959. He attended Highland ES for a year and a half before a redistricting required him to transfer to West Mound ES. From there, he attended Hilltonia Junior High School before enrolling at West High School in the fall of 1969.
At Hilltonia, he responded to an announcement inviting students interested in participating in the band to see William Stewart, the instrumental music teacher there. Moses introduced himself saying that he wanted to learn to play the double bass. Mr. Stewart told him that, if he was serious about learning to play well, he needed to contact Carl Fulton, a Westside bass player (and football coach). Moses did so and his learning quickly accelerated. During his junior high years, he auditioned for and played in the Columbus Cadet Orchestra, the junior high developmental orchestra affiliated with the Columbus Symphony Orchestra. He was also selected to the Columbus All-City Junior High School Orchestra that performed as part of the Columbus Public Schools Music Festival.
By high school, Moses was absolutely hooked on music. West HS instrumental music teacher, Jim Hill, quickly recognized Moses’ talent, passion, and work ethic and made sure that he participated in every performance group possible at West. Moses played the double bass in the orchestra, tuba in the marching band and wind ensemble, and bass guitar in the dance band throughout high school. He was selected to the All-City Orchestra twice and auditioned for and performed with the Columbus Youth Symphony, which was comprised of many of the best high school musicians in Central Ohio. He rose to the Assistant Principal Chair in the Youth Symphony.
When it came time for college, although his natural curiosity and aptitude for how things work might have inclined him to gravitate toward engineering, Moses’ choice of field of study boiled down to his passion to make music. So, he majored in Music Education, with instrumental music area expertise, at The Ohio State University. While there, he played in the OSU Symphony and Concert Band. Perhaps his most memorable performance experiences occurred during his five years in the OSU Marching Band, indeed the finest collegiate marching ensemble in the nation, where he played the tuba. Moses dotted the “I” in Script Ohio three times, once in a game against Michigan State, once against Indiana, and once in the first ever double Script Ohio at a Homecoming game. The two tuba players who dotted the “I” in that first double Script Ohio were Moses and Aaron Jackson, West Class of 1972 (inducted into the West HS Alumni Hall of Fame last year, 2024).
At Ohio State, Moses studied the double bass with Theron McClure. Upon completing his BME (Bachelor of Music Education), he continued his education, pursuing and earning a Master of Arts in double bass performance, where he also studied music theory and orchestration extensively. His graduate faculty instrumental instructor was Paul Robinson. Throughout his collegiate studies, he worked to finance his education at such west side employers as Sears Distribution and United Parcel Service.
Moses was hired as the instrumental music teacher at Champion Junior High School. During his second year there, he auditioned for a third time and was selected to the Columbus Symphony Orchestra, a position he held for 16 years. He soon left teaching to concentrate on his responsibilities with the Symphony. Over time, his reputation grew, and his talents came into greater demand. Several regional orchestras contracted him for his services. Currently, he plays in five area symphonies, all of which he has performed with for over twenty years. They include the Springfield Symphony (started in 1986), the Lancaster Festival Orchestra (1988), the Mansfield Symphony (1997), the Lima Symphony (1999), and the Ashland Symphony (2001). In addition, he has spent time with Opera Columbus, the Licking County Symphony, the Newark-Granville Symphony, the Muskingum Symphony, the Knox County Symphony, the Westerville Symphony, and the Central Ohio Symphony Orchestra.
Moses has had the opportunity to study under and/or meet three of the foremost names in instrumental music direction. He spent time learning conducting from Michael Tilson Thomas, Music Director of the San Francisco Symphony. He has taken Tilson Thomas’ philosophy to heart: “It’s not the age of the conductor that matters; it’s what he can do.” He also met with Eugene Ormandy, the quintessential conductor of the Philadelphia Orchestra, and Count (William James) Basie, the legendary jazz pianist, band leader, and composer. Moses has great interest in orchestration, composition, and conducting, as well as learning the scores of great classical works on a routine basis. His favorite classical composer is Johannes Brahms, whose complex, detailed, rich, lush, melodic musical works are concert favorites all over the world.
His second pursuit, outside of music, is distance running. In 1996, at the age of 43, he started running long distances. He completed his first marathon at age 49. Including that first, he has finished 11 Columbus Marathons and one United States Air Force Marathon. He has broken 4 hours (approximately 9 minutes per mile pace) several times, finishing his last marathon at age 60. It is not uncommon to see him completing a 10-mile run along West Broad Street.
Even at 72, Moses continues to perform, study, and run. True to the Tilson Thomas’ adage, he continuously seeks to improve himself, realizing that he has much yet to learn and contribute.
Dave Dobos, Class of 1973, nominated Moses.
