Shiner Hobo Band inducted into Polka Hall of Fame

The Shiner Hobo Band was inducted into the Polka Hall of Fame at the 44th Annual South Texas Polka and Sausage Fest held in Hallettsville this past Sunday.
“This is pretty cool,” Band member Dalton Nollkamper said. “We’ve been together for around 100 years and we’re finally getting recognition. I joined the band in 1965, and I enjoy the camaraderie with the band members. We have a good time, and we don’t get too serious. We have a few beers, and we laugh and we make mistakes and that’s all part of it.”

History of the Shiner Hobo Band

The original Hobo Band was formed by a group of skilled local musicians after World War I. During the war, most dance and family bands were largely dissolved as the men enlisted in the military. Once the war ended, young veterans and returning GI’s were eager to reconnect with traditional music. A local ensemble decided to create their own band to perform at picnics, wedding dances, and community events.
They chose to wear mismatched outfits with patches sewn on, embodying a carefree spirit and a love for their Czech and German musical heritage. The Spoetzl Brewery became their sponsor, providing a keg of beer for every performance. In 1936, under the direction of Emmett Busch, the Shiner Hobo Band gained recognition, with Busch famously conducting using a toilet plunger as a baton. 
The band paraded and played throughout Shiner and nearby towns, proudly displaying a “Hobo” banner and delighting audiences wherever they went. Mr. Spoetzl often joined the fans during local parades and treated everyone to Shiner beer at saloons and bars. 
This tradition continued into the 1950s when Curt Messer took over as the band leader, maintaining the same spirit of music, hospitality, and refreshments. The band slowly disbanded due to Messer’s declining health. 
However, in April of 1986, Speedy Beal and Jules Silvers, new part-owners of the Spoetzl Brewery, decided to meet with Joe Panus and Glenn Leist to discuss reviving the Hobo Band for the Texas Sesquicentennial celebration. 
Panus and Leist reached out to several musicians and held a brief organizational meeting at the American Legion Hall in Shiner. 
About 12 to 15 musicians attended, and they voted to elect Panus as the band’s director, with him famously conducting using the iconic toilet plunger. The group held two brief practice sessions at the Kaspar Pavilion. One comment made during these sessions was that formal practice wasn’t really necessary, as most members were experienced musicians, with a few exceptions. 
One of those exceptions was Leist, who decided to humorously pretend to play a giant bass fiddle, tell jokes, and playfully challenge the director. The band was known for not always following Panus’ instructions. 
Their first performance was at the Trinity Lutheran Home in Shiner, where they quickly became a crown favorite. Soon after, they were booked for the Shiner Catholic Church picnics on Memorial and Labor Day weekends, as well as the “Come and Take It” festival in Gonzales.
Over time, the band grew to include 30 active members, with around 25 performing at each event. The Hobo Band continued performing until the sudden passing of their beloved director, Panus, on June 30, 1996. 
Despite his loss, the band has continued to entertain without a formal director since.

The Hobo Band Today

Now, there are people who play in the band from Shiner, Yoakum, Victoria, Port Lavaca, Schulenburg and many other communities. “There’s even some people from the Houston area,” band member David Schroeder said. “The average age of the group is 70. I started in the band when I was 17 and, for 20 years, I was the youngest member in the band. 
We’ve had people from all professions who have played in the band from hospital administrators to accountants, nurses and insurance salesman. There’s a whole variety of us who have played in the band.”
Schroeder said he always grew up listening to polka music and he was a tuba player in his high school band and Leist hand picked him from the school and asked if he would be interested in playing in the Hobo Band. 
“I told him I didn’t know a lot about music and he said, ‘you’ll learn it,’” Schroeder said. “I sat between two excellent tuba players, Victor Caka and Paul Morkovsky. I learned by listening to them.”
Schroeder said the Hobo Band is a close-knit family.
“Everybody does their part, and nobody tries to outdo the other,” Schroeder said. “We get together a couple of times a year and we practice. We never used to do that. 
When they got back together in 1986, people would never show up. Most of the people were seasoned musicians that they didn’t need to practice.”
Now, the Hobo Band does about 25 performances a year. “We do local music festivals and church picnics,” Schroeder said. “That’s the majority of what we do. It’s great, you meet different people in different places and it’s great to have a local following.”
Nollkamper said the reason the Hobo Band is alive and well is because they continue to hold strong to their roots.
“We like to keep the old Czech music going,” Nollkamper said. “Other than places like the Polka Fest, you don’t hear it much. We appreciate our audience. We have had a lot of people that have followed us over the years and they’re just like family.”
Schroeder said this induction into the Hall of Fame means they’ve been doing something good, and he wants to thank the community of Shiner. 
“It’s all about making people smile,” Schroeder said. “Our local community is important to our band’s success. Even though a bunch of our band members are not from Shiner, the Shiner community is very important. Giving back to the City of Shiner is very important to the band because that’s our roots. 
The Spoetzl Brewery, for example, is a big supporter. They’ve helped us financially each year and they’re still a big part of the Hobos.”
There’s one thing Schroeder wants their fans and future generations to remember about the Shiner Hobo Band.
“I just want people to know that we are a fun group,” Schroeder said. “It’s all about giving people a good time. We’ve had fun over the years, and we hope our audience has had fun. I hope to get more people into polka music. It’s a dying genre and we hope we can continue the traditions of polka.”