Today in History revisits the Saturday, Sept. 20, 1986, edition of the Grand Forks Herald and highlights a story of Grand Forks native Michael Koppelman writing a song for North Dakota to use during its centennial.
Grand Forks man writes song for N.D. centennial
By Naomi Dunavan
Herald Staff Writer
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Part of Michael Koppelman stayed behind when he left town to attend Berklee College of Music in Boston.
Physically he's there, but the memories of home are vivid. You could say he left his heart in Grand Forks.
"Yes, I suppose I was a little homesick. When I first came out to Boston I was proud of being from North Dakota. It didn't seem like some of the people I met had the same pride in where they came from," he said during a telephone interview from Berklee. "It's a totally different environment here. Back home, everyone is nice, honest and friendly. Here, people don't say hello on the street. They are a lot colder."
Another conspicuous difference was the quiet of North Dakota compared with the noise of the big city.
Those flashbacks prompted the 1984 Red River High School graduate to write a song about his home state. He composed "Winter Skies" when he was home for Chris...