SILVER FOXES, TABLE FOR FOUR. Pete Roller, Rob Mondlock, Steve Wells, and John Buchholz comprise the TSR Band, meaning “Teacher-Student Relationship.”

Fifty members spanning 40 years. One hundred songs representing five decades. Fifteen instruments, one stage.

As far as bands go, TSR boasts some unusual and impressive numbers, but what is most impressive about the group cannot be quantified.

Pete Roller, Rob Mondlock, Steve Wells, and John Buchholz are sustaining a tradition that found its foothold at Hayward High School in 1970, where Mondlock was a student in Pete Roller’s history class. What started as a request for musical guidance morphed into a student-teacher combination band with “Mr. R on Bass Guitar.” The group was aptly named TSR, or “The Teacher-Student Relationship,” and proved successful in the regional nightclub scene.

By 1991, after dozens of high-school musicians left this revolving door of a band, Steve Wells and John Buccholz had arrived. And they stuck. So, too, did the name of the band. Since Wells and Buchholz are and were educators in the area, respectively, they figure the name still rings true to a certain degree.

Through the years, the genre of the band has remained somewhat difficult to pin down. This is because their repertoire is vast and ever-growing. Wells, the musical genius of the group who writes their arrangements, summarizes their genre as “centered around vocals and jazz, but with a big variety of other styles sprinkled in.” The band incorporates everything from smooth crooner tunes of the 30s and 40s, to danceable 50s, 60s, and 70s pop. They even throw some contemporary country into the mix. 

“You won’t find this kind of variety anywhere, from Lake Michigan to Minneapolis,” says Roller.

To appear on TSR’s lineup, the tune has to be musically pleasing and challenging – a fairly simple decision since the four men tend to share musical tastes and backgrounds. After playing literally hundreds of weddings (and worrying about the marketability of their music), they were due for some musical freedom.

    “We just learn things that each of us likes – styles that speak to the four of us as musicians,” Wells explains. Even if that ultimatum meant not getting hired, they were willing to play for the sake of playing.

Luckily, Fischers on the Green has afforded TSR their ideal venue – a classy, comfortable night club where their matching shirts and ties have become a fixture.

“To land in a place where people really like it, and we really like it … it’s just wonderful,” says Roller. “Now we’re really in our element, and we’re home before midnight,” he adds with satisfaction.

And this bit about 15 instruments? It’s not just padding for the resumé. Though the band was whittled from eight members to just four in 1989, they still manage to play three-horn arrangements and a number of special instruments including the flute, baritone saxophone, and the EWI or “electronic wind instrument.”

“John is the most versatile guy in the group, because we make him be,” Roller laughs, noting that Buchholz plays all 15 instruments.

As you can imagine, role switching and multitasking happen frequently during performances. But as if their mastery of instruments wasn’t enough, the band thrives on a sociable relationship with the audience. At Fischers, the boundaries of the stage are somewhat fluid. Mondlock will step into the crowd, crooning to regulars and newcomers alike, often changing up the words to fit the situation. I even witnessed a little bit of impromptu rap in which Mondlock jokingly accused Wells of “hidin’ in the back, ‘cause he don’t like when we start in with the rap.”

“The regulars always say, ‘you don’t bore us, and you always have something new,’” says Roller.

TSR Band plays regularly on Fridays and Saturdays at Fischers on the Green, 2333 N Hillcrest Pkwy, Altoona, from about 7-10pm. For more information, or to book them for an event, visit TSRBand.com.