Author Felix Mayerhofer was born in 1930 in Port Chester, NY the youngest of 7 children. Upon turning 18 Felix left for the big city to attend Julliard School of Music and became a professional trombonist. His music career included playing in prestigious bands such as Fred Waring and the Pennsylvanians among countless other famous big bands and serving in the 552nd United States Air Force band during the Korean War. Upon the end of the war he enrolled in Potsdam Teachers College and went back to his professional music career after graduating. His musical career ended in the showrooms of Reno where he met and married professional dancer Shirley Wagner. The two settled in the Antelope Valley where he combined his teaching degree and professional music career to become an esteemed and awarded public school band director and music educator for 27 years.  He also found the time to get his Masters degree from Azusa Pacific.

 With so much life lived and filled with travel, adventure and excitement you can imagine that when it came time to retire Felix had some stories to tell. He had already earned the nickname Felix the Story teller back in Potsdam but as he found himself restless in retirement he put those stories to paper. Thus his third career was born as an author with the help of his loving and supportive wife Shirley, son David and friend and illustrator John McFarlane.

Mayerhofer has written and published his autobiography Diary of A Young Musician, Final Days of the Big Band Era as well as 38 children’s books.