Central New York’s longtime diva of Dixieland, Marilyn “Mimi” Drake Osmun, died May 17 at Loretto Geriatric Center, Syracuse. Mimi was born in Syracuse during the height of the Jazz Age, on Jan. 18, 1927.
Throughout her long life, Mimi played in numerous Central New York bands. Some of the ensembles in which she performed were The Rhythm-Airs Big Band with whom she was a charter member, the Coal-Heavers, the Liverpool Community Concert Band, the Vann Harris Quintet, the Doctors’ Big Band and the Central New York Police and Fire Band. She also led her own combos such as the Tri-County Four (and later Five), and most notably Mimi’s Music Makers which showcased a wide variety of personnel over four melodious decades.
A strong-willed woman, Mimi broke gender barriers throughout her life. At age 13, in order to join the Charles Andrews Jr. High School Band, she took up the trombone, an unusual choice for a girl in 1940. She was the first female lifeguard at Selkirk Shores State Park in 1944. She was the first female to gain membership to the Valley Post 1468 American Legion bands. Along the way, she fronted an all-women combo at the Legion Hall.
Mimi studied classical piano from age 6 and throughout her college years at Wells College and Syracuse University. Before attending college she played with the Nottingham High School concert and marching bands during
