Everything Band Podcast
It's been quite a run, but all good things must come to an end. A special thank you to all of my listeners, all of my guests, and to my sponsors Celtic Horizons and Kaleidoscope Adventures. All of your support and belief in this show kept me going for so many episodes. I would be remiss if I didn't mention Jake Walker, who worked tirelessly behind the scenes for the final 50 or so episodes to create the website, change the branding, and create the amazing images we see for the final run of the show. He's been invaluable to me and I couldn't have gotten as far as I did without him. Ditto Colin...
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Benjamin Dean Taylor (born 1983), has been described as “elegant and energetic” () and “powerful and direct with delightful surprises in each work.” () Having grown up as a performer in jazz, rock, ska, country, and concert bands as well as in choirs and orchestras, Taylor is driven to write music that highlights the strengths of each performing ensemble. His catalog of more than 100 works covers a large range of styles and genres including music written for orchestra, wind band, opera, choir, jazz big band, gamelan, chamber ensembles, and soloists with live electronics. Further,...
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Don Stinson is a comprehensive music educator with a robust background spanning roles as an author, speaker, and clinician. He holds educational degrees from an array of prestigious institutions including Joliet Junior College, VanderCook College of Music, and Northern Illinois University. Adding to his educational background, Don also holds a Master’s in Education Administration from the University of St. Francis, bringing unparalleled expertise to his educational endeavors. Currently, Don is the director of bands at Joliet Central High School in Joliet, Illinois, distinguishing...
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DISCLAIMER Episodes 209-2011 were recorded in 2023 and have only recently been uploaded to the internet. There are some things that have changed since their recordings, so be aware that you are not listening to the most current events. Evan VanDoren is a freelance arranger, composer, and educational consultant. As the owner of VanDoren Music, Evan is commissioned each year to create works for concert and marching ensembles. He has arranged and orchestrated award-winning marching shows for numerous high school bands across the country. Evan is an active clinician, presenting for Drum Corps...
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Adrian Gordon is an internationally performed composer and seasoned music educator and currently serves as the director of orchestras at Providence Day School in Charlotte, NC. In addition to teaching, Adrian is the founder of Leap Year Music Publishing, which publishes string music for elementary, middle, and high school ensembles. His compositions appear on the Florida, Texas, Maryland, and Georgia Orchestra Association Music Performance Assessment Lists. His compositions are distributed through J.W. Pepper and have been performed throughout the world. Learn more at .
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Dr. Sixto F. Montesinos Jr. is assistant professor of music and head of instrumental studies at Saint Mary’s College of California in the San Francisco Bay Area. He is an active Mexican-American conductor, flutist, music educator, and scholar researching new and effective ways to strengthen Mexican-American relations through the study and performance of music. These include overcoming stereotypes as well as Mexican, LGBTQ+, and LatinX representation in the field of music education, repertoire, and performance He is the artistic director of the Saint Mary's College Jazz Band as well as its...
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Vu Nguyen is the Director of Wind Ensembles and Conducting at the University of the Pacific, Stockton, CA. Prior to his appointment at the University of Connecticut, he served as the Director of Bands at the University of Indianapolis, was a conductor of the Wind Ensemble at Washington University in St. Louis, and was a visiting conductor of the Indiana University Concert Band. He began his career teaching in the public schools of San Ramon, CA. Dr. Nguyen has conducted throughout the western United States and in Japan. He maintains an active schedule as a clinician and has served as guest...
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Saxophonist John Wojciechowski is originally from Detroit and has spent the last 18 years performing and teaching in Chicago. In addition to leading his own groups, he has performed or recorded with The Chicago Jazz Orchestra, The Chicago Jazz Ensemble, The Woody Herman Orchestra, The Chicago Symphony Orchestra, The Detroit Symphony Orchestra, Clark Terry, Charlie Haden, and Kurt Elling among many others. John was also a third place finalist in the 1996 Thelonious Monk International Jazz Competition. John has appeared on dozens of recordings as a sideman, and has two recordings as a...
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Joshua Johnson currently serves as the Associate Director of Bands at Traughber Junior High in Oswego, Illinois. Prior to coming to Oswego, Josh served as Director of Bands at North Kirkwood Middle School and Associate Director of Bands in Kirkwood, Missouri. Joshua attended the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign where he received his Bachelor of Music Education Degree with Honors. During his time at Illinois, he was a member of the Illinois Wind Symphony, the Marching Illini, the University of Illinois Black Chorus, and many other university ensembles. Josh studied Oboe with Professor...
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Karen Fannin is Professor, Director of Bands, and Interim Director of the School of Music at the University of Nebraska at Omaha where she conducts the Symphonic Wind Ensemble, teaches undergraduate and graduate conducting, instructs courses in music education, and provides leadership for all aspects of the UNO band program. Previously, Dr. Fannin served as Director of Bands and Department Chair at Hendrix College. While in Arkansas, Dr. Fannin also held the position of Music Director and Conductor of the Little Rock Wind Symphony. A native of Iowa, Dr. Fannin began her teaching career...
info_outlineRenee Todd is the band director at Ligon GT Magnet Middle School in Raleigh, North Carolina. In 2019-20 the Ligon Wind Ensemble was selected to perform in the Music For All National Concert Festival and the Jazz Ensemble at the Midwest International Band and Orchestra Clinic.
Topics:
- Renee’s background as a trumpet player and her studies at the University of Maryland.
- Renee’s first couple of teaching jobs and how she stayed patient until she ended up in her current position at Ligon GT Magnet Middle school.
- The process of preparing to take her jazz ensemble to Midwest Clinic and some thoughts about teaching jazz in the middle school.
Links:
Biography:
Renee Todd is currently in her eighth year as Director of Bands at Ligon GT Magnet Middle School and twenty-seventh year of teaching music. Under the direction of Ms. Todd, the Ligon Band program has grown to over 230 band members, with four wind bands and a jazz ensemble achieving superior ratings at both local and national music festivals. Ligon Bands will have a banner year as the Wind Ensemble was selected to perform in the 29th Music For All National Concert Festival in Indianapolis in March of 2020 while the Jazz Ensemble was selected to perform at the prestigious 73rd Midwest Band and Orchestra Clinic in December 2019. In 2018, the Ligon Jazz Ensemble performed for NCMEA (NC Music Educators Convention) in November and Ligon Wind Ensemble recently was awarded invited ensemble at the Music For All-Southeastern Regional Concert Band Festival in Atlanta in 2017 and selected to perform at NCMEA (NC Music Educators Convention) in 2015. Ms. Todd was honored in 2019 to receive the Award of Excellence by the Central District Band Directors Association. In 2018 she received Jazz Educator of the Year from the NC Central Region Jazz Educators and in 2016 awarded Band Director of the Year for the NC Central District.
In 1993, Ms. Todd received her Bachelor of Science in Music Education from the University of Maryland College Park, where she studied under John Wakefield, Emerson Head and L Richmond Sparks. While in college Ms. Todd was the drum major and trumpet section leader of the Mighty Sound of Maryland Marching Band and recipient of the Otto Sibenachen- Most Outstanding Musician in the top wind band at Maryland.
Before her appointment at Ligon, Ms.Todd was nominated Teacher Of The Year at both Dillard Drive and Wendell Middle Schools. She has served for site host for the Central District Band MPA and Wake All-County Band and served on the board for the Central District Band Association. Ms. Todd is a member of the National Association for Music Education, American School Band Directors Association, National Band Association, the North Carolina Music Educators Association, and Tau Beta Sigma.
As an active guest clinician and conductor, Ms. Todd is scheduled to direct several NC District Middle School Bands including the Southeastern All-District and South Central All-District Bands in 2020. In 2018 she conducted the Northwest All-District Band. Ms. Todd has conducted the Red Jr and Blue Jr Bands at UNCG Summer Music Camp, the Eastern, Central and Western Region Middle School Jazz Bands and the North Carolina Area Independent Schools Honor Band. She has served or is scheduled as a guest clinician for the Buncombe, Cleveland, Davidson, Durham, Johnston and Forsyth All-County, Bands. Ms. Todd is an active freelance trumpeter as well as a private instructor in the Triangle area.
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I am thrilled to announce a new partnership between the Everything Band podcast and Kaleidoscope Adventures, a full service tour company specializing in student group travel. With a former educator as its CEO, Kaleidoscope Adventures is dedicated to changing student lives through travel to over 40 destinations. They offer high quality service and an attention to detail that comes from more than 25 years of student travel experience. Trust Kaleidoscope’s outstanding staff to focus on your group’s one-of-a-kind adventure, so that you can focus on everything else!