conducting alumni
Alumni of the University of Maryland graduate wind conducting studio have gone on to teach in the public schools, pursue further studies at major institutions, create their own professional ensembles, and attain positions at a wide variety of collegiate settings across the country.
master of music, conducting, 2011
visiting assistant director of bands, virginia tech
DR. JONATHAN CALDWELL is Visiting Assistant Professor of Music and conductor of the Wind Ensemble at Virginia Tech. Prior to this appointment, he held positions at the University of Wisconsin–Stevens Point and in the Wake County Public School System in North Carolina. In addition to the Wind Ensemble, he also teaches conducting and music education courses including rehearsal techniques and lab ensemble. Dr. Caldwell completed his Doctor of Musical Arts degree in Conducting at the University of Michigan.
master of music, conducting, 2012
founder, upper chesapeake wind ensemble
current doctoral student, university of maryland wind conducting studio
website: davidwacyk.com
twitter: @davewacyk
DAVID WACYK is currently completing coursework toward a Doctor of Musical Arts Degree in Conducting at the University of Maryland where he serves as Assistant Conductor with the UMD Wind Orchestra and UMD Wind Ensemble.Prior to this appointment, David served as Director of Bands at North Harford High School.
David is the founder and conductor of the Upper Chesapeake Wind Ensemble, a community-based flexible instrumentation group comprised of professional and amateur musicians in northern Maryland. David holds a Master of Music degree in Conducting from University of Maryland, and a Bachelor of Music Education from Western Michigan University. He maintains an active schedule as a guest conductor and clinician throughout the Maryland region.
master of music, conducting, 2014
director of bands, southeastern university
DR. WILLIAM L. LAKE, JR., is an Assistant Professor of Music at Southeastern University. Professor Lake is director of the Southeastern University Wind Ensemble, Symphony Orchestra, Wind Chamber Ensemble, and Athletic Band. His additional academic responsibilities include teaching music appreciation courses and marching band techniques.
Dr. Lake completed his Doctor of Musical Arts degree in Instrumental Conducting at the University of North Carolina at Greensboro with Dr. John R. Locke and Dr. Kevin M. Geraldi (2018), and is the recipient of two master’s degrees, the first from Boston University in Music Education (2011), and the second from the University of Maryland, College Park in Wind Conducting (2014) under the mentorship of Dr. Michael Votta, Jr. In May 2006, Professor Lake received the Bachelor’s in Music Liberal Arts -Jazz Studies Piano Performance Degree from the University of Maryland, College Park as a student of Jon Ozment and Christopher Vadala. He was Drum Major of the “Mighty Sound of Maryland” Marching Band for four consecutive years. After graduating in 2006, Dr. Lake continued post-baccalaureate studies in instrumental music education with Dr. Bruce Carter.
Dr. Lake was hired by Prince George’s County Public School System as Director of Bands at Gwynn Park High School in 2007. The Gwynn Park High School band program experienced considerable growth during his tenure as instrumental music educator and music department chair. Dr. Lake has guest-conducted the Virginia Band and Orchestra Director’s District One Middle School Honors Band, the Prince George’s County Summer Instrumental Music Camp, and the Prince George’s County Middle School Honors Band. He is a member of the Conductor’s Guild, the College Band Directors National Association, Kappa Kappa Psi, National Honorary Band Fraternity, Inc., an honorary member of Tau Beta Sigma, National Honorary Band Sorority, Inc., Phi Mu Alpha, Sinfonia, and Alpha Phi Alpha, Fraternity, Inc.
doctor of musical arts, conducting, 2016
music director, santa clara university wind ensemble
DR. ANTHONY RIVERA is the conductor and music director of the Santa Clara University Wind Ensemble. He holds a Doctor of Musical Arts in wind conducting from the University of Maryland, a Master of Music in wind conducting from the Peabody Conservatory of The Johns Hopkins University, and a Bachelor of Music Education from the University of Central Florida. His teachers and mentors are Michael Votta, Jr., James Ross, and Harlan Parker.
An active guest conductor and clinician, Dr. Rivera was a guest conductor of the Providence College Honor Band, guest lecturer for the Maryland Music Educators Association, and was selected as a chamber music conductor for the Temple University Conductors Symposium. For ten years, he performed with the Handel Choir of Baltimore and served on the artistic committee and as conducting fellow. Dr. Rivera has guest conducted The United States Coast Guard Band, presenting Armand Russell’s Theme and Fantasia at the Eastern Division College Band Directors National Association Conference. He conducted a semi-staged production of his arrangement of Mozart’s Die Zauberflöte for wind instruments and vocal soloists with the UMD Wind Orchestra and Opera Studio. In 2018, Dr. Rivera will present at the College Band Directors National Association Western/Northwestern Division Conference.
Dr. Rivera taught instrumental music for the Baltimore County Public Schools and currently teaches part time at San Jose High School. In an effort to promote new music and repertoire for young bands, he commissioned two pieces from composer David Faleris. “Of Chivalry and Valor,” recently won the 2014 National Band Association Merrill Jones Composition Contest. In 2012, Dr. Rivera was awarded Teacher of the Year from the Essex Chamber of Commerce and received citations for teaching excellence from the Maryland Senate and House of Representatives for creating a vibrant music program at Eastern Technical High School.
doctor of musical arts, conducting, 2018
founding director of instrumental ensembles, randolph-macon college
website: briancoffill.com
twitter: @briancoffill
DR. BRIAN COFFILL is the Founding Director of Instrumental Ensembles and Assistant Professor of Music at Randolph-Macon College in Ashland, Virginia, where he created and conducts the Randolph-Macon Ensemble, a chamber orchestra dedicated to creatively exploring both historic and cutting-edge music of all genres. This innovative musical endeavor is funded in part by a major grant from the Mellon Foundation. Brian is committed to the expansion of the instrumental repertoire and the development of twenty-first century performance experiences for musicians and audiences. He also teaches courses in conducting, music theory, and music education, and maintains an active schedule as a conductor and clinician throughout the United States.
Prior to arriving at Randolph-Macon, Brian was the Assistant Conductor of the Wind Orchestra and Wind Ensemble at the University of Maryland, where he earned his Doctor of Musical Arts degree in Conducting. His doctoral dissertation, The Wind Band Works of the MENC Contemporary Music Project Library," is soon to become a significant web-based resource for conductors. Brian earned a Master of Music degree in Conducting from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, where he served as Associate Conductor for the university’s many concert and athletic bands, including the famed Illinois Wind Symphony and Marching Illini. Prior to his graduate studies, Brian held positions teaching both bands and orchestras in the public schools of Virginia and Maryland, and earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Music as well as a Bachelor of Science degree in Education from the University of Connecticut.
Brian has been invited to present his research on both Charles Ives and Baseball and the Wind Band at major conferences; his paper, "Charles Ives’ Decoration Day – A Conductor’s Guide,” will be published by the College Band Directors National Association Journal in 2018. Brian is a member of the Society for American Baseball Research, where he serves on the Baseball Arts Committee and as an editor for the SABR Journal of Baseball Arts, as well as a member of various professional and service organizations in music and music education.
joseph scott
master of music, conducting, 2018
current doctoral student, university of maryland wind conducting studio
JOSEPH P. SCOTT will be graduating this spring with a Master of Music in Wind Conducting, studying under Dr. Michael Votta. Before coming to the University of Maryland, Joseph was the Director of Instrumental Music at Clayton Valley Charter High School in Concord, California, where he was responsible for conducting the Wind Ensemble, Symphonic Band, Orchestra, Jazz Band, and Marching Band, as well as instructing Advanced Placement Music Theory.
Joseph earned his B.M. in Music Education from the University of Oregon where he studied with Dr. Wayne Bennett and Robert Ponto. While at the University of Oregon, Joseph was a founding member of the university’s chapter of Kappa Kappa Psi. After graduating, he returned to San Francisco where he received his teaching credential from San Francisco State University. While at SFSU, Joseph was on staff at the Ruth Asawa School of the Arts where he conducted the Concert Band and taught Music Theory and Survey classes. Joseph is a member of the College Band Directors National Association as well as the National Association for Music Education and served for three years as a board member of the California Music Educators Association-Bay Section. This spring Joseph was selected as a semi-finalist for the American Prize in wind conducting. Joseph was selected as a tier one conductor for the 2017 Frederick Fennell Memorial Conducting Masterclass at the Eastman School of Music where he worked with Mark Scatterday, Donald Hunsberger, and Craig Kirchhoff. Other conducting teachers include James Ross, Michael Haithcock, Courtney Snyder, and Harvey Benstein.
While in the Bay Area, Joseph kept an active schedule playing the clarinet, performing with the Contra Costa Chamber Orchestra, Chabot Wind Symphony, Golden Gate Park Band, and the San Francisco Wind Ensemble, which performed at the World Association of Symphonic Bands and Ensembles in 2015 and recorded its inaugural CD at Skywalker Ranch in 2014. Joseph looks forward to returning to the University of Maryland in the fall, when he will begin coursework towards a Doctor of Musical Arts degree.