Assembled for their talent, teaching ability, dedication, and enthusiasm for music, distinguished music professionals teach the Gatorland Band Camps. The camp faculty is comprised of university professors as well as outstanding middle school and high school educators. Carefully selected Graduate Students and Undergraduate Students serve as counselors and mentors throughout camp. Together, their knowledge and experience support an extraordinary educational opportunity where campers build confidence, develop their musicianship, and have lots of fun!
Camp Directors/Conductors
David Waybright
Jay Watkins
Chip Birkner
Instrumental Faculty
Flute - Dr. Kristen Stoner
Clarinet - Prof. Mitch Estrin
Oboe - Dr. Dione Chandler
Bassoon - Dr. Shannon Lowe
Saxophone - Dr. Jonathan Helton
Horn - Dr. Paul Basler
Trumpet - Dr. Mark Wood
Trombone - Dr. Jemmie Robertson
Euph/Tuba -
Dr. Danielle VanTuinen
Percussion - Dr. Ken Broadway
Meet Our Faculty!
Click on a name to read their bio.
Dr. David A. Waybright received his Bachelor of Arts and Master of Arts degrees at Marshall University and the Doctor of Musical Arts degree in orchestral conducting from the Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music. He taught initially at Wahama High School in Mason, West Virginia and since that time has served as Director of Bands at Ferrum College, Plymouth State College, and Director of Bands and Orchestra at McNeese State University. Dr. Waybright is currently Director of Bands at the University of Florida, where he holds the rank of professor and is the head of the conducting area.
He directs the wind symphony and supervises the band program and the graduate and undergraduate conducting curricula. Dr. Waybright is in demand as a guest conductor and clinician with wind bands, orchestras, and choirs, and has appeared in that capacity in most of the 50 states, throughout Europe, Asia and Australia. He has held residencies at many of the nation's leading music schools. In addition, he is active in the commissioning and performance of new music and has won the praise of composers such as Dana Wilson, Michael Torke, Donald Grantham, John Corigliano and Leslie Bassett for his interpretation of their works. There are many recordings available featuring the University of Florida Wind Symphony under his direction.
Dr. Waybright is an elected member of the American Bandmasters Association where he serves on the Board of Directors and is a lifetime member of the World Association of Symphonic Bands and Ensembles. He is also a member of the College Band Director\'s National Association, Music Educators National Convention and Florida Music Educators Association. Ensembles under his direction have performed invited concerts at conferences sponsored by all of those organizations. Dr. Waybright is also a member of Pi Kappa Lambda and an honorary member of Phi Mu Alpha, Tau Beta Sigma and Kappa Kappa Psi. He is a National Arts Associate honorary of Sigma Alpha Iota.
Mr. John M. “Jay” Watkins, Jr. serves the Gator Nation as the Associate Director of Bands, Director of Athletic Bands, Assistant Professor in the School of Music and as the Director of the “Pride of the Sunshine” - The Gator Marching Band. Prior to his appointment at UF, he served as Assistant to the Director of Bands, Assistant Director of the Longhorn Band, and Conductor of the Longhorn Basketball, Volleyball and Concert Bands at The University of Texas at Austin, where he was the principle guest conductor of the Symphony Band and the show designer for the Longhorn Band.
In the past, ensembles under his direction have performed and recorded with over 36 Grammy-award winning artists in a program he developed to integrate the academic, athletics and live music communities of Central Texas. Prior to his appointment at Texas, he served as the Director of Bands and Associate Professor of Music at Charleston Southern University (SC), where he was also the Coordinator of Instrumental Music Education. Mr. Watkins has received recognition as the CSU Outstanding Faculty Member of the Year and as a recipient of the National Band Association’s “Citation of Excellence”, and was the founder, Music Director and Conductor of The Lowcountry Winds, a professional wind ensemble based in Charleston, SC. He has also served as the Director of the U.S. Navy Drum & Bugle Corps and the Director of Instrumental Music at the U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis, MD, and as a teacher in the public schools in North Carolina, Maryland and Virginia. Prior to his work in music education, he worked for the US Naval Research Laboratory as a research associate in the areas of liquid fuel propellants and their stability and published over 75 articles in refereed science journals.
Mr. Watkins is a native of Falls Church, VA and earned Bachelor of Science and Master of Music Education degrees from George Mason University and Valdosta State University. He holds professional memberships in numerous organizations, served as South Carolina State Chair and Southern Division Chair for the National Band Association, and is an elected member of Phi Beta Mu, the International Bandmaster’s Fraternity. Mr. Watkins remains very active as a designer, clinician and adjudicator throughout the country. He is married to the former Natalie Kay McLain of Duncan, SC; they have one son, Jacob.
Dr. Birkner serves the University of Florida as Assistant Professor of Music and Assistant Director of Bands, where he directs the University Concert Bands, the Contemporary Music Ensemble, Gator Pep Bands, and is Associate Director of the ‘Pride of the Sunshine’ Marching Band. Additionally, he serves the UF School of Music teaching courses in conducting and music education, as well as observing student teachers. Prior to his appointment at the University of Florida, Dr. Birkner taught in the public schools of The Woodlands, TX, Tomball, TX, and La Porte, TX.
He received his Bachelor of Music Education with Performer’s Certificate, Master of Music in Percussion Performance, and Ph.D. in Music Education/Instrumental Conducting from the University of Florida.
Dr. Birkner has conducted ensembles across the United States, Europe, and South America. He is the Assistant Conductor of the Ocala Symphony Orchestra, where he also serves as Principal Timpanist. He remains active as a guest conductor, performer, and clinician throughout the southeastern United States. He holds professional memberships with the World Association of Symphonic Bands and Ensembles, the College Band Directors National Association, the Florida Music Educators Association, Florida Bandmasters Association, and Phi Mu Alpha Professional Music Fraternity. In addition, Dr. Birkner holds honorary memberships in Kappa Kappa Psi and Tau Beta Sigma.
Dr. Kristen Stoner, an active recitalist and masterclass teacher, is enjoying her eighteenth year as the flute professor at UF. She has performed as a soloist, a chamber musician, and an orchestra member across the United States, South America, Australia, Asia, and Europe. She received her Bachelor's degree from the University of Texas at Austin and her MM and DMA from the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music. She studied flute with Karl Kraber, Bradley Garner, Jacqueline Hofto, and William Montgomery. She has performed in masterclasses for Julius Baker, Carol Wincenc, Randy Bowman, Jill Felber, Jim Walker, and others.
An active member of the Florida Flute Association, Dr. Stoner has served that organization as Chair of the Board, Program Chair, Vice-President, President, and Board Member. Recently, she served as Assistant Program Chair for the National Flute Association 2018 Convention in Orlando, and has served on several NFA committees and as a judge for multiple competitions. Dr. Stoner has performed at the NFA Conventions in Salt Lake City, (2019), Minneapolis (2017), San Diego (2016), Washington D.C. (2015), New Orleans (2013), Las Vegas (2012), Anaheim (2010), Albuquerque (2007), Pittsburgh (2006), San Diego (2005), Nashville (2004), Washington, D.C. (2002), Dallas (2001), and Atlanta (1999). Completing her seventeenth year as principal flutist of the Ocala Symphony Orchestra, she has also served as principal of the Florida Lakes Symphony Orchestra. Dr. Stoner has performed in prestigious competitions around the country, including the NFA's Young Artist Competition, the Flute Talk Magazine Competition in Chicago, and the Myrna Brown Competition in Dallas. She has also performed in the Opera Theatre of Lucca in Italy, the Lancaster Festival Orchestra, Jacksonville Symphony, and the Victoria Bach Festival.
In the summer of 2019, Dr. Stoner performed at Lully Hall in the Ghent Opera House, Ghent, Belgium as part of the College Music Society International Conference. Dr. Stoner was invited to perform in 2017 at the Christchurch Cathedral in Newcastle and the Sydney Conservatorium of Music, both in Australia, as well as at Sunway University in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. With Duo Anno 1647 (a flute and piano duo with Dr. Manabu Takasawa, piano, of the University of Rhode Island), she toured Europe in 2016, performing in Paris at the American Cathedral and in Dublin at the DIT Conservatory of Music and Dance. In 2015, Dr. Stoner completed a solo European tour, including recitals and masterclasses in Lucca, Italy; Paris, France; and London, England. She was also a featured performer at the College Music Society International Conference in Stockholm, Sweden and Helsinki, Finland.
Intrigued by Latin American flute music, Dr. Stoner has done research on the flute music of Brazil, Argentina, and Chile. Her doctoral thesis on flute music of Brazil won the National Flute Association Thesis and Dissertation Competition in 2002. She presented further related research at the College Music Society International Conference in Belgium in 2019. In 2003, she was invited to Chile to perform and give masterclasses at the Conservatorio Nacional in Santiago and at the Universidad Catolica de Valparaiso. In 2005, she was invited to perform and teach at the XV Internacional Festival de Flautistas in Quito, Ecuador. In the summer of 2011, she performed at the Festival Internacional de Inverno de Campos do Jordao and taught a masterclass at the Conservatorio de Tatui, both in Brazil. She performed an invited solo recital and concerto at the Festival Internacional de Flautistas in Lima, Peru, in May of 2013.
Dr. Stoner is an advocate of new flute compositions by women composers, and she has performed many new compositions at ten major national and international music festivals since 2001, and on recitals across the globe. Her flute orchestra arrangement of Charles Gounod’s Petite Symphonie, published by Megido Press/ALRY Publications, has been performed countless times across the United States, including at multiple NFA Conventions. The University of Florida Flute Ensemble, which Dr. Stoner conducts, was a featured group at the NFA Conventions in 2006 and 2011.
Her latest CD, Colors for Solo Flute, was released by Memnon Arts in September of 2013. This album of unaccompanied flute compositions by American composers has received glowing reviews from the National Flute Association's periodical, The Flutist Quarterly. Images for Solo Flute, Dr. Stoner's debut solo CD, was released on the Meyer Media label in 2010 and was positively reviewed by the Flutist Quarterly (NFA) and Flute Talk Magazine. The CD includes music by Katherine Hoover, Shulamit Ran, Shafer Mahoney, Claude Debussy, Arthur Honegger, Victoria Bond, Ivana Loudova, Kristen Stoner, Cesar Vivanco Sanchez, Eugene Bozza, and Libby Larsen. Five of the works are world premiere recordings. Please visit http://kristenstoner.com for more information.
Mitchell Estrin is Professor of Clarinet at the University of Florida and Music Director and Conductor of the University of Florida Clarinet Ensemble. He also serves as the Artistic Director of the annual Vandoren Clarinet Ensemble Festival and was founder of the Buffet Crampon USA Summer Clarinet Academy. In 2016, Prof. Estrin was elected President-Elect of the International Clarinet Association.
Mitchell Estrin studied clarinet with Stanley Drucker at The Juilliard School where he received his Bachelors and Masters degrees and was a Naumburg Scholar. He had a 25-year association with the New York Philharmonic, where he performed in more than 2,000 concerts as principal, second, and E-flat clarinetist under such distinguished conductors as Alan Gilbert, Lorin Maazel, Kurt Masur, Zubin Mehta, Leonard Bernstein, Pierre Boulez, Erich Leinsdorf, Sir Georg Solti, Claudio Abbado, Klaus Tennstedt, Andre Previn, and Leonard Slatkin. He accompanied the orchestra on 19 international tours, made dozens of recordings with the orchestra, and on numerous occasions performed with the Philharmonic on the PBS award winning series, Live From Lincoln Center.
As an international concert artist, Mitchell Estrin has performed in 37 countries on 4 continents. During a visit to the Czech Republic, he performed and recorded with the Janacek Philharmonic in the world premiere of The Shadows of October for clarinet and orchestra by Michael Whalen. The work was recorded on the Arabesque label and the CD is being aired on classical radio stations internationally. The recording was reviewed in The Clarinet, which stated: “This beautiful and lushly scored tonal piece…. is performed by clarinetist Mitchell Estrin…. He plays beautifully with a lovely colored tone.”
An active chamber musician, he has performed with The Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center, New Arts Trio, been an Artist-in-Residence at the Newport Music Festival, and was a founding member of the Amadeus Ensemble. The ensemble recorded a critically acclaimed series of wind chamber music for Musical Heritage Society. Other chamber music projects include recordings of wind serenades by Dvorak and Mozart with the American Chamber Winds, and Monochrome III by Peter Schickele under the composer’s direction.
Prof. Estrin has presented recitals, masterclasses, workshops, and seminars at educational conferences and institutions throughout the United States, including the Eastman School of Music, Peabody Conservatory, Florida State University, University of Maryland, University of Alabama, Texas A&M University, New York State School Music Association, Connecticut School Music Association, and Florida Music Educators Association. He has performed in recital with clarinetists Stanley Drucker, Karl Leister, and Mark Nuccio.
Widely acclaimed as a conductor and proponent of the clarinet choir, Prof. Estrin has served as director of the International Clarinet Association ClarinetFest College, Festival, and Professors Clarinet Choirs, Oklahoma Clarinet Symposium Clarinet Choir, Texas Clarinet Colloquium Clarinet Choir, and United States Navy Clarinet Choir. He has conducted the University of Florida Clarinet Ensemble throughout the United States and Europe, including three feature recitals at the International Clarinet Association ClarinetFest. The ensemble has produced three full-length CD's for Mark Masters, Clarinet Choir Classics (2012), Clarinet Thunder (2009), and Wind in the Reeds (2006). Each of these recordings was selected for the Grammy Nomination eligibility list. The ensemble's fourth CD, Christmas Clarinets, is scheduled for released in December 2016. Prof. Estrin is a published author on the history, development, and logistics of the clarinet choir and his critical edition of the Weber Concertino for Clarinet, opus 26 is published by Jeanné.
As a studio musician, Prof. Estrin recorded dozens of motion picture soundtracks for Columbia Pictures, Walt Disney Pictures, Paramount Pictures, MGM, 20th Century Fox, United Artists, and Warner Brothers on feature films including Aladdin, The Alamo, Intolerable Cruelty, The Score, You’ve Got Mail, Primary Colors, Fargo, Batman Forever, Interview With a Vampire, Home Alone 2, Pocahontas, Doc Hollywood, Regarding Henry, Beauty and the Beast, The Untouchables, Reds, and Dressed to Kill. His television credits include recordings for ABC, NBC, CBS, CNN, HBO, TBS, and ESPN. Prof. Estrin was principal clarinetist for the NBC 75th Anniversary Special; broadcast from the famed NBC Studio 8H in New York City. He has appeared on The Late Show with David Letterman, The Phil Donahue Show, the television series Nurse, and in Kramer vs. Kramer, the 1980 Academy Award Winner for Best Picture. His clarinet playing has also been heard on hundreds of television and radio commercials. The National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences has recognized him for his outstanding performances as a recording artist.
Mitchell Estrin is a Buffet Crampon Clarinet Artist and performs exclusively on the Buffet R13 clarinet. As a Vandoren Performing Artist, he endorses and performs exclusively on Vandoren reeds and mouthpieces. Prof. Estrin's educational articles are published regularly in the Vandoren Wave and his biography is listed in Who’s Who in American Music and Who’s Who in International Music.
Dr. Shannon Lowe served as the Associate Professor of Bassoon at Valdosta State University. She has also served as adjunct Assistant Professor of Bassoon at the University of Florida. She received her Doctor of Musical Arts degree in Bassoon Performance at SUNY Stony Brook, where she studied with the renowned performer and pedagogue Dr. Frank Morelli. She received her Bachelor of Music Education degree with a Performance Certificate as well as her Master of Music in Bassoon Performance degree from the University of Florida, under both Dr. Arnold Irchai and Dr. Kim Woolly.
Currently, Dr. Lowe is the principal bassoonist of the Valdosta Symphony Orchestra, 2014 recipient of the American Prize for Best Community Orchestra. Judges of this competition stated "The individual wind and brass players are of high quality and play with lovely tone." She is also principal bassoonist of the Albany (GA) Symphony Orchestra. She actively performs with preeminent orchestras in the southeast such as the Jacksonville Symphony Orchestra, Florida Orchestra, Charleston Symphony Orchestra, Hilton Head Symphony Orchestra, Columbus Symphony, Sinfonia Gulf Coast, and Macon Symphony. For six seasons, she was principal bassoonist of the Gainesville Chamber Orchestra (now known as the Gainesville Orchestra).
An avid chamber musician, Dr. Lowe performs in several chamber groups in the southeast. Recently, she became bassoonist for the Anon Ensemble, a group consisting of flute, viola, and bassoon. In April 2015, the ensemble was featured in an online premiere of Eva Kendrick's Juntos at the 20th Anniversary Congress of the International Alliance of Women in Music (IAWM). Kendrick's Juntos was the recipient of the Judith Lang Zaimont Prize for the IAWM 2014 New Music Search. She is a founding member of the Scirocco Quartet which has performed to high acclaim throughout the southeast and southwest. The group has been a featured performance ensemble at the National Flute Association Conference, Florida Flute Convention, and Symphony at the Museum Series in Albany, Georgia.
Dr. Lowe has frequently performed at International Double Reed Society Conferences as a member of chamber music ensembles comprised of colleagues and alumni from the University of Florida. Her most recent performance was with the Ragin’ Reeds Quartet at the 2015 IDRS Conference in Tokyo, Japan. Along with VSU’s Azalea String Quartet, she looks forward to presenting a recital of works for bassoon and strings at the 2016 IDRS Conference in Columbus (GA) State University.
Dr. Lowe has participated in the Sarasota Music Festival and International Music Festival in Burgos, Spain. Also, she has performed at the prestigious Campos do Jordão International Music Festival (Brazil). She has premiered contemporary works for the bassoon at the Florida Electroacoustic Music Festival as well as the Third Practice Electroacoustic Music Festival in Richmond, Virginia. Additionally, in November 2013, Dr. Lowe was the featured soloist with the Valdosta Symphony Orchestra on Mozart's Bassoon Concerto.
She is passionate about presenting clinics for music educators and bassoonists with the intent of sharing tips, techniques, and triumphs for successful bassoon playing. In January 2015, Dr. Lowe was co-presenter with colleague Dr. Susan Eischeid in a session called “Be Not Afraid! Double Reeds Made Accessible: A Quick Start Session for Music Educators” at the Georgia Music Educators Association Conference held in Savannah, Georgia. Recently, her article “Venting on the Bassoon” was published in The Instrumentalist Magazine.
Jonathan Helton is Professor of Saxophone at the School of Music of the University of Florida. As a concert saxophonist he has been heard in performance throughout the United States, Canada, in Europe and the Far East, appearing with orchestras and wind ensembles, in recital, and in numerous chamber concerts. He has performed in Chicago, Montreal, Paris, Bordeaux, Marseille, London, Beijing, Shanghai, Tianjin, Tokyo, Singapore, Bangkok, Taipei, Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Vancouver, Montreal, Calgary, Washington, D.C., Chicago, Miami, Minneapolis, Milwaukee, and New York City’s Lincoln Center. His performance credits include concerto appearances with the New Philharmonia of Riverside in New York City, Winston-Salem (NC) Symphony, the Northwestern University Symphonic Wind Ensemble, the Iowa Center for New Music Ensemble, the United States Navy Band, and the Twelfth and Fifteenth World Saxophone Congress Wind Orchestras.
In recent years, Helton has been selected to present concertos and featured lectures at many of the most prestigious international conferences and festivals. He has performed concertos at the World Saxophone Congresses in Bangkok and Montreal, the World Association of Symphonic Bands and Ensembles (WASBE) conference in Singapore, the North American Saxophone Alliance Biennial Conferences in Iowa City and Athens, and at the 33rd US Navy Band International Saxophone Symposium in Washington, DC. He appeared as a featured lecturer/clinician at the Midwest Band and Orchestra Clinic in Chicago and for the National Conference of the College Music Society in Miami.
Dr. Helton has performed at the New Music Chicago Spring Festival and has been a resident artist at the Music for the Inner City festival in Washington, DC. He has appeared in concerts sponsored by the Chicago Composers’ Consortium, the University of Chicago Contemporary Chamber Players, the Wisconsin Alliance of Composers, and the Society of Composers Incorporated. In addition, his performances have been heard on North Carolina Public Radio, on WFMT in Chicago, and in national syndication. He is featured in solo and chamber music performances on compact discs from Centaur, Elf/Ludwig, Innova, and Mark Records. His recording of the Dahl Concerto was a "Top 100" Grammy-nominated album.
His orchestral experience includes performances with the Lyric Opera of Chicago, the Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra, the Jacksonville Symphony Orchestra, the Grant Park Symphony, the Lake Forest Symphony, the Charleston Symphony, the Savannah Symphony Orchestra, the Northwest Indiana Symphony Orchestra, the Winston-Salem Symphony, the Civic Orchestra of Chicago, and the Charlotte Symphony Orchestra.
Helton is a past President of the North American Saxophone Alliance. He serves on the Editorial Board for The Saxophone Symposium. He has served as Membership Director, Director of Scholarly Publications, and Listserv Manager for the North American Saxophone Alliance and as Illinois State Chair for the Music Teachers’ National Association Collegiate Artists Performance Competitions and the MTNA Collegiate Chamber Music Performance Competition. He has also served as a member of the Governing Board of the Illinois State Music Teachers' Association. His analytical articles and music and book reviews have appeared in The Saxophone Symposium, Saxophone Journal, and the National Association of College Wind and Percussion Instructors Journal.
Dr. Helton received his Bachelor of Music degree from the North Carolina School of the Arts and earned the Master of Music and Doctor of Music degrees from Northwestern University. Helton's principal teachers included Frederick Hemke and James Houlik. As a two-time recipient of the Harriet Hale Woolley Scholarship, he spent two years in France where he studied with Daniel Deffayet, professor at the Conservatoire National Supérieur de Musique de Paris, and with Jean-Marie Londeix, professor at the Conservatoire National de Région de Bordeaux.
He developed and presented over 300 performances, demonstrations, master classes and lectures to diverse audiences during a two-year residency with the North Carolina Arts Council's Visiting Artist Program. From 1992 to 1999, he served on the faculty at Northwestern University teaching saxophone and chamber music, and held an administrative appointment as Coordinator of the Wind and Percussion Program. Dr. Helton joined the faculty at the University of Florida in 1999.
Dr. Helton is an Artist/Clinician for Conn-Selmer, Inc. and for Henri Selmer Paris.
Paul Basler, 1993-94 Fulbright Senior Lecturer in Music at Kenyatta University (Nairobi, Kenya), 1995-96 University of Florida Teacher of the Year, 2001-03 UF College of the Arts Research Foundation Professor, and recipient of the 2016-18 UF Provost’s Term Professorship Award, is Professor of Music at the University of Florida where he teaches horn and undergraduate composition courses and has been a member of the faculty since 1993. He taught at Western Carolina University for four years and prior to coming to WCU, was the North Carolina Visiting Artist in Residence at Caldwell Community College. He received his B.M. degree from Florida State University, M.M., M.A. and D.M.A. degrees from Stony Brook University and has received teaching awards and citations from the University of Florida College of the Arts, Stony Brook University, Western Carolina University, Kenyatta University and the Kenya Office of the President/Permanent Music Commission. Dr. Basler has also served as a board member and consultant to numerous national and international arts organizations and is a frequent guest lecturer at educational conferences worldwide.
Basler was resident hornist at the annual Composers Conference in Boston from 1991-2004 and has performed as guest artist at numerous International Horn Society Workshops, the Llangollen International Musical Eisteddfod in Wales, the Winchester International Music Festival in England, the Festival Internacional de Música de Cantonigrós in Spain and the St. Petersburg International Chamber Music Festival in Russia. Basler has been a member of the Brevard, Charleston, Valdosta, Greenville, Asheville, Tallahassee and Gainesville Symphonies, and continues to maintain a busy performing schedule throughout the United States and abroad, having premiered over 200 works written for him. He also has received several American Cultural Affairs Specialist Grants from the U.S. Department of State and has served as Visiting Professor with the Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama and the Dominican Republic’s Ministry of Culture and National Conservatory of Music. Basler has been a faculty member of the Kendall Betts Horn Camp since 2012 and was a featured artist at the 2015 Northeast Horn Workshop at Penn State University and the 2016 Northwest Horn Symposium at Central Washington University.
One of the most performed composers of his generation, his music have been received with enthusiastic acclaim throughout the world, the New York Times describing his music as “virtuosic and highly athletic.” The recipient of the North Carolina Arts Council Composer's Fellowship and several National Endowment for the Arts Composer/Teacher grants, Basler's compositions have been performed throughout the world and recent compositions have received performances at Carnegie Hall, the Disney Concert Hall in Los Angeles, Tanglewood, the Spoleto Festival, Symphony Hall in Chicago, Kennedy Center, the National Theatres of the Dominican Republic and Kenya, Lincoln Center, the Sydney Opera House, the Aspen Music Festival, the Grand Teton Music Festival and in Shanghai by the Shanghai Philharmonic. His music is published by Carl Fischer, Colla Voce Music, Walton Music, Hinshaw Music, Southern Music, R.M. Williams Publishing, Veritas Musica Publications, ALRY Publications and the IHS Press.
Basler's horn teachers have included William Purvis, William Capps and Barry Benjamin and his composition teachers have been John Boda, John Downey, Bülent Arel, John Lessard and Billy Jim Layton.
Jemmie Robertson former Associate Professor of Trombone and Euphonium and the 2015-2016 Faculty Senate Chair at Eastern Illinois University where he performs with the Faculty Brass Quintet and the Faculty Jazz Combo. Jemmie maintains an active studio, enjoys teaching trombone and euphonium, conducts a weekly studio class, directs the Eastern CrossBones, coaches chamber music, organizes guest artists, and is currently president of the Eastern Illinois Trombone Chapter.
Dr. Robertson is currently organizing the 2nd Annual Midwest Trombone Euphonium Conference (MTEC) to take place at EIU October 30th – November 1st, 2015 on the campus of Eastern Illinois University in Charleston, Illinois. MTEC is conceived to promote pedagogy, research and performance for our instruments. Please contact him at jrobertson@eiu.edu if you or your students are interested in performing or presenting at this new conference.
Jemmie is currently bass-trombonist of the newly formed American Trombone Quartet, which will debut at MTEC 2015 and follow-up that performance with a Spring 2016 tour to Virginia. Jemmie is an active musician in the Chicago area where he has performed with Lyric Opera of Chicago, Music of the Baroque, Chicago Chamber Musicians, Civic Orchestra of Chicago, Chicago Philharmonic, Chicago Sinfonietta, Chicagoland Pops Orchestra, Tower Brass, and many other area ensembles including the Peoria Symphony, Champaign-Urbana Symphony, the Millikin-Decatur Symphony, the Prairie Ensemble, and the Danville Symphony.
In 2006, Jemmie completed a DM at Northwestern University. Jemmie also holds degrees from Yale University and the University of Northern Colorado. Previously, Jemmie was a member of the Virginia Symphony and the U.S. Air Force Heritage of America Band. Jemmie has performed and/or presented at the 1999 & 2006 Alessi Seminars; the 2004, 2008, and 2013 International Trombone Festivals; at several Eastern Trombone Workshops; and at the 2013 Big Twelve Trombone Festival, Illinois Music Educator’s Conference, Mid-west Regional Tuba Euphonium Conference, and the Harvey Phillip’s Northwest Big Brass Bash.
In 2015, he released his second solo CD, The Conditions of a Solitary Bird, featuring unaccompanied works by Lawrence Borden, Frigyes Hidas, and Phil Snedecor. His first solo CD, A New Day Dawning, was released on the MSR Classics Label in 2008. Dr. Robertson presented at the International Tuba Euphonium Conference in May 2014, returned as a member of the Breckenridge Music Festival Orchestra in Summer 2015 (Member since 2000) and returned as Principal Trombone of the Santo Domingo Festival Orchestra in Spring 2015, in addition to other engagements.
His primary teachers include Michael Mulcahy, Scott Hartman, John Swallow, Milt Stevens, Joe Alessi, Buddy Baker, and his father, James D. Robertson, to whom this project is dedicated. Jemmie is an Edwards Performing Artist and Clinician. In his free time, Jemmie enjoys spending time with his wife, Christine, and son, James, and when the schedule permits he enjoys road biking, skiing and hiking.
Dr. Danielle VanTuinen is a low brass performer, educator, and entrepreneur from Rochester, New Hampshire. She recently served as low brass faculty at the Portland Conservatory of Music, adjunct staff for the marching band at the University of New Hampshire, Educational Representative with Music and Arts, and a private lessons instructor at Timberlane High School and throughout northern New England. From 2013-2017, she served as a Graduate Teaching Assistant in Tuba and Euphonium at Arizona State University where she instructed low brass methods and taught private lessons to tuba/euphonium majors. Danielle is the co-founder of the Moreau | VanTuinen Duo and an active presenter, clinician, and performing artist throughout the United States and Europe.
Prior to her work in New England, Danielle was the low brass instructor for the Phoenix Youth Symphony. Her responsibilities included small group and ensemble coaching for middle and high school students participating in the organization’s bands and orchestras. During the 2016-2017 academic year, she coached the Arizona State University concert band low brass section, comprised of first-year and non-major performers. Danielle has been invited to adjudicate at a variety of festivals, including the New Hampshire MEA Solo & Ensemble Competition, the Paul l. Willwerth Brass Competition at Central Michigan University, the Maine and Arizona All-State Festivals, and the AETYB Young Artist Competition in Spain. As a strong proponent of new music, she has actively participated as a member and coordinator of several commissioning projects for both solo euphonium/tuba and percussion/euphonium repertoire. This passion has resulted in over 15 new works from 2016-2018, three of which will be premiered by her in 2019.
Dr. VanTuinen has performed with several ensembles throughout Arizona, Michigan and the New England areas, including the Phoenix Ballet, West Valley Symphony Orchestra, the Grand Rapids Symphony, the Salt River Brass Band, and the New England Brass Band. As a co-founder of the Moreau | VanTuinen Duo, she has been invited to perform at the Spanish Association of Tubas and Euphoniums, Northern Arizona University, Ithaca College, the Miraphone Academy of the Southwest, the United States Pershing’s Own Army Band Tuba-Euphonium Workshop, and the International Women’s Brass Conference as a guest artist and educational presenter.
Danielle earned a Doctor of Musical Arts degree in Music Performance from Arizona State University. Her culminating doctoral project, “Euphonium and Live Interactive Electronics: A Performer’s Examination of Three New Works”, sought to provide historical context and expand the electroacoustic repertoire for low brass. She holds a Master of Music degree in Music Performance from Arizona State University and a Bachelors of Music degree in Music Performance from Central Michigan University. Her principal mentors include Dr. Deanna Swoboda, Professor Douglas Yeo, Dr. Mark Cox, and Professor Scott Hanson. Danielle is an active member of the International Tuba Euphonium Association and the International Women’s Brass Conference.
Equally at home behind timpani, steel pan, or the drumset, Dr. Kenneth Broadway has a passion for training the next generation of teachers, performers, and leaders in the field of music. He has served as Director of Percussion Studies at the University of Florida since 1997, and served in similar capacities at the University of South Dakota and Augusta State University. Students from UF have gone on to careers in music education, assistantships at graduate schools throughout the US, college teaching positions, and performance and teaching posts as far off as Scotland and Australia. Ensembles from UF have performed at the Percussive Arts Society International Convention (1998, 2003) and numerous “Day of Percussion” state meetings.
Dr. Broadway has performed at Carnegie Hall, the Spoleto Festival, and with symphonies in Florida, Georgia, Iowa, South Carolina, and South Dakota. He has also traveled to Spain and Kenya as part of the World Music Mission, a multi-national network of musicians, writers, worship leaders, engineers and ethno-musicologists. As a performer, composer, and presenter, Dr. Broadway has appeared at various conferences and symposiums throughout North America, Europe and Australia. Among these are the Midwest Clinic, the Percussive Arts Society International Convention, the Symposium of the International Musicological Society, the College Music Society International Convention, the Hawaii International Conference on the Arts and Humanities, the World Saxophone Congress, The Music Educators National Conference, the National Association of College Wind and Percussion Instructors National Conference, and the North American Saxophone Alliance National Conference.
His compact disc with the LYNX Duo (Music for Saxophone and Percussion) is available on the Mark Custom Recording label, and he is featured on other recordings on the Mark and Capstone labels. Dr. Broadway is active in the Percussive Arts Society, the College Music Society, and NACWPI. He is the Past President of the National Association of College Wind and Percussion Instructors (2010-12), and is the Past President of the Florida Chapter (2005-08) and Past President of the South Dakota Chapter (1994-97) of the Percussive Arts Society. He is a Performing Artist for the Yamaha Corporation of America, and educational endorser for Remo Drumheads, Sabian Cymbals and Promark Mallets. Dr. Broadway received the BM, MM, and DMA degrees from the University of Georgia.