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UTC Tri-States Honor Band

Honor Band concert in University Center
Honor Band in concert on stage

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Headshot of J. W. Hermann

Joseph Hermann, Guest Clinician

Joseph Hermann is Director of Bands Emeritus at Tennessee Technological University in Cookeville, Tennessee, where he served for 28 years. Under his leadership the Tennessee Tech Bands grew to a level of national prominence, over 25 new pieces were premiered, and the wind and percussion program became an influential force for bands in the Southeast. Graduates of Tech and past members of the TTU Bands are leading educators, performers in the premiere military bands, and orchestras, and composers, arrangers, recording engineers, and music business directors across the nation.

Before his appointment at Tennessee Tech in 1989, Hermann was a director at the University of Arizona, Indiana University, and East Tennessee State University. His secondary school teaching includes directing the Dowling High School Band, West Des Moines, Iowa, and supervising the Des Moines Catholic Instrumental Music Program.  Under his leadership, the school music program grew to unprecedented enrollment.  In addition, he served briefly as the Educational Director for Bands of America and McCormicks Enterprises, a music corporation, in Chicago, Illinois.

Hermann is sought after as a conductor, adjudicator, and speaker and has presented clinics, workshops, and has conducted in over thirty states, in Canada, and throughout Japan.  His symphonic bands have been featured ensembles at state, regional and national conventions; his interpretations have been broadcast on National Public Radio, and recordings of his ensembles have been issued as reference for music educators nationwide through music publishers and on commercial labels.  He is a proponent of new music for winds, has premiered many works for band and remains an active advocate for commissioning projects.

Hermann has been a career-long member of CBDNA, NAfME, NBA, the Tennessee Bandmasters Association, has served as the editor for the New Music Reviews for the Tennessee Musician, and is a past board member of the Tennessee Music Educators Association.  In 1996, Hermann was elected to the prestigious American Bandmasters Association, served as a member of its Board of Directors, and in 2009, Hermann functioned as the 72nd President of the ABA, served as the Chair of its Board of Directors, and currently works as Chair of the ABA Foundation.  He is a member of Phi Beta Mu, a past President of the PAC-10 Band Directors Association, a past Province Governor for Phi Mu Alpha Sinfonia, and holds National Honorary membership in Kappa Kappa Psi and Tau Beta Sigma. He is an Associate Member of ASBDA.  He is the recipient of the KKѰ Distinguished Service to Music Medal in Conducting and the TBΣ Paula Crider Outstanding Band Director awards.  He received the A. Austin Harding Award from the ASBDA for dedicated service to the bands of America in 2014.  In 2015, Hermann was inducted into the Tennessee Bandmasters Hall of Fame.   Mr. Hermann is affiliated as an Artist/Conductor/Clinician with Jupiter Band Instruments, Inc., manufacturers of band and orchestra instruments located in Mt. Juliet, Tennessee, and serves as their Senior Educational Consultant.  He was inducted in the National Band Association Hall of Fame for Distinguished Conductors in February 2023. 

He has been married to his wife, Kay, for 53 years, and they have two daughters and five grandchildren.  Even after retirement, Hermann remains enthusiastically engaged in conducting, presenting clinics, adjudication, and promoting the positive results of music education in the school curriculum. 

Headshot of Reid Hall smiling

M. Reid Hall, Guest Clinician

M. Reid Hall is the retired Director of Bands at Evans High School in Evans, Georgia. Ms. Hall, a native of York, South Carolina, received her Bachelor Degree in Music Education from Winthrop University in Rock Hill, South Carolina and her Masters Degree in Music Education from VanderCook College of Music in Chicago, Illinois. She retired from teaching band in the Columbia County School System after 29 years.  The high school band under Ms. Hall’s direction performed in Chicago, IL for the St. Patrick’s Day Parade, London, England for the New Years Day Parade and jazz performance on two different occasions, and Oahu, Hawaii for the Waikiki Holiday (Thanksgiving) Parade. The Wind Ensemble was selected to perform at the Troy University Southeastern Band Clinic in 2009 and the Concert and Marching bands continued a long tradition of outstanding performances at festivals and competitions. Prior to her position at Evans HS, Ms. Hall was the band director at Evans Middle School and assisted at the high school during marching season.

Ms. Hall was selected as “Teacher of the Year” twice while teaching at Evans Middle School and “Teacher of the Year” for the Sam’s Club in the Augusta area in the year 2000. She was named to the “Who’s Who Among America’s Teachers” on numerous occasions and named “STAR” teacher in 2010 for Evans High School. The Georgia Music Educators Association awarded her the “Music Educator of the Year Award 2012.” She was also named “Teacher of the Year” at Evans High School for the school year 2013-14.

Ms. Hall was very active in the Georgia Music Educators Association, held several leadership positions in District Ten, and was the Organizing Chair for the District Honor Band Clinic for fourteen years. She is an active adjudicator and guest clinician throughout the Southeast. Ms. Hall is a member of the Georgia Music Educators Association, National Association for Music Education and the Zeta Chapter of the International Band Master’s Fraternity Phi Beta Mu. Since retirement, Ms. Hall relocated to the Atlanta area where she teaches private lessons, works as a consultant, clinician, and adjudicator. She also continues to play saxophone in the adult concert band, Savannah River Winds in Augusta, Georgia.

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