The Tennessee Valley Winds will perform a free concert under the direction of Mr. Robert Sheldon on Thursday, February 6, 2014 at 8:00 pm. This concert is presented as a part of the Wind Band Conference hosted by Middle Tennessee State University in their Wright Music Building.
Mr. Robert Sheldon
Robert Sheldon (b. Feb 3, 1954) has taught instrumental music in the Florida and Illinois public schools, and has served on the faculty at Florida State University where he taught conducting and instrumental music education classes, and directed the university bands. As Concert Band Editor for Alfred Music Publishing, he maintains an active composition and conducting schedule, and regularly accepts commissions for new works. Sheldon received the Bachelor of Music in Music Education from the University of Miami and the Master of Fine Arts in Instrumental Conducting from the University of Florida.
An internationally recognized clinician, Sheldon has conducted numerous Regional and All-State Honor Bands throughout the United States and abroad. His teaching career included 28 years in the Florida and Illinois public schools as well as at the University of Florida, Florida State University, Illinois Central College and Bradley University. He also held positions as conductor of the Alachua County Youth Orchestra in Gainesville, Florida and the Prairie Wind Ensemble in East Peoria, Illinois. He maintains membership in several organizations that promote music and music education. He is lead author for the SOUND INNOVATIONS FOR BAND method books, and is a co-author for the MEASURES OF SUCCESS Volume 1 method book and the SOUND INNOVATIONS FOR STRINGS method books.
The American School Band Directors Association has honored him with the Volkwein Award for composition and the Stanbury Award for teaching, and the International Assembly of Phi Beta Mu honored him with the International Outstanding Bandmaster Award. He has also been a twenty-five-time recipient of the American Society of Composers, Authors and Publisher’s Standard Award for his compositions in the concert band and orchestral repertoire. His compositions have been recorded and released on compact discs including, Images: The Music of Robert Sheldon, and Infinite Horizons: The Music of Robert Sheldon, as well as numerous other recordings. Mr. Sheldon has been the topic of articles published in The Instrumentalist, Teaching Music and School Band and Orchestra Magazine, and is one of eleven American wind band composers featured in Volume I of Composers on Composing Music for Band.
The Tennessee Valley Winds is a non-profit, all volunteer, self-supporting community band that has been providing quality musical performances since 1984. The community band experience is unlike school or professional groups. Rarely do amateurs and professionals, young and old, get to work together. The opportunity to learn and grow is unique. The director is more of a guide than an authority figure, and does not assign parts or solos. It is expected that all will help each other by offering suggestions and sharing. Friendships are born of shared work and musical enjoyment.
The TVW has been under the direction of Mr. Erich Zimmerman, the conductor for the Tennessee Valley Winds, in preparation for this concert. Mr. Erich Zimmerman is currently in his 23rd year as a music educator in Middle TN. He began his teaching career in Sumner County, then transferred to Davidson Co. for 10 years, before moving to Rutherford County where he is currently the Director at Thurman Francis Arts Academy. In addition to teaching, Mr. Zimmerman remains active in performance, being a founding member of the Capitol Brass Quintet. Prior to teaching, Mr. Zimmerman was a trumpet instrumentalist with the United States Navy Band, Washington D.C. His tour of duty included a 1988 national tour and weekly concerts. He was also a freelance musician in the Washington D.C. area.Mr. Zimmerman’s education includes a Bachelor of Science Degree in Music Education from TN Tech Univ., a Master of Music Degree in Trumpet Performance from the Univ. of Texas, and a Master’s + 30 certificate from MTSU in Administration and Supervision.
Mr. Greg Lawson has been a music educator for the past 29 years. He holds degrees from MTSU and the Cincinnati Conservatory of Music. After receiving his Master of Music degree, he began his teaching career at Franklin Road Academy in Nashville, TN teaching 5th-12th grade instrumental music. In 1988, Mr. Lawson started the band program at the newly opened Lavergne High School in Lavergne, TN., where he remained for 13 years. Over the next five years, he taught at McGavock High School in Nashville and Oakland High School in Murfreesboro. He is currently a band director in the Murfreesboro City School System. In 2003, Mr. Lawson was selected as the “School Band and Orchestra” Tennessee Honoree as one of “50 Directors who make a difference”. He was inducted into the MTSU Band of Blue Hall of Fame in 1996. Mr. Lawson holds membership in Music Educators National Conference, Tennessee Band Master Association, Middle Tennessee State Band and Orchestra Association, International Clarinet Society, Local 257 of the Association of Federal Musicians Phi Mu Alpha, twice elected Who’s Who of American Teachers, and an elected member of Phi Beta Mu.
For more information about the Wind Band Conference, including a complete schedule of all events for the weekend, please visit: http://frank.mtsu.edu/~wbc/schedule.html
For more information about he Tennessee Valley Winds Community Band please visit: http://www.tnvalleywinds.org/index.html
