Successful design and implementation for the small school marching band has many distinct facets and potential obstacles. In this clinic, the presenters will give time tested techniques and suggestions to improve the experience and outcome for all.
Susan Smith
- Biographical Information
Susan L. Smith is a Lecturer in Music Education at Troy University. She is the former Director of Bands at the Saint James School in Montgomery, AL. Under her direction the Saint James Band consistently received Superior ratings in Concert, Jazz and Marching band events including the Alabama Music Performance Assessment, Smokey Mountain Music Festival and Bands of America Super Regionals and Grand National Championships. She served as the Alabama Bandmasters Association District VI Chairman and Vice Chairman. She is the current President of the Alabama Music Educators Association. After completing her degree in Music Education from James Madison University where she was drum major for the Marching Royal Dukes for 3 years, she taught in the Virginia Public Schools. Her responsibilities included the direction of elementary and secondary instrumental music programs as well as teaching choir, guitar and music theory. Her ensembles, including concert band, orchestra, marching band and jazz ensembles, consistently received superior ratings from the Virginia Band and Orchestra Directors Association festivals during her tenure.She was a Coordinating Author for Warner Bros. Publications’ Expressions Music Curriculum, a vision for a vertical, conceptual approach to teaching music. She consulted on the Elementary Music Curriculum Music Expressions and served as an author for Band Expressions, a secondary component of the curriculum. Smith has presented clinics at many state conventions including AMEA, TMEA, FMEA, IMEA, VMEA, GMEA and National and Regional NAfME conferences. She is on the Middle School Clinician team for the Music for All Summer Symposium, presenting clinics each summer to directors and preservice college students and serves as an educational consultant for Music for All. She is responsible for the Chamber Music portion of the Music for All National Festival.
Dr. Adam Dalton is currently the Director of Athletic Bands for Marshall University where he oversees the Marching Thunder and basketball pep bands. He also conducts the Marshall Symphonic Band and serves as the recruitment director for the music department.Dr. Dalton is a native of Virginia where he attended James Madison University and earned a Bachelor of Music in Music Education. After graduating, he moved to Atlanta, GA, where he taught high school at Milton High School, a large 5A program in Georgia. He then accepted a Graduate Teaching Assistantship at The University of Alabama where he received his Master of Arts in Music Education and a Doctor of Musical Arts in Instrumental Conducting. Dr. Dalton performed with The Cavaliers Drum and Bugle Corps for three years earning two world championships and a gold medal in individual and ensemble. He also marched in various independent winter guards in the southeast, consistently making finals at Winter Guard International. His designing and teaching experience includes the 2008 World Champion Phantom Regiment, The Carolina Crown Drum and Bugle Corps, and currently serves as a caption head for the Troopers Drum and Bugle Corps. Dr. Dalton maintains a busy schedule as a designer, consultant, and adjudicator for marching bands and indoor groups both nationally and internationally. He is a founding member of the Alabama Winds, a community band based in Birmingham, AL.Dr. Dalton’s professional affiliations include the Collegiate Band Director’s National Conference where he serves as state chair, the National Association for Music Education, the Collegiate Music Society, and the National Band Association where he serves as state chair.