This clinic will be focused on what band directors mean when we tell our bands to "sound like an organ". Presented by a band director/organist, this clinic will be focused on using organ-playing techniques to think differently about sound, balance, and intonation. I will use the examples of works by J.S. Bach and relate each Bach piece to a modern band work. I have also chosen selections ranging from Grade 3-Grade 5 for small school directors to relate to a wider audience.
Keysto Stotz
- Biographical Information
Keysto Stotz is the Director of Bands at Skiatook High School (OK) where he oversees all aspects of the Instrumental Music Department, including the Marching Band, Concert Band, and Middle School Bands. Previous to this appointment, he was the assistant director of bands at Cleveland High School (OK). During his time at Skiatook, Bands under Stotz’s direction have received multiple superior ratings at OSSAA contests and have consistently placed in the top five at the Oklahoma Bandmasters Association State Marching Competition. The Skiatook High School Jazz Band was recently named third in the state for 2024.
Stotz holds a Master’s degree in Instrumental Conducting from Wichita State University where he studied with Dr. Timothy Shade. He was also the director of the “Shocker Sound” basketball pep band. Stotz earned his Bachelor’s in Instrumental Music Education from the University of Tulsa, where he was a student of Richard Wagner and Tim McFadden. As a performer, Stotz regularly plays with the Tulsa Signature Symphony, the Wichita Wind Symphony, and the Tulsa Starlight Band. He has affiliations with Oklahoma Bandmasters Association, Oklahoma Music Educators Association, Green Country Orff-Schulwerk Association, Oklahoma Jazz Educators, and NAfME.
In his spare time Stotz enjoys raising and exhibiting purebred Hereford Cattle, and serves as a national advisor for the American Hereford Association.
Bobby Kitchen is the Associate Director of Bands at Skiatook, where he assists with all aspects of the band program. He leads the middle school concert bands and both the Middle and High School Jazz programs. Mr. Kitchen is a graduate of the University of Tulsa and Wichita State University where he studied saxophone with Dr. Geoff Deibel. He is a board member for the Oklahoma Jazz Educators Association and is in demand as a clinician for Jazz bands across Oklahoma and Kansas.