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MSU to host 61st annual Band Clinic

04 February 2020

Morehead State University’s School of Music will host its 61st annual MSU Band Clinic 2020 from Feb. 13 through Feb. 15.

This year’s clinic will host 256 high school students from 33 high school programs from Kentucky, Indiana, Ohio and West Virginia. Students interested in the clinic submit an audition tape. The audition tapes are later screened by music faculty and placed for one of the three honor bands.

The MSU Band Clinic will also feature special guests Colonel Michael J. Colburn, Richard Saucedo and Dr. Margaret Underwood.

Colonel Michael J. Colburn is director of bands at Butler University and the former director of the United States Marine Corps “The President’s Own” Marine Corps Band. Richard Saucedo is a noted composer/arranger and former director of bands and department chair at Carmel High School in Carmel, Indiana. Dr. Margaret Underwood is the current director of bands at Western Carolina University.

Dr. DuWayne Dale, assistant professor of music and director of bands at MSU, said clinic attendees will get to the treat of learning and rehearsing with these notable experts.

“From a purely musical standpoint, they get to work with these premier, internationally recognized guest clinicians for two solid days,” Dale said. “We have just exceptional clinicians. I think that is just a big draw.”

The MSU Band Clinic begins on Thursday, Feb. 13, where students will rehearse and then attend the first concert put on by the MSU Concert Band and MSU Steel at 7:30 p.m. The following day on Friday, Feb. 14, students will rehearse and cap off the day with another concert by the MSU Symphonic Winds and MSU Jazz Band at 7:30 p.m. The clinic’s final day on Saturday, Feb. 15, will feature the students performing music they learned and rehearsed during the clinic performing alongside the clinic’s guest clinicians for a finale concert at 7:30 p.m.

All concerts will be held in Button Auditorium and the performances are free and open to the public.

Dale said between interacting with guest clinicians, learning music quickly for a concert, interacting with fellow music students and getting the opportunity to audition for both admission to MSU and music scholarships, the MSU Band Clinic proves to be extremely beneficial to developing musicians.

“We have such an exceptional immersion experience for some of the best musicians in our region,” Dale said.

For more information on the MSU Band Clinic 2020, visit www.moreheadstate.edu/bands, email msubands@moreheadstate.edu or call 606-783-2486.