FACULTY AND STAFF
BARRY L. HOUSER | DIRECTOR OF THE MARCHING ILLINI & ASSOCIATE DIRECTOR OF BANDS
HANNAH RUDY | ASSISTANT DIRECTOR OF ATHLETIC BANDS
Aaron Kavelman | DRUMLINE INSTRUCTOR AND TEACHING CONSULTANT
Aaron Kavelman is a percussion educator, clinician, performer and composer who grew up listening and performing jazz alongside his father, an accomplished jazz pianist. Growing up in a musical family, Aaron watched his four older sisters in the high school band program. Inspired by the local marching bands, Aaron would tape a set of bongos onto a chair and choreograph drill in the backyard, thus the beginning for his love with the marching arts.
GRADUATE CONDUCTING – TEACHING ASSISTANTS
Michelle Bell | DMA, GRADUATE CONDUCTING – TEACHING ASSISTANT
Isaac Brinberg | DMA, GRADUATE CONDUCTING – TEACHING ASSISTANT
Jeremy Sison | MM, GRADUATE CONDUCTING – TEACHING ASSISTANT
Jeremy received his bachelor of music education degree with a minor in wind conducting from the Jacobs School of Music at Indiana University where he also studied trombone with Professor M. Dee Stewart. While at Indiana, Jeremy was a trombone section leader with the IU Marching Hundred, treasurer of the collegiate chapter of NAfME, played in symphonic band and trombone choir, and was a counselor for the IU Summer Music Clinic and College Audition Prep Program.
A native of the Chicago Suburbs, Jeremy attended Glenbard East High School and was a drum major of the marching band. In addition, Jeremy has played trombone and various reed books in many pit orchestras, and also played clarinet in the Bowling Green Community Band, Wheaton Municipal Band, and the Southern Indiana Wind Ensemble.
ATHLETIC BANDS TEACHING ASSISTANTS
TBA | MM, ATHLETIC BANDS TEACHING ASSISTANT
Clarinetist Andrew J. Buckley performs a diverse repertoire ranging from Bach, Brahms and Mozart, to Stravinsky, Nielsen, and Berio. Buckley’s unique presentation of classical and contemporary works, paired with mixed media elements is redefining what a classical concert experience is truly about. As the winner of the 2021 Krannert Debut Artist Competition, Buckley gave his professional debut recital this past April in the Krannert Center’s Foellinger Great Hall alongside pianist Chanmi Lee. Buckley has also given performances in notable venues around the country such as Hilbert Circle Theatre, Severance Hall, home of the Cleveland Orchestra, and Carnegie Hall, former home of the New York Philharmonic Orchestra.
As an active chamber and solo musician, Andrew respects and embraces the standard classical repertoire while fusing in more contemporary works and premieres of new music by living composers. As a chamber musician, Andrew is a founding member and the clarinetist of The Goodwin Avenue Trio. Founded in the fall of 2020, The Goodwin Avenue trio has performed on School of Music Chamber Music recitals, been featured by The International Clarinet Association, and has recently released their self-produced, recorded, and edited recording of the Brahms Clarinet Trio. In addition to his work as a chamber musician, Andrew has also performed a number of solo recitals, including live streamed performances during the COVID-19 pandemic.
During the summers of 2018, and 2019, Andrew performed as the Principal Clarinetist with the College Light Opera Company (CLOC) Orchestra in Falmouth, Cape Cod, giving over 110 performances of opera, musical theatre, and chamber music during his time there. During the summer of 2019, Buckley also held the position of orchestra manager. Andrew returned to CLOC in 2020 as an Assistant Digital Content Editor and Clarinetist to help the company deliver a fully online season during the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. During his time at CLOC, Mr. Buckley collaborated with Broadway musicians, music directors, and producers such as Grant Strom, Andrew Bourgoin, Robert Schneider, Beth Burrier, Miles Plant, and Andrew Crust of the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra.
In May of 2020, Andrew received his Bachelor of Music in Music Education from Baldwin Wallace Conservatory of Music in Cleveland Ohio. As a student there, Buckley was the recipient of the E.S & M.R. Griffiths Music Talent Scholarship, the GAR Foundation Conservatory Scholarship, and the Professors Alan & Mary Squire Memorial Award.
As a student at Baldwin Wallace, Andrew frequently performed with large ensembles such as the Symphony Orchestra, Symphonic Wind Ensemble, Symphonic Band, and Jazz Ensemble in addition to multiple musical theatre productions as a woodwind specialist. In addition, Mr. Buckley also held the position of Conducting Apprentice with the Conservatory Wind Ensembles for the 2018 and 2019 seasons. In this position, Buckley conducted numerous concerts, concluding with his world premiere performance of new works by award winning composers Nabil Abad, and Steve Chauvette, with the Symphonic Wind Ensemble as part of the 2019 Ovation Festival. Andrew is currently attending the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign to pursue a Masters in Clarinet Performance as a Graduate Teaching Assistant with The Marching Illini. Additionally, Mr. Buckley is an Eagle Scout of the Boy Scouts of America. For more information, please visit www.abuckleyclarinet.com.
TBA | MM, ATHLETIC BANDS TEACHING ASSISTANT
Becca Frederick currently attends the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign where she is working on her masters degree in Horn Performance and Literature and serves as a graduate teaching assistant with the athletic bands. Becca earned her Bachelor of Music in Horn Performance from the University of Iowa in the spring of 2020, where she studied with Professor Jeffrey Agrell. At the University of Iowa, Becca was the recipient of the Old Gold Academic Scholarship, the P.A. Music Scholarship, the Future Educator Award, and Iowa’s Hispanic Heritage Scholarship.
Bailye Hendley is a current student at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign where she is in the process of acquiring her masters degree in Horn Performance and Literature under the guidance of Bernhard Scully. She is looking forward to the upcoming season where she will be a part of the University of Illinois Band Staff as a graduate teaching assistant. Bailye has spent a great deal of her collegiate career working deeply within the athletic band world as she was heavily involved with the Pride of the Southland Band during her studies at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville. She spent time traveling and playing with the university’s various pep bands while holding leadership positions within the band ranging from squad leader to undergraduate staff. During her time in Knoxville, Bailye studied with Dr. Katie Johnson-Webb majoring in Horn Performance while also minoring in Music Business. She held a variety of positions within Tennessee’s School of Music such as School of Music Ambassador, Vice-President of the International Horn Society Chapter at UTK, and a member of the Pi Kappa Lambda honor society. During her senior year she also spent time interning with the Knoxville Symphony Orchestra.
Bailye has been a part of many ensembles including the UTK Wind Ensemble, Symphony Orchestra, Opera Orchestra, Horn Choir, Brass Choir and all of UTK’s athletic bands. She also was presented with an opportunity to substitute with the Brevard Philharmonic in North Carolina.
Bailye has spend her collegiate career as an out of state student and calls Georgia her home. It is where her family lives and her love for music began. She is an alumni of the Jackson County School System where she started the French horn in sixth grade and then athletic bands in high school.