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Feb. 21-22, 2025

We invite high school students from throughout the region (South Dakota, Minnesota, Nebraska, Iowa and North Dakota) to apply to participate in the fourth annual Honor Band Festival, to be held on Feb. 21-22, 2025. The ������Ƶ Honor Band Festival is designed to be an exceptional honor band experience for talented students and is sure to be a memorable time for all those involved!

Highlights for the 2025 Festival will include:

• The opportunity to rehearse and perform in ������Ƶ’s newly expanded Oscar Larson Performing Arts Center.
• Workshops and masterclasses with the faculty of the School of Performing Arts.
• Scholarship audition opportunities for high school seniors.
• A side-by-side performance with members of the ������Ƶ Wind Symphony.
• The chance to make music with the most talented student musicians from a multi-state radius.

Students who play the following instruments are invited to apply: piccolo, flute, oboe, bassoon, B-flat clarinet, bass clarinet, contrabass clarinet, alto saxophone, tenor saxophone, baritone saxophone, French horn, trumpet, tenor trombone, bass trombone, euphonium, tuba, string bass and percussion (mallet, battery/auxiliary and timpani). String bass and piano auditions will also be considered, depending on repertoire selected by the conductors.

There is NO application fee! Students selected to the group will be charged a $40 participation fee (payable either by the individual student or their school). Student participants are responsible for securing their own accommodations and transportation for the duration of the festival; however, select meals will be provided.

To Apply:

Registration is OPEN!

Students must first be nominated by a director by filling out this form:

Nomination Form

Upon receiving a nomination, the nominated students will be invited to submit a short audition recording on their instrument to include:

Woodwinds, Brass, Piano and String Bass

• Two major scales of the student’s choosing (multiple octaves where appropriate).
• Selection from a prepared solo/etude (30-60 seconds) of the student's choosing.

Percussion

• Selections from prepared solos/etudes (30-60 seconds) of the student's choosing for all three of the following:
  • Timpani
  • Snare Drum
  • Keyboard Percussion (marimba, vibraphone, or xylophone)

Director Nominations are due by Friday, Nov. 1, 2024.

Student Auditions are due by Monday, Nov. 18, 2024.

Selected students will be notified by Friday, Dec. 6, 2024.

Honor Wind Ensemble Conductor

Dr. Emily Moss

Director of Bands
University of New Mexico

Dr. Emily Moss serves as Professor of Music and Director of Bands at the University of New Mexico where she conducts the Wind Symphony, oversees the graduate conducting program, and teaches other courses in conducting and wind literature. Her previous position at California State University, Los Angeles (2011-2023) included conducting the Wind Ensemble and Symphonic Band, teaching undergraduate and graduate conducting and music education courses, and administering the instrumental music education program. She also held a similar position at the Conservatory of Music at Brooklyn College of the City University of New York.

Originally from the Pacific Northwest, Dr. Moss began her collegiate music studies at the University of Washington in Seattle, earning a Bachelor’s degree in Music Education. After teaching middle school band for six years in both Washington and Arizona, Dr. Moss served as a teaching assistant with the University Bands at the University of Northern Colorado, earning her Master’s degree in Wind Conducting and the Doctor of Arts in Music Education and Bassoon Performance, studying with Kenneth Singleton, Richard Mayne, and Charles Hanson.

As a conductor and clinician, Dr. Moss is in high demand across North America and regularly gives band clinics at middle and high schools in her local area and beyond. Her style of teaching and rehearsing shows everyone in the room her commitment to music education, specifically to the musical skills and high-level performance ability of each student with which she gets to work. She is also an accomplished bassoonist, actively performing during her degree programs in Washington and Colorado, with the Conservatory Orchestra and other ensembles at Brooklyn College, and for student and faculty recitals at Cal State LA. Dr. Moss has presented at conferences across the United States on a variety of topics and is a contributor to the esteemed Teaching Music through Performance in Band series. She recently wrote a chapter for the book Women in Wind Band, titled “Defining and Redefining Success,” and the book is available through GIA Publications. Her professional memberships include College Band Directors National Association (CBDNA) where she recently served as the President of the Western Division, World Association for Symphonic Bands and Ensembles (WASBE) where she serves on the Board of Directors, National Association for Music Educators (NAfME), and the National Honor Society Phi Kappa Phi.

She resides in Albuquerque, NM with her husband Noah and their two daughters, Ella and Sadie.

Festival Band Conductor

Dr. Rickey Badua

Director of Bands
Cal Poly Pomona University 

Rickey Hauʻoli Badua is recognized globally as an educator and conductor driven by a passionate belief in the unifying power of music-making in the wind band community. Dr. Badua is the Director of Bands and Associate Professor of Music at California State Polytechnic University (Cal Poly Pomona) in Pomona, CA.  He conducts the Wind Ensemble and Symphonic Winds, teaches beginning and instrumental conducting, mentors and advises music majors, and oversees all aspects of the wind studies program.

Dr. Badua is a champion of new wind band repertoire, most recently commissioning E Ala Ē: Arise and Awaken by award winning composer James David, which evokes the spirit of Badua’s native state while elegantly paying homage to Native Hawaiian musical traditions. In addition to leading the California Wind Band Consortium and the Pacific Rim Chamber Wind Ensemble Consortium, Badua has fervently supported new music as a member of over 40 commissioning consortiums.

Dr. Badua is active as a conference lecturer throughout the U.S. and abroad, having presented at the Midwest International Band & Orchestra Clinic, Oxford Conducting Institute, International Society for Research & Promotion of Wind Music, College Band Directors National Conference, California All-State Music Educators Conference, Georgia Music Educators Association Conference, and the National Association for Music Education-Northwest Division Conference. As a conductor and clinician, he has brought his energy and expertise on the podium to hundreds of programs throughout California and beyond. Highlights include conducting the Southern California Schools Symphonic Honor Band, Washington All-State Wind Symphony, and serving as one of the first American conductors to guest conduct the Admiralty Navy Band of St. Petersburg, Russia.

Following the award of a special grant from the California State University Chancellor, Dr. Badua traveled to Sydney, Singapore, Kuala Lumpur, Bangkok, Kobe, Osaka, and Tokyo in order to study global wind band developments through extensive observation and personal interviews. In addition to this research conducted at secondary and collegiate institutions, Rickey is deeply passionate about exploring community wind bands, particularly those that bring together musicians from diverse backgrounds. Invigorated by cultural exchange, he has continued his exploration of wind band programs with numerous guest conducting engagements with established programs in Spain, Australia, Luxembourg, Thailand, Japan and Malaysia. Through his research and guest conducting engagements, Badua has forged and fostered a rich network of international collaborations.

Early in his career, Badua taught public school as Director of Bands and Arts Department Chair at Peninsula High School and was the Music Coordinator of the Peninsula School District in Gig Harbor, Washington. Dr. Badua led the development of a comprehensive band program which included Wind Ensemble, Symphonic Band, Jazz Band, Percussion Ensemble, Marching Band, Color Guard and Winter Guard. During his tenure, he raised the standard of excellence, leading each ensemble to consistently receive “Superior” ratings at festivals and regional contests, most notably the Wind Ensemble’s featured performance at the National Association for Music Education Conference-Northwest in Bellevue, Washington.

Prior to his appointment at California State Polytechnic University, Dr. Badua earned his Doctor of Musical Arts in Wind Conducting degree from the University of Georgia where he studied with Dr. John P. Lynch. While at UGA, Rickey was the recipient of the Director’s Excellence award and the Outstanding Graduate Teaching Assistant award. Dr. Badua earned his Bachelor of Music in Music Education degree from the University of Puget Sound and received an honorary fellowship to then complete his Master of Arts in Teaching degree as a conducting student of Dr. Robert Taylor.

Rickey was born on the island of Oʻahu, Hawaii, and travels home to visit family and body surf the waves as often as possible. When not traversing the globe making music, he resides in Pasadena, California. You can find him on quiet evenings at home creating delicious meals in his collection of cast iron cookware.