UNCG Wind Ensemble
The UNC Greensboro Wind Ensemble is a highly select concert band of fifty performers majoring in music at the UNCG School of Music, Theatre and Dance. Performers range from freshmen through masters and doctoral candidates in music performance and music education. Membership in the organization is highly competitive. These students have achieved numerous individual honors including solo competition awards on regional and national levels, music scholarships, undergraduate teaching fellowships, graduate assistantships and fellowships, and membership in honors ensembles. Former members of the Wind Ensemble hold teaching positions in music at all levels including college, as well as professional performing credentials in orchestras, premier military bands, and professional chamber ensembles. Performers in the Fall 2010 Wind Ensemble were drawn from thirteen states.
John R. Locke - conductor
Since 1982, Dr. John R. Locke has served on the UNCG School of Music, Theatre and Dance Faculty as Director of Bands, Director of Summer Music Camps, conductor of the Wind Ensemble, and conducting teacher. He holds the Bachelor and Master of Music degrees from West Virginia University and the Doctor of Education degree from the University of Illinois. Prior to his arrival in North Carolina, Dr. Locke held teaching positions in music at West Virginia University, Southeast Missouri State University, and the University of Illinois. He has conducted band performances throughout the country including National Conventions of the MENC, CBDNA, ABA, the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C., the Strathmore Center in Washington, DC, and Lincoln Center in New York City. Twice, the UNCG Wind Ensemble earned critical acclaim from The Washington Post newspaper following concert performances in the nation's capital. Under Locke's leadership, the UNCG Wind Ensemble has released 16 commercially available compact discs including fireworks! which was a Grammy Entry List 2011 CD in two categories, "Classical Album of the Year" and "Best Orchestral Performance." In addition, he has guest conducted the U.S. Air Force Band, U.S. Army Field Band, U.S. Navy Band, "The President's Own" U.S. Marine Band, the Dallas Wind Symphony, as well as numerous university bands and all-state honor bands.
Dr. Locke has served as Editor of The North Carolina Music Educator and has published articles on band and wind ensemble literature in the Journal of Band Research and in Winds Quarterly. He is Past-President of the North Carolina Music Educators Association representing 2,200 members. Dr. Locke is a recipient of Phi Mu Alpha's Orpheus Award and has received the National Band Association Citation of Excellence on three occasions. He is a National Arts Associate of Sigma Alpha Iota. In 1989, Dr. Locke was among the youngest conductors ever to be elected to membership in the prestigious American Bandmasters Association. In 1994, he received the Phi Beta Mu International Fraternity Outstanding Bandmaster of the Year Award, presented at the Mid-West International Band Clinic in Chicago. Dr. Locke is Past-President of the Southern Division of College Band Directors National Association and hosted the Southern Division Convention at UNCG in February 2000. In 2002, Dr. Locke was nominated for the O. Max Gardner Award, the highest award in the 16-campus UNC System. He also received the "Outstanding Music Teacher Award" in the UNCG School of Music in 2003. In 2005, Dr. Locke was elected President of the American Bandmasters Association and received the Albert Austin Harding Award from the American School Band Directors Association. In 2007, he received The Old North State Award from NC Governor Mike Easley "for dedication and service beyond excellence to the state of North Carolina." In 2009, Locke became Editor of the Journal of Band Research, a scholarly publication begun in 1962. In July 2012, Locke was honored by NC Governor Beverly Perdue with The Order of the Longleaf Pine Award, the highest civilian honor in North Carolina. In 2014, Locke was named the Marion Stedman Covington Stedman Distinguished Professor of Music at UNCG.
At UNCG, Dr. Locke is the founder and director of the Summer Music CampLink opens in new window program, now the largest university music camp in America, enrolling over 1,820 students annually and served by a staff of 160 professionals. He is also the founder of the Carolina Band Festival and Conductors. Since 1977, he has administered summer music camps for over 63,000 students. He is in constant demand as a guest conductor, clinician, and adjudicator for band festivals throughout the United States and Canada.
Kevin M. Geraldi - conductor
Dr. Kevin M. Geraldi is Associate Professor of Conducting at the University of North Carolina at Greensboro. In this capacity, he directs the overall orchestral program, conducts the UNCG Symphony Orchestra, Symphonic Band, and Casella Sinfonietta, and is associate conductor of the UNCG Wind Ensemble. In addition, he teaches graduate and undergraduate conducting. He coordinates the Southeast Honors String Festival, is associate director of the UNCG Summer Music Camp, and works with the Carolina Band Festival and Conductors Conference. Dr. Geraldi appears regularly as a guest conductor and he maintains an active schedule as a clinician throughout the country. He has presented clinics at the North Carolina and South Carolina Music Educators Association Conferences, and at National and Southern Division CBDNA Conventions. He has performed in the Music Center at Strathmore, at the national CBDNA convention in Austin, Texas, twice at the NCMEA conference, and recorded several commercially available compact discs. A proponent of contemporary music and chamber music, he has commissioned and premiered numerous compositions and published articles in leading journals. His compact disc leading the Minerva Chamber Ensemble, featuring nonets by Johannes Brahms and Louise Farrenc, is available on the Centaur Records label. Dr. Geraldi holds the Doctor of Musical Arts and Master of Music degrees in conducting from the University of Michigan where he studied with H. Robert Reynolds and Michael Haithcock. He received his Bachelor of Music Education degree from Illinois Wesleyan University, where he studied conducting with Steven Eggleston. Dr. Geraldi is a recipient of the Thelma A. Robinson Award, presented biennially by the Conductors Guild and the National Federation of Music Clubs. He is a member of the Conductors Guild, the College Orchestra Directors Association, the College Band Directors National Association, Music Educators National Conference, Pi Kappa Lambda, Phi Mu Alpha Sinfonia, and a National Arts Associate of Sigma Alpha Iota.
The McIver Quartet
The McIver String Quartet, made up of UNCG’s string faculty, performs recitals on campus and around the region, as well as participating in outreach activities for schools in the area.
UNCG Chamber singers, University Chorale, & Glee Clubs