Eastman Welcomes Four Visiting Wind Conductors for Fall 2025 Semester

The Eastman School of Music, of the University of Rochester, will welcome four distinguished visiting conductors to lead Eastman’s Wind Ensemble and Wind Orchestra concerts during fall 2025. These guest residencies come while Dr. Mark Scatterday, conductor of both ensembles, is on academic leave. Taking the podium will be Eastman alums Reed Chamberlin ’14E (DMA) of the University of Nevada, Reno, and Kevin Holzman ’16E (DMA) of the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music (CCM), as well as Mary K. Schneider of Eastern Michigan University, and Rodney Dorsey of Florida State University’s College of Music. During their residencies at Eastman, they will work primarily with students from the Woodwinds, Brass, and Percussion department.

“It’s an exciting opportunity for our students to collaborate with a variety of accomplished wind ensemble conductors—including some who earned their education in these very halls,” says Kate Sheeran, Joan and Martin Messinger Dean of the Eastman School of Music. “This season’s repertoire spans a great range. From the classical elegance of Mozart and Vaughan Williams to the powerful contemporary voices of Higdon, Ortiz, and Tian, our programs highlight both the wind ensemble tradition and the exciting ways it continues to evolve.”

All concerts will be held at 7:30 p.m. in Kodak Hall at Eastman Theatre.

 

Reed Chamberlin ’14E (DMA)

Monday, September 15 | Eastman Wind Ensemble
Part of the ESL Rochester Fringe Festival
Music of Li, Husa, and Ginastera

Wednesday, September 17 | Eastman Wind Orchestra
Part of the ESL Rochester Fringe Festival
Music of Koh, Turina, O. Thomas, W. Schuman, and Sousa

 

Kevin Holzman ’16E (DMA) 

Wednesday, October 8 | Eastman Wind Ensemble
Music of Higdon, Tian, and Maslanka

Friday, October 10 | Eastman Wind Orchestra
Music of Flagello, Barry, Vaughan Williams, and Mussorgsky

 

Mary K. Schneider

Wednesday, November 5 | Eastman Wind Ensemble
Music of Stucky, Benson, Del Tredici, Ortiz, and Mozart

Monday, November 10 | Eastman Wind Orchestra
Music of Biedenbender and Lyons

 

Rodney Dorsey

Wednesday, December 3 | Eastman Wind Ensemble and Eastman Wind Orchestra
EWE: Music of Lindveit, Lee III, and Gandolfi
EWO: Music of Zare, Bernstein, and W. Schuman

 

A full listing of Eastman concerts and events can be found online.

 

Media only: Lauren Sageer, Associate Director of Public Relations and Digital Content,
(585) 451-8492, lsageer@esm.rochester.edu

 

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About Reed Chamberlin:

Reed Chamberlin serves as director of bands at the University of Nevada, Reno, where he conducts the Nevada Wind Ensemble, teaches conducting and guides the band program. He holds a Doctor of Musical Arts degree in conducting from the Eastman School of Music where he was the assistant conductor of the Eastman Wind Ensemble, a Fennell Conducting Fellow, and recipient of the Walter Hagen Prize in conducting.

Prior to his appointment at the University of Nevada, Reno, he served on the faculty of Seton Hill University in Pennsylvania and was a successful high school music teacher in Ohio. He holds a BME degree from Ohio State University and an M.M. degree in conducting from Youngstown State University.

His work and experiences represent the nexus of music education and professional level performance, exemplified through the wind-band performance medium. He is in regular demand as a guest conductor and clinician.

His work has been recognized internationally through publication and auditioned conducting symposiums. Notable was the 2008 International Conducting Symposium, sponsored by the National Band Association and held in conjunction with The Italian Army Band. He has given research presentations at the Midwest Band and Orchestra Clinic, the CBDNA National Conference and the International Society for the Research and Promotion of Wind Band Music. His writings have been published in the National Band Association Journal, the Ohio Music Education Association’s TRIAD and the WASBE Journal. He was also integral in production of the Eastman Wind Ensemble’s CD, Stravinsky – Octet and L’Histoire du Soldat.

 

About Kevin Holzman:

Kevin Michael Holzman serves as the Director of Wind Studies and Division Head of Ensembles and Conducting at the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music (CCM). He joined CCM’s faculty in 2017. As Director of Wind Studies, Holzman serves as the music director for the CCM Wind Symphony (CCM’s premier wind ensemble), CCM Musica Nova, and CCM Chamber Winds, in addition to overseeing other CCM Wind Studies Ensembles. In addition to directing these ensembles, he has served as Music Director of the CCM Chamber Orchestra and CCM Brass Choir, and has conducted performances with the CCM Philharmonia and CCM Concert Orchestra. His academic responsibilities include teaching graduate conducting and related courses, as well as the advising and mentoring of wind conducting students in CCM’s Masters and Doctoral programs. Holzman also serves as Director of the Cincinnati Youth Wind Ensemble (CYWE) Program through the CCM Preparatory Department.

Beyond CCM, Holzman has worked with professional ensembles including the Beijing Wind Orchestra, the Siena Wind Orchestra (Japan), the United States Army Band “Pershing’s Own” and the Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra. In 2019, Holzman was appointed Music Director and Chief Guest Conductor of the Beijing Wind Orchestra, China’s premier wind ensemble.

Prior to his appointment at CCM, Holzman earned his Doctor of Musical Arts degree in conducting at the Eastman School of Music, where he studied with Music Director of the Eastman Wind Ensemble, Dr. Mark Scatterday. Holzman earned his Master’s degree in Conducting and his Bachelor Music degree in Clarinet Performance at the University of Arizona.

Holzman is a passionate advocate for music education and access to music in all schools. In addition to serving as Director of the CCM Youth Wind Ensemble program since 2019, he regularly clinics high school and junior high school ensembles and has served as conductor of honor bands and ensembles across the United States. He is an honorary member of Phi Mu Alpha, Tau Beta Sigma and Kappa Kappa Psi music fraternities.

 

About Mary K. Schneider:

Mary K. Schneider is Professor of Conducting and Director of Bands at Eastern Michigan University where she conducts the EMU Wind Symphony, teaches graduate and undergraduate courses in conducting and music education, and oversees the comprehensive university bands program. Prior to this appointment, Dr. Schneider held a teaching position at the University of Minnesota School of Music and had a successful career as a secondary school instrumental music educator.

Active nationally and internationally as a guest conductor and clinician, Dr. Schneider has served as an adjudicator for the Music For All National Concert Band Festival, the Thailand International Wind Symphony Competition, and the Illinois SuperState Concert Band Festival. She served as clinician and chief adjudicator for the Victorian School Music Festival in Melbourne, Australia, and featured instructor of the ABODA Conducting Symposium in Sydney, New South Wales. Schneider has been an invited guest conductor of the U.S. Air Force Band, Dallas Winds, Sydney Conservatorium of Music Wind Symphony, Concordia Santa Fe, Blue Lake Fine Arts Camp Festival & Staff Bands, and Wheaton Municipal Band, and is a frequent guest conductor of regional and All-State honor bands throughout the United States.

Elected to the prestigious American Bandmasters Association in 2013, Dr. Schneider served as President of the North Central Division of the College Band Directors National Association from 2021-2023—the first woman elected to leadership since the inception of the division—and currently serves on the Music Education Committee of CBDNA. A strong advocate for new wind music, she has participated in commissioning and/or premiering over three dozen works for wind band, and her ensembles frequently collaborate with a diverse group of composers. In addition to published articles in the GIA book series, Teaching Music Through Performance in Band, she has presented on the topic of wind band repertoire at the Midwest International Band and Orchestra Clinic in Chicago and is a frequent invited lecturer on the celebrated American composer, John Corigliano, and his Symphony No. 3 for large wind ensemble, “Circus Maximus.”

Schneider holds a doctoral degree in conducting from the University of Texas at Austin, and degrees in horn performance and music education from the New England Conservatory of Music, and the University of Connecticut, having graduated with Distinction in Performance honors from the former. She is a member of MSBOA, Kappa Kappa Psi, Tau Beta Sigma, and serves as Michigan Chair for the National Band Association.

 

About Rodney Dorsey:

Rodney Dorsey is Professor of Music at the Florida State University College of Music where he conducts the FSU Wind Orchestra and guides the graduate wind conducting program.

Dorsey comes to FSU from the Indiana University Jacobs School of Music where he conducted the IU Wind Ensemble and taught graduate conducting courses. Prior to his tenure at the Jacobs School, Dorsey served on the faculties of the University of Oregon, University of Michigan, DePaul University and Northwestern University. He also gained extensive experience teaching in the public schools of Florida and Georgia.

Dorsey studied conducting with Mallory Thompson, John P. Paynter, and James Croft. He was a clarinet student of Fred Ormand and Frank Kowalsky.

During his conducting career, Dorsey has led performances at several prominent events including the American Bandmasters Association Convention, College Band Directors National Conference North/Northwest Regional Conference, and the Bands of America National Festival. He is active as a guest conductor, clinician, and adjudicator in the United States. International engagements include Hungary, Canada, and Bulgaria.

Dorsey’s commitment to community has been demonstrated by his participation on the board of directors for Music for All and the Midwest Clinic. He currently serves as the president of the Midwest Clinic. Other professional memberships include the College Band Directors National Association, National Association for Music Education, Florida Bandmasters Association, Kappa Kappa Psi, Tau Beta Sigma (honorary), Phi Mu Alpha Sinfonia, and Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity Incorporated. Dorsey is also an elected member of the American Bandmasters Association. Most recently Dorsey was named a Yamaha Master Educator.

 

About Eastman School of Music:

The Eastman School of Music was founded in 1921 by industrialist and philanthropist George Eastman (1854-1932), founder of Eastman Kodak Company. It was the first professional school of the University of Rochester. Mr. Eastman’s dream was that his school would provide a broad education in the liberal arts as well as superb musical training.

More than 900 students are enrolled in the Collegiate Division of the Eastman School of Music—about 500 undergraduates and 400 graduate students. They come from almost every state, and approximately 23 percent are from other countries. They are taught by a faculty comprised of more than 170 highly regarded performers, composers, conductors, scholars, and educators. They are Pulitzer Prize winners, Grammy winners, Emmy winners, Guggenheim fellows, ASCAP Award recipients, published authors, recording artists, and acclaimed musicians who have performed in the world’s greatest concert halls. Each year, Eastman’s students, faculty members, and guest artists present more than 900 concerts to the Rochester community. Additionally, more than 1,700 members of the Rochester community, from young children through senior citizens, are enrolled in the Eastman Community Music School.

 

About the University of Rochester:

The University of Rochester is one of the nation’s leading private research universities, one of only 62-member institutions in the Association of American Universities. Located in Rochester, N.Y., the University gives undergraduates exceptional opportunities for interdisciplinary study and close collaboration with faculty through its unique cluster-based curriculum. Its College, School of Arts and Sciences, and Hajim School of Engineering and Applied Sciences are complemented by the Eastman School of Music, Simon School of Business, Warner School of Education, Laboratory for Laser Energetics, School of Medicine and Dentistry, School of Nursing, Eastman Institute for Oral Health, and the Memorial Art Gallery.