Conductor Robert J. Ambrose enjoys a highly successful and diverse career as a dynamic and engaging musician. His musical interests cross many genres and can be seen in the wide range of professional activities he pursues. Dr. Ambrose studied formally at Boston College, Boston University and Northwestern University, where he received the Doctor of Music degree in conducting.

Dr. Ambrose currently serves as Director of Bands and Professor of Music at Georgia State University a research institution of over 53,000 students located in Atlanta. His duties at Georgia State include conducting the Symphonic Wind Ensemble, running the highly successful graduate wind conducting program and overseeing the entire large, comprehensive university band program. His graduate conducting students have received multiple honors and hold conducting and teaching positions throughout the United States and in multiple foreign countries.

Dr. Ambrose is in constant demand as a guest conductor and has performed on four continents. Recent engagements include performances in Australia, Canada, Finland, Germany, Greece, Hong Kong, Malaysia, Singapore, and Taiwan as well as across the United States. He is Founder and Music Director of the National Chamber Winds, a professional wind dectet based in Washington, D.C. as well as Founder and Music Director of the Atlanta Chamber Winds and Ensemble ATL, ensembles comprising musicians from the Atlanta Symphony, Atlanta Opera, and Atlanta Ballet Orchestras.

Dr. Ambrose has strong ties to the Finnish music community. He is frequently engaged in that country as a guest conductor, teacher, master clinician, and lecturer. Guest conducting appearances include the Finnish Navy Band, the Finnish Army Band, the Helsinki Police Band, the STM Summer Music Festival Wind Orchestra, the Rauma Wind Band, and the youth wind bands of Kokkola, Kotka, and Rauma. He has taught conducting workshops throughout the country and has served as a guest lecturer multiple times at the Central Ostrobothnian Conservatory and the Sibelius Academy.

Ambrose is a prolific arranger with nearly two dozen publications to his credit. His transcriptions and editions are published by Presser Music, Murphy Music Press, C. Alan Publications, Fennica Gehrman (Finland), and Edition Tilli (Finland). His transcriptions appear on several state lists and have been performed around the world.

Matthew Arau, author of the bestselling book Upbeat! Mindset, Mindfulness, and Leadership in Music Education and Beyond, and founder of Upbeat Global, is an Associate Professor of Music and the Chair of the Music Education Department and Symphonic Band Conductor at the Lawrence University Conservatory of Music in Appleton, Wisconsin. In addition, Dr. Arau serves as a Conn-Selmer Education Clinician and is on the graduate conducting faculty of the American Band College of Central Washington University and graduate music education faculty at VanderCook College of Music.

Dr. Arau has guest conducted and presented on student leadership, mindfulness, growth mindset, rehearsal techniques, and creating positive cultures in person in 40 states and 4 continents in person. He has presented at the International Midwest Band and Orchestra Clinic, the Western International Band Clinic, the NAfME National Conference, numerous State and Regional Music Education Association Conferences, and the Conn-Selmer Institute. He has conducted honor bands in Australia, Greece, Cyprus, Thailand, and Malaysia, and All-State honor bands across the United States. Dr. Arau draws on a deep reservoir of fifteen years of experience as a successful middle school and high school band director in Loveland, Colorado, where he led his bands at Walt Clark Middle School and Loveland High School to numerous honor performances and championships and pioneered the Leadership Symposium.

Dr. Arau holds a Doctor of Musical Arts in Conducting and Literature from the University of Colorado Boulder and a Master of Science in Music Education from the American Band College of Southern Oregon University. He graduated magna cum laude from Lawrence University, where he earned a Bachelor of Music in Instrumental Music Education, Music Performance (Classical), Music Performance (Jazz Studies), and a Bachelor of Arts in Government.

Andrew Boysen, Jr. is presently a professor in the music department at the University of New Hampshire, where he conducts the wind symphony and teaches conducting and composition. Under his leadership, the UNH wind symphony has released six recordings and been invited to perform at regional conventions of the College Band Directors National Association and National Association for Music Education. Previously, Boysen taught at Indiana State University and Cary-Grove (IL) High School and was the music director and conductor of the Deerfield Community Concert Band. He remains active as a guest conductor and clinician, appearing with high school, university and festival ensembles across the United States, Great Britain, and Australia.

Boysen earned his Doctor of Musical Arts degree in wind conducting at the Eastman School of Music, where he served as conductor of the Eastman Wind Orchestra and assistant conductor of the Eastman Wind Ensemble. He received his Master of Music degree in wind conducting from Northwestern University in 1993 and his Bachelor of Music degree in music education and music composition from the University of Iowa in 1991.

He maintains an active schedule as a composer, receiving commissions from festival, university, and high school concert bands across the United States. Boysen won the College Band Directors National Association Composition Contest in 2013, the International Horn Society Composition Contest in 2000, the University of Iowa Honors Composition Prize in 1991 and has twice won the Claude T. Smith Memorial Band Composition Contest, in 1991 and 1994. Boysen has several published works with the Neil A. Kjos Music Company, Wingert-Jones Music, Alfred Music, Ludwig Masters Music, and C. Alan Publications, including pieces for band, orchestra, clarinet and piano, and brass choir. Recordings of his music appear on the Sony, R-Kal, Mark, St. Olaf and Elf labels.

Choral conductor, singer and music educator from the Dominican Republic, Magdalena Delgado currently serves as the conductor of the Hyde Park Neighborhood Choir as well as an In-School Choir.

Prior to her move to Chicago, Magdalena served as Artistic Director of the children and youth choir, Voces del Mar, based in Veracruz, Mexico, and was the Founder and Artistic Director of Audimus, a professional chamber ensemble based in Xalapa, Mexico. While in Mexico, she also worked as an adjunct faculty member on the choral and voice faculties of Instituto Superior de Música Esperanza Azteca and the Centro de Estudios de Jazz of the Universidad Veracruzana (JazzUV), where she taught voice and voice techniques classes, courses in choral literature and conducted the preparatory vocal jazz ensemble.

In 2014, Magdalena earned her Master of Music in Choral Conducting, with distinction, from Westminster Choir College where she studied with Drs. Joe Miller, James Jordan and Amanda Quist. During her master’s studies, she served as Assistant Conductor of the Westminster Chapel Choir, was an integral member of the Westminster Symphonic Choir and served as a section leader for the world-renown Westminster Choir. While at Westminster, she performed on tours throughout the U.S., and alongside some of the greatest orchestras in the world under the direction of conductors of the highest stature. Prior to her master’s studies, Magdalena studied vocal performance at the Conservatory of Music of Puerto Rico and has served as a guest conductor for choirs of all ages throughout the United States, Mexico, Puerto Rico and the Dominican Republic. Magdalena received her bachelor’s degree in music education from the Universidad Autónoma de Santo Domingo where she graduated magna cum laude.

As a native of Santo Domingo, Magdalena began her musical study at age five where she studied piano, recorder and most importantly was a member of the children’s choir at her area music school, which served as her initial inspiration for her career path. Magdalena’s unique background and experiences inspires Uniting Voices Chicago singers.

Julie Duty completed her undergraduate degree at Arizona State University in 1998, earning a Bachelor of Music in Music Education. She then taught high school and middle school band and served as a mentor teacher for nine years in Arizona.

Julie founded United Sound, Inc. (www.unitedsound.org) in 2014 and currently serves as the Executive Director, working with teachers, parents, and administrators to bring meaningful participation and inclusivity to the instrumental music classroom. United Sound was created with the goal of developing relationships between students with and without disabilities and providing them with the opportunity to build self-esteem, self-confidence, friendships, and a sense of belonging through music. In its first eight years, over 12,000 students in 31 states have participated in United Sound and they have logged over 250,000 relationship-building, music-making hours together.

Julie holds an executive scholar certificate in nonprofit management from the Kellogg Executive Education program at Northwestern University. She is also a highly sought after speaker and guest lecturer and has presented over 100 clinics and keynote addresses at universities, state and national music education conferences, and school district-wide professional development events. Julie is still an active musician, performing as a member of the Tempe Winds for the last 25 years. She is honored to serve as a Board Member for the National Music Council, El Sistema USA, as a member of The Midwest Clinic Advisory Board, as a part of Music for All’s Advocacy in Action Committee, and The Institute for Composer Diversity Advisory Council.

As a first-generation Filipino-American and military child, Melissa Fuller Flores grew up showcasing Filipino folk dances on Air Force bases. The foundations of how to move to music primed her for a Bachelor's in Music Education at the University of Alabama, and a Master's in Clarinet Performance at the University of North Texas. Her career began at the Houston Symphony, where she coordinated concert logistics for over 120,000 students, witnessing the transformative power of music in fostering community and belonging. This experience inspired her to transition into the classroom to be closer to the transformative power of music education.

Melissa's teaching journey spans a wide age range, from infancy to elementary grades and even college students across Alabama, Texas, Iowa, and Missouri. She is a dedicated mentor to pre-service and new teachers and a fierce advocate for students of all backgrounds and ages, ensuring they feel seen, valued, and celebrated in and outside of the music classroom.

As a dynamic presenter, Melissa leads workshops nationwide, fueled by her belief that music is a source of peace, empowerment, and transformation. She is committed to empowering educators to create supportive, inclusive environments where every learner can thrive.

Soo Han is the Director of Orchestral Studies at George Mason University's Reva and Sid Dewberry Family School of Music in Fairfax, Virginia; Music Director of the Elkhart County Symphony in Indiana; and a member of the Board of Directors of the Midwest International Band and Orchestra Clinic. He is a composer and arranger with Hal Leonard and is also a contributing editor for Essential Elements for Strings.

As an active conductor, Dr. Han has appeared with numerous professional and university orchestras. He is a frequent conductor for all-state, regional, and honor orchestras, appearing in more than 30 states, and has conducted ensembles in Australia, Austria, China, and Thailand. He has produced multiple recordings of complete symphonies and has premiered several commissioned works for strings and full orchestras. Dr. Han has presented workshops and clinics internationally and for nearly every major national and state music conference, including Australian String Teacher Conference, Maryborough National Australia Conference, The Midwest Clinic, ASTA National Conference, NAfME National Conference, and Ohio University Summer String Teacher Workshop. Prior to his position at George Mason, Dr. Han served as the Director of Orchestral Studies at Baldwin Wallace Conservatory of Music in Berea, Ohio and was the program coordinator and faculty member with Los Angeles Philharmonic's summer YOLA program.

Dr. Han is a Conn-Selmer Educational Clinician, and co-author, contributor, and managing editor for Teaching Music through Performance in Orchestra, Vol. 4, one of the leading orchestra pedagogical resources published by GIA. He is a past president of the Indiana American String Teachers Association and his high school orchestras were nine-time Indiana State School Music Association champions. Having taught in the public schools for fifteen years, he is a passionate supporter of school music programs and continues to remain active in instrumental classrooms throughout the country.

Soo received his Bachelor of Instrumental Music Education degree from Indiana University's Jacobs School of Music, where he studied piano under Edward Auer. He received his Master of Science in Education from the Indiana University School of Education, and his Doctorate in Orchestral Conducting from the Michigan State University College of Music, where he studied under Kevin Noe.

Mike Kamuf holds Bachelor of Music degrees in both Jazz Performance and Music Education from the Dana School of Music at Youngstown State University (Youngstown, OH) and a Master of Arts degree in Instrumental Conducting from George Mason University (Fairfax, VA). Mike's compositions and arrangements have been performed by numerous jazz artists and ensembles including the Woody Herman and Glenn Miller Orchestras, the USAF Airmen of Note, the US Navy Commodores, James Moody, Eddie Daniels, Sean Jones, Terell Stafford, Bob Mintzer, Bill Watrous and Nick Brignola to name a few. Mike is an exclusive writer for the Belwin Division of Alfred Music Publishing with titles in their jazz, orchestra and concert band catalogs. He also has compositions for jazz ensemble published by UNC Jazz Press, the Neil A. Kjos Music and the FJH Music Company. Many of Mike's published jazz ensemble arrangements have become standard literature for young jazz ensembles and he currently has over 100 publications in print.

Mike has performed with the Woody Herman and Tommy Dorsey Orchestras and has recorded as a member of the Alan Baylock Jazz Orchestra. He served as assistant principal trumpet of the Youngstown Symphony Orchestra. Currently, Mike leads his own jazz octet, the Mike Kamuf Little Big Band, comprised of outstanding musicians from the Baltimore and Washington DC areas.

Mike began his teaching career in 1991 in Ohio and taught instrumental music for Montgomery County (Maryland) Public Schools (MCPS) for thirty years. For twenty-seven of those years, Mike served as the Director of Bands and Orchestras and Music Department Chairperson at John T. Baker Middle School (Damascus, MD). Under his direction, the Baker ensembles consistently received high ratings at music festivals and have commissioned several works for young concert bands. Mike has received the MCPS Superintendent's Above and Beyond the Call of Duty (ABCD) Award for his efforts in involving students in the composition commissioning process. He has directed the MCPS Senior Honors Jazz Band, Junior Honors Band, and the All-County Middle School Band.

Additionally, Mike has directed the Pennsylvania All State Jazz Band, the Southern California School Band & Orchestra Directors Association (SCSBOA) Jazz All Stars, the New Mexico All State Jazz Band, and many regional honors ensembles in California, Maryland, Pennsylvania, Virginia, New Mexico, Ohio, Minnesota and New York. Mike has served as a jazz faculty member at Youngstown State University and Montgomery College (Rockville, MD). Mike has presented professional development sessions for music educators at the Midwest Clinic, Jazz Education Network Conferences and at numerous regional and state music education conferences. He has become an in-demand arranger, clinician, guest conductor and adjudicator for schools, conferences and music festivals across the country and is a clinician for both MakeMusic and Alfred Music.

Recipient of the American String Teachers Association Elizabeth A. H. Green Award for a distinguished career in string teaching, James Palmer is the Orchestra Director at Allatoona High School in Acworth, Georgia, the Music Director for the Youth Orchestras of Greater Columbus in Columbus, Georgia and an editor, arranger, and featured clinician for Alfred Music. He is the Co-Author of The Sound Orchestra Full Orchestra Method Book and has published over twenty compositions for String Orchestra. Mr. Palmer has served as the Orchestra Director at Manatee High School in Bradenton, Florida; Music Department Chairman and Orchestra Director at Cypress Lake Center for the Arts in Fort Myers, Florida; and Fine Arts Department Chairman and Orchestra Director at Chattahoochee High School in John's Creek, Georgia. In addition to his teaching career, Mr. Palmer has also served as conductor with the Florida West Coast Symphony Youth Orchestra, Georgia Youth Symphony Orchestra, and former Music Director for the Tampa Bay Youth Orchestra and the Southwest Florida Symphony Youth Orchestra. Mr. Palmer's orchestras have performed at the Florida Music Educator's Conference in Tampa, the MENC Southern Division Conference in Savannah, the ASTA National Orchestra Festival in Dallas, the Midwest Clinic in Chicago, and the 2005 ASTA National Conference in Reno, Nevada.

Jim Palmer has received the Teacher of the Year Award in three separate high schools and has been inducted into the Florida Collegiate Music Educators Hall of Fame. He is a frequent clinician having conducted All State and honors orchestras in Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Maryland, New York, Oregon, Tennessee, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Vermont. Mr. Palmer has also maintained a career as a professional violist serving as Principal Violist for the Sarasota Pops Orchestra, section violist, and substitute principal for the Southwest Florida Symphony and Chamber Orchestra as well as a freelance violist in the Atlanta area. Mr. Palmer is a member of GMEA, Past President of the Georgia American String Teachers Association, Past Chairman of the ASTA National Orchestra Festival, and is a graduate of Florida State University.

Scott Roether is the Lower School Music Specialist at University School in Shaker Heights, Ohio where he facilitates music and movement lessons for boys ages four through ten. Previously, he worked as an arts integration specialist and public school teacher. He holds a Bachelor's Degree in Music Education from Ohio University where he studied percussion and graduated with Performance Honors and has completed Orff Schulwerk Levels training, as well as Master Classes, Curriculum Development, and the International Summer Course at the Orff-Institut.

In addition to his previous training in Orff Schulwerk, Scott completed his Master's degree in Music Education with a concentration in Orff Schulwerk from the University of St. Thomas. His students have been featured performers at the 2025 OMEA Professional Development Conference. He has also been published in The Orff Echo, most recently sharing an article outlining the beginnings of the Minnesota Orff Course and the "cross-pollination" of its course instructors. A frequent presenter locally and nationally, he serves the Greater Cleveland Orff Chapter as the Vice President and Program Chair.

Adrian B. Sims is an accomplished composer, conductor, educator, and trombonist. Adrian's music has been performed at prestigious conferences such as The Midwest Band and Orchestra Clinic and at new music reading sessions across the country. His music has also been selected for the Bandworld Top 100 List, and many of his works appear on the J.W. Pepper Editor's Choice List. Adrian has also been selected as a winner in multiple composition competitions including the Maryland Music Educators Association Young Composers Project and the Make Music Young Composers Contest. He is frequently invited to rehearse, conduct, and lead clinics with bands and orchestras across the United States. Adrian is also active as an educator in the Maryland area and has worked with a variety of programs including the Baltimore County Summer Music Camp, Terrapin Music Camp at the University of Maryland, and the DC Youth Orchestra Programs.

Adrian is a graduate of the University of Maryland with degrees in Music Education and Composition. He is currently pursuing a Master's Degree in Composition at the University of Texas at Austin. As a trombonist, he has performed in a wide variety of musical ensembles including pit and symphony orchestras as well as jazz and concert bands. Adrian studied trombone with Matthew Guilford, solo bass trombonist with the National Symphony Orchestra, and Aaron LaVere, principal trombonist with the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra. He is grateful for the continued support from his middle and high school band directors Cindy Stevenson and Christopher Gnagey. He credits Dr. Robert Gibson, Professor of Composition at the University of Maryland, and world-renowned composer Brian Balmages for his development as a composer.

An active composer and performer, Moira Smiley has written commissions for the LA Master Chorale, Conspirare, Cincinnati Vocal Arts Ensemble, Mirabai, Stile Antico, American Choral Directors Association, Voces Novae, VocalEssence, Pacific Chorale, NOTUS, Ad Astra Festival and countless others. Her arrangements and original compositions for choir—especially those with her signature body percussion—are performed by millions of singers around the world. The European premiere of Time In Our Voices was performed by the voices and mobile phones of Ars Nova Copenhagen under the direction of Paul Hillier. In 2018-2019 Moira released the album and choral songbook, Unzip The Horizon as companion to her The Voice Is A Traveler solo show. She continues composing and improvising in collaboration with artists in film, video game production, theater and dance, and her work can be heard on feature film soundtracks, BBC & PBS television programs, NPR, and on more than 70 commercial albums. Her most recent premieres include her secular liturgy, The Song Among Us for Cincinnati Vocal Arts Ensemble and Keep On for VocalEssence. Her current projects include Utopias for voices and strings, and a re-telling of Ovid's tale of Narcissus for mobile phones and voices. A new album of folksongs with string quartet, 'The Rhizome Project' will be released in 2024.

Brian J. Winnie is the Director of Choral Studies at Western Illinois University where he supervises the graduate choral conducting program; teaches undergraduate and graduate courses in choral conducting, choral pedagogy, and choral literature; and conducts the Chamber Singers, Treble Choir, and the "flagship" ensemble, the University Singers. He is also the artistic director and founder of withonevoice, a professional non-profit, sixteen-member vocal ensemble based in Illinois with a special focus on singing diverse voice qualities and repertoire. He previously served as the Director of Choral Activities & Voice and was chair of the music department at Southwestern College in Winfield, KS. Prior to his tenure in higher education, Dr. Winnie was the Artistic Director of ChoralSounds NW, a community choir based in Burien, WA, and he taught for seven years in public education at both the middle and high school levels.

An active festival conductor and adjudicator, Dr. Winnie has been artist-in-residence in Ekaterinburg, Russia and has worked with festival choirs throughout the United States in Pennsylvania, Missouri, Wisconsin, Illinois, Ohio, Washington, Kansas, Oregon, and Alaska. He is a frequent guest lecturer/workshop leader and has presented at International, Regional, and State Conferences on "Contemporary Vocal Technique in the Choral Rehearsal," "Redefining the Choral Warm-Up," and "21st-Century Choral Pedagogy." Dr. Winnie has published articles in the Voice and Speech Review, Choral Journal, Voice Foundation Newsletter, International Choral Bulletin, and ChorTeach, and he is the editor and contributing author to The Choral Conductor's Companion and The Voice Teacher's Cookbook: Creative Recipes for Teachers of Singing both published by Meredith Music Publications and distributed by GIA Publications.

Choirs under his direction have performed at multiple state conventions and regional conferences and received accolades in both international and national competitions. Most recently, the Western Illinois University Singers were invited to perform at the ACDA Midwestern Regional Conference in 2024, and they won the 2021 American Prize in the Performance of American Music (University/College division) and were first place winners of the 2021 International Choral Festival Wales. They have also won gold medals at the 2020 Rimini International Choral Competition (Italy) and the Harmony of Cultures International Competition (France).

Dr. Winnie has also been honored with multiple awards. He was the second-place winner of the 2020 national American Prize in Choral Conducting (Schools Division), received the WIU College of Fine Arts and Communication award for "Excellence in Scholarly and Professional Activities, the "Exemplary Teacher Award" at Southwestern College, and the "Outstanding Young Conductor Award" presented by the Pennsylvania chapter of the American Choral Directors Association.

Dr. Winnie currently serves on the Editorial Board for the Voice and Speech Review, is the College/University Repertoire and Resources chair for Illinois-ACDA and serves on the Estill Voice International Board. His past positions have included Secretary for the Central New Jersey Music Education Association and Middle School/Jr. High Repertoire and Standards Chair for ACDA-PA. He is an active member of the ACDA, NATS, and NAfME.

A native of Pennsylvania, Dr. Winnie received his B.S. in Music Education from the Pennsylvania State University, Master of Music Education from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, and his Doctor of Musical Arts in Choral Conducting from the University of Washington. Additionally, he is a certified Estill Master Trainer and Estill Mentor & Course Instructor with Testing Privileges of Estill Voice Training. His research interests involve the integration of gesture and voice training in the choral rehearsal and the development of a 21st-century choral pedagogy encompassing all styles of music.

Julie Yu is Professor of Music and Director of Choral Studies at the Wanda L. Bass School of Music at Oklahoma City University and the Artistic Director of Canterbury Voices, Oklahoma's premier symphony chorus. She holds a Bachelor of Music degree in Music Education from the University of Central Oklahoma, Master of Music degree in Choral Conducting from Oklahoma State University, and the Doctor of Musical Arts degree in Choral Conducting from the University of North Texas. Before joining OCU and Canterbury Voices, she taught at Norman North High School in Oklahoma, San José State University, and Kansas State University.

She has given presentations, conducted, and/or her choirs have performed for state and regional conferences of the American Choral Directors Association, National Association for Music Education, and the European Music Educators Association. She is the past president of the Southwestern Region of the American Choral Directors Association and served as an International Conducting Exchange Fellow to Kenya. Her favorite area of research and performance is working as a guest clinician/conductor for various honor choirs and professional organizations.