Mr. James Pratte is the band director of Benton Middle School in Manassas VA. Under his direction the band program at Benton has grown from 175 to over 400 members. The 8th Grade Symphonic Band has consistently received superior ratings at the VBODA concert band festival and the Benton Jazz Ensemble has received superior ratings at all competitions since its inception in 2004.

Mr. Pratte graduated from James Madison University majoring in Music Education with a concentration in clarinet performance in 1996. While at JMU he performed in the Wind Symphony, Symphony Orchestra, Symphonic Band, Percussion Ensemble, Clarinet Ensemble, and The Marching Royal Dukes. He was the mellophone (french horn) section leader for three of his four years in the marching band. In 1995 Mr. Pratte was selected in a national audition to play mellophone with the 18 member Disney All-American College Show Band in Orlando, Florida. In 1997 he was invited back to Disney to serve as the Teaching Assistant and oboist/doubling woodwind player in the All-American College Orchestra which performed in The Epcot Center at Walt Disney World.

In addition to his teaching duties at Benton Middle, Mr. Pratte maintains a private studio of clarinet, saxophone, oboe, and flute students. He has served as the director and assistant director of the Youth Orchestra of Prince William’s Wind Symphony. He is a member of the marching band staff of both Centreville HS and Battlefield HS and has served as staff arranger, assistant director, percussion coach, and woodwind coach at many high school marching bands. Mr. Pratte has served as the camp director for the Prince William Summer Band Camps since 2004 when it moved to Benton Middle School. He lives in Alexandria, Virginia.

Chris Gillespie is currently the Director of Bands at Gainesville Middle School where he oversees the 6th through 8th grade bands. Mr. Gillespie has been teaching in Prince William County for 6 years, 1 year at Graham Park and Potomac High School and 5 years at Rippon Middle School, serving as department chair for the past 2 years. His bands have earned local and state recognition and awards. He is the currently the Assistant Marching Band director at Battlefield High School. Chris is also the founder of the Prince William County Summer Band Camp which is in its 6th year.

Mr. Gillespie holds a Bachelor's Degree from the University of Delaware with an emphasis in Instrumental Music. He also holds a Masters Degree in Music Education from the University of Connecticut. During his time as a graduate assistant at Connecticut, Mr. Gillespie's Basketball Pep Bands were featured on prominent television channels such as NBC, CBS, ABC, ESPN, and ESPN II. He was also the founder of a Brass Conversion Class at UCONN.

Mr. Gillespie's professional affiliations include the Music Educators National Conference, Virginia Music Educators Association, Virginia Band and Orchestra Directors Association, Prince William Education Association, and the National Education Association. Chris was inducted into the music fraternities of Kappa Kappa Psi and Tau Beta Sigma as an honorary member at Connecticut. Mr. Gillespie is a member of the Golden Key National Honor Society and the Tri-M music fraternity.

Matt Brodt is currently the Director of Bands at Battlefield High School where he oversees the Concert Bands, Jazz Band, Percussion Ensemble, and Marching Band. Before becoming the Department Chair at Battlefield he was the Director of Bands at Potomac High School for 5 years. His bands have earned local, state, and national recognition and awards. Matt also works at Shenandoah University's Performing Arts Camp as a Counselor and Middle School Band Assistant.

Mr. Brodt has a bachelor's degree from Shenandoah University with an emphasis in instrumental education and a performance certificate in trumpet. Matt has played with the Bethlehem American Legion Band, Maryland Symphony, Riverside Wind Symphony, Nazareth Community Band, and is the Associate conductor and performer with the Prince William Community Band. He is also a freelance performer and has played numerous weddings, musicals, and operas throughout Virginia, Maryland, West Virginia, and Washington DC. Mr. Brodt also hosts the VBODA State Marching Festival Northeast Site. He is an active clinician and adjudicator for marching and concert bands. He pursues his passion for instrumental music through active involvement with school band programs and a private trumpet lesson studio.

Matt is a member of the Kappa Kappa Psi national honorary band fraternity, the Omicron Delta Kappa national honorary leadership fraternity, the Tri-M music fraternity. He also is a member of the Music Educators National Conference, Virginia Music Educators Association where he has served as district chair, and Virginia Band and Orchestra Directors Association where he has served as district instrumental representative. Matt is very proud to say he is a fifth generation band director. He currently lives in Nokesville, VA with his wife Alicia who is also an active music educator.

Alicia Brodt will be beginning her tenth year of teaching this fall. She is currently the chorus director at Bull Run Middle School in Gainesville, Virginia. Before that, Alicia taught at Saunders Middle School in Woodbridge, Virginia and at Simpson Middle School in Leesburg, Virginia. Mrs. Brodt has lived in Virginia all of her life. She attended Robert E. Lee High School in Staunton, VA. Alicia has her Bachelor’s in Music Education degree from Shenandoah Conservatory and University, located in Winchester, Virginia. She plays the piano and clarinet and is a member of the Prince William Community Band. Mrs. Brodt also is the color guard instructor for the marching band at Battlefield High School. Alicia lives in Nokesville, Virginia with her husband Matt Brodt.

Mrs. Kathy Firestone is in her second year of teaching strings with Prince William County Public Schools. Previously, she had taught Orchestra, Concert Band, Jazz Band, Chorus and General Music classes, at grade levels ranging from elementary through high school in both private and public schools in Anne Arundel County, MD and Baltimore, Maryland.

She is a graduate of West Virginia University, Morgantown, West Virginia and has received her Masters degree from Towson State University. Mrs. Firestone performed a Masters flute recital at Towson State University.

Currently, Mrs. Firestone plays keyboard bass and electric bass with a swing band and plays the flute in a number of community bands in the Northern Virginia area.

Patrick J. Gillespie is a trombone performer and teacher in the Washington D.C. area. Mr. Gillespie received his Master of Music degree from the University of North Texas, where he was a frequent performer in the Wind Studies, Orchestra and Lab Band programs. At UNT, he studied trombone with Tony Baker and Dr. Vern Kagarice. Mr. Gillespie received his Bachelor’s degree in music from West Virginia University where he studied trombone with Dr. Keith Jackson.

Mr. Gillespie has performed on alto and tenor trombone with the San Angelo Symphony, DAAYO, Denton Public Theatre and put out a Christmas album with his trombone quartet, Meldified in 2004. Other performing credits include the Jimmy Dorsey Band, a Hershey Park performing artist, the Fairmont State Orchestra, the Alderson-Broaddus Orchestra, the West Virginia University Orchestra, the High Five Brass Quintet, the Riverside Wind Symphony Brass Quintet, the Mount Vernon Symphony, and he was an Auditor at the 2003 Alessi Seminar.

Mr. Gillespie is an active member of the International Trombone Association and is currently in the finals for the Air Force Band of Flight in Dayton, Ohio.

Carolos O. Gonzalez has been the band director at Stonewall Middle School, in Manassas, VA for three years. He is a graduate of James Madison University, where he studied clarinet. While at JMU Mr. Gonzalez was a member of the Marching Royal Dukes, the Wind Symphony, and several chamber ensembles. Mr. Gonzalez is an active member of the Fairfax Wind Symphony and a substitute clarinet player for the City of Fairfax Band. He is a member of the Music Educators National Conference and the Virginia Band and Orchestra Directors Association.

Mr. Kurt Holscher is currently is an elementary band director in Fairfax County. He is a graduate of James Madison University where he was a member of the Marching Royal Dukes, Wind Symphony, Brass Ensemble, and Jazz Ensemble. Mr. Holscher is an active member of the Fairfax Wind Symphony, Music Educators National Conference, and the Virginia Band and Orchestra Director’s Association.

Mrs. Jaime Holscher is the band director and music department chair at Woodbridge Middle School where she has taught since 2004. She received her Bachelor of Music Education degree from Florida State University and is currently pursuing a Masters Degree in Music (Conducting) from George Mason University. While at FSU, Mrs. Holscher was a member of the Philharmonia Orchestra, Marching Chiefs, Wind Symphony, Jazz Band, and various chamber ensembles. In 2004 she was honored as the “Music Education Major of the Year” award winner from Florida State University. In 2003 she also received a “Medal of Honor” for her contributions as flute section leader for the FSU Marching Chiefs.

Mrs. Holscher is a current member of the Fairfax Wind Symphony, the Music Educators National Conference, the Virginia Music Educators Association, the Virginia Band and Orchestra Director’s Association, and the Prince William Educators Association. She is a staff member for the West Springfield High School Marching Spartans and has served on staff for the PWC Summer Band camps since 2006, becoming an associate director in 2007.

Mr. Brandon Neal is currently serving his first year as band director at Rippon Middle School. Before teaching at Rippon he was the music teacher at Triangle Elementary School. Mr. Neal has taught the drumlines for marching band at Potomac and Battlefield High School. Additionally, he has composed drum parts for marching bands at Battlefield, Potomac, Hylton, and Loudoun County High Schools.

Mr. Neal graduated from West Virginia University with a bachelor’s degree in Music Education. At West Virginia he took part in Percussion Lessons, Percussion Ensemble, Wind Symphony, Marching Band, Taiko, Gamelan, Samba, and Steel Band. During his college career Mr. Neal was also employed with Mannette Steel Drums and worked with Ellie Mannette, the inventor of the steel drum.

Mr. Neal is a member of the Music Educators National Conference and Virginia Band and Ochestra Directors Association. He teaches private percussion lessons around the Northern Virginia area and taught for the Prince County Percussion and Jazz Camp last year.

Mr. Christopher Neal currently is teaching band, choir and general music at Lake Ridge Middle School. Mr. Neal has played trombone for 18 years and have been playing Tuba and Euphonium for 14 years. Mr. Neal graduated from Woodbridge Senior High School in 1999 and then traveled to Richmond where he studied for and achieved a Bachelors of Music in Music Education in 2006. Mr. Neal has performed with many ensembles including the Virginia Commonwealth Jazz Orchestra 1, Virginia Commonwealth Symphonic Wind Ensemble, Prince William County Community Band, Northern Virginia Intercollegiate Band, Good and Plenty Brass Band, and the Oregon Hill Funk All-Stars. Currently in addition to his teaching duties at LRMS he also coaches the low brass section for the Potomac High School Marching Band, and coaches both Girls and Boys Varsity Basketball at LRMS.

Ms. Donna Peck is a bassoonist and private instructor in Manassas, Virginia. Locally, Ms. Peck is the principal bassoonist with the Prince William Community Band, performs in various woodwind quintets, and was a member of the NOVA Manassas Symphony Orchestra for several years. Nationally, she performs with the Veterans Affairs National Medical Musical Group providing "Music with a message." Regular performances which are televised on local TV and cable channels such as the Discovery Channel include: annual Flag Day Concerts at the U.S. Capitol, Veteran’s Day concerts at various performance venues around the country, most recently in Houston, TX, and Valentines Day concerts at the Pentagon. The concerts include marquee performers such as Andy Williams, Lee Greenwood, Shirley Jones, Adrian Cronauer, and a host of U.S. Senators, Representatives, and other dignitaries.

She is a graduate of Western Kentucky University (B.S. Economics and Computer Science) where she studied with Larry Long and performed in the Wind Ensemble, Woodwind Quintet, Big Red Marching Band, Pep Band and Jazz Band. She was also a member of the Bowling Green Western Symphony Orchestra and performed in various operas and musicals as a pit orchestra performer. She was an active member of Delta Omicron music fraternity for women. While in graduate school at the University of Memphis (M.A. Economics), she was principal oboist with the Symphonic Band. While living in Memphis she was an oboist/bassoonist with the River City Community Band.

Outside of playing double reed instruments, Donna has been the drum major and guard instructor for Shenandoah Sound Drum and Bugle Corps since 2003.

Claire Walker began studying percussion when she was in fifth grade with Brenda Weckerly, a former U.S. Marine Band member. She was principal percussionist of the Bishop Ireton High School Symphonic Wind Ensemble for four years and, with the group, went on three European concert tours. For two years, Miss Walker served as the principal timpanist with the Washington Metropolitan Youth Philharmonic. Claire also attended summer music camps at The Juilliard School and the Oberlin Conservatory of Music. Claire now attends Indiana University School of Music, where she is pursuing a bachelor degree in percussion performance. She is very active in the percussive world, including having attended PASIC (the Percussive Arts Society International Convention) the past three years.

Tom Wheeler is originally from Millersburg, Ohio. He received his bachelor's degree from Indiana University at Bloomington where he studied with Michael Hatfield, Myron Bloom, Richard Seraphinoff, and Randy Gardner. He has also studied with Tom Sherwood and C. David Lueschen. He has performed with the National Symphony, Ashland Symphony, Northern Kentucky Symphony, Fairfax Symphony, and the Dayton Symphony Wind Quintet. He currently plays french horn for the US Navy Band in Washington DC.