Northwest High School Honor Band

Dr. Daniel Cook is Director of Bands and Assistant Professor of Music Performance at Ithaca College. In this role, he leads the renowned Ithaca College Wind Ensemble, overseeing all aspects of the ensemble’s performances, rehearsals, and artistic programming. His work at Ithaca includes teaching courses in music performance, conducting pedagogy, select components of the music education curriculum, and providing mentorship and supervision to student teachers. Cook earned Doctor of Musical Arts with program honors and Master of Music degrees in conducting from Northwestern University in Evanston, Illinois, where he studied with Dr. Mallory Thompson. He graduated magna cum laude with the Bachelor of Music degree in music education from the University of Georgia in Athens. There, he was also recognized as a Theodore Presser Scholar.

Prior to joining Ithaca College, Cook was a Lecturer in Wind Studies at the University of North Texas (UNT), where he directed the UNT Wind Ensemble and the acclaimed 435-member Green Brigade Marching Band. His contributions at UNT extended beyond performance, as he taught both undergraduate and graduate students in conducting and music education, served on Faculty Senate, chartered the University’s Kappa Kappa Psi chapter, and contributed to the robust Wind Studies program. The Wind Ensemble was the winner of the 2021 American Prize in Wind Ensemble Performance, and the Green Brigade earned significant recognition, including a standout performance in the Dublin St. Patrick’s Day Parade and regular appearances at Bands of America and Texas UIL events.

Cook’s dedication to music education is further reflected in his work with prominent organizations such as the Santa Clara Vanguard Drum and Bugle Corps, where he serves as an Ensemble Specialist and Consultant. Cook’s Drum Corps International background also includes music instructional positions with the Phantom Regiment and Blue Knights. He has also held the role of Resident Conductor of the Dallas Brass Band. Under the direction of Cook and co-conductor David Childs, the British-style brass band rose to national acclaim, releasing an album on WOBPlay, performing at the TMEA Conference, and garnering a first-prize finish in the First Section at the 2022 North American Brass Band Championships.

Throughout his career, Cook has actively engaged in program development, establishing initiatives that benefit both students and the broader music community. At Ithaca College, he founded the Northeast Concert Band Festival, leads the Northeast Wind Conducting Symposium, and is a host of the CSI Northeast/NYSBDA collaboration, all of which have become meaningful platforms for the advancement of music education. Additionally, he curates and manages key endowments such as the Walter Beeler Composition Prize and the Arnald Gabriel Visiting Artist Endowment.

Cook’s ensemble performances have received acclaim, most recently by such composers as Bryant, Daugherty, Del Tredici, Gotkovsky, Higdon, and Schwantner. Ensembles under his direction have performed at the Florida and Texas state music conferences, Bands of America events, the Texas UIL State contest, as well as at the Music for All National Concert Band Festival. Cook’s professional accomplishments extend beyond the classroom and the concert stage. He is a frequent guest conductor, clinician, and adjudicator at festivals, honor bands, and conferences throughout the United States and abroad. His research and presentations on music education, including topics such as performance artistry and flow theory in music, have been featured at national and international conferences, such as the Midwest Clinic, the CBDNA conference proceedings, and at multiple state music education association conferences. Cook has also participated in prestigious masterclasses, such as the inaugural Reynolds Conducting Institute at the Midwest Clinic, and as a winner/invited conductor for the Young Conductor/Mentor Project sponsored by the National Band Association. He is published in the Teaching Music Through Performance in Band series.

His current professional affiliations include the Collegiate Band Directors National Association, National Association for Music Education, National Band Association, New York State School Music Association, Kappa Kappa Psi, and Phi Mu Alpha Sinfonia. Cook is proud to be a mentor teacher within the National Band Association and Kappa Kappa Psi organizations and an Educational Advisory Board member for Music for All.

Interlacing lived experiences with innate passion, Dr. Henry Dorn is a nationally recognized music composer/conductor renowned for his energizing rhythm, syntax versatility, and passion for creating storytelling sounds with larger picture meanings. Dr. Dorn’s compositions encompass intimate narratives often told from the lens of being a musician and African American. He is passionate about developing immersive experiences while setting an example of his life signature – the path may not always be smooth or clear, but it will always be worth it. His works have earned him recognition and performances by distinguished ensembles across the country, including the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra, Detroit Symphony Orchestra, American Composers Orchestra, Minnesota Orchestra, Music from Copland House, JACK Quartet, the Grammy-winning Harlem Quartet, Aizuri Quartet, Argento Ensemble, and the Dallas Wind Symphony.

Dr. Dorn is Assistant Professor of Conducting and Composition at St. Olaf College and is conductor of the award-winning St. Olaf Band. Prior to St. Olaf College, Dr. Dorn worked as an Assistant Director of the Memphis Area Youth Wind Ensemble and formerly served as Director to the Nu Chamber Collective. He has also worked with musicians of the United States Army Field Band, the United States Air Force Band, and has guest conducted the United States Army Band “Pershing’s Own.”

As a composer, Dr. Dorn has earned several accolades. He was an Inaugural Future of Music Faculty Fellow with the Cleveland Institute of Music and an ASCAP Foundation Morton Gould Young Composer Award recipient. He is a past participant in The Next Festival of Emerging Artists, Minnesota Orchestra Composers Institute, American Composers Orchestra EarShot, JACK Quartet’s JACK Studio, and Copland House CULTIVATE. He was in residence at MacDowell in summer 2023.

Originally from Little Rock, AR, Dr. Dorn’s ardency toward composing sparked at an early age while he was surrounded by blues and the sounds of his father’s vinyl records collection. He earned a Bachelor of Music in Composition from The University of Memphis, a Master of Music in Composition and Wind Conducting from Peabody Institute of The Johns Hopkins University, a Doctor of Musical Arts (DMA) in Conducting and a DMA in Composition from Michigan State University. He his primary conducting teachers have been Kevin L. Sedatole, Harlan D. Parker, and Kraig Alan Williams. He studied composition with David Biedenbender, Ricardo Lorenz, Alexis Bacon, Oscar Bettison, Kamran Ince, and Jack Cooper, among several others.