Episode 60 - Travis J. Weller

Episode 60 features composer and educator Travis J. Weller, who is completing his first year as a music education professor at Messiah College after a long career as a high school educator in Western Pennsylvania. Topics: Travis' background as a composer and educator including how he got his start in music and as a composer and his transition to higher education. Travis' low brass heroes, including previous podcast guest Andrew Hitz. Why Tuba players are like baseball catchers. Important advice about being prepared as a teacher by thinking about the end and walking it backwards. The story of "L'il Travis" Links: Travis J. Weller Messiah College Ralph Vaughn Williams: Fantasia on a Theme of Thomas Tallis Weller: Metro Dances Weller: Renaissance Round Biography: Travis J. Weller is the Director of Music Education and The Symphonic Winds at Messiah College. Prior to his appointment at Messiah, he served as Director of Bands at Mercer Middle-Senior High School (PA) and taught as adjunct faculty at Kent State. A published composer of band music, he is in frequent demands for commissions, clinics, and honor bands. He has authored a number of articles on instrumental music education appearing in journals like The Instrumentalist, Teaching Music, and the PMEA Journal.