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Staff
Dickerson Band Staff
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Band Director:
John Palmer |
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 John
Palmer has been teaching band at Dickerson Middle School since
1999, and has been the Director of Bands since 2000. He earned a
Bachelor of Music Education degree from Furman University in
1994, and a Master of Music Education degree from Louisiana
State University in 1996. While in Baton Rouge, Mr. Palmer
worked as a graduate assistant with the LSU Tiger Marching Band,
the LSU concert bands, and the music education department. Prior
to coming to Cobb County, he taught for three years at South
Effingham Middle School in Guyton, Georgia.
The Dickerson Band program consists of almost 400 students in
grade 6 – 8 who are enrolled in one of 6 band classes. Under Mr.
Palmer’s direction, the Dickerson Middle School bands have
consistently received Superior ratings at State Performance
Evaluation, and received numerous invitations to perform. The
Symphonic Band has recently performed at the Georgia Music
Educator’s Annual Convention in 2006 and at the University of
Georgia Middle School Band Festival in 2002. In 2005, the
Dickerson 8th Grade Band represented the State of Georgia in
performances marking the 60th Anniversary of the end of World
War II in New York and Washington, D.C.
Mr. Palmer also conducts the Saxophone Ensemble and Jazz Band,
which are extra-curricular groups which rehearse before school.
The Jazz Band receives consistent Superior Ratings at State
Performance Evaluation, and frequently performs in the East Cobb
community. The Saxophone Ensemble also performs in the
community, most recently at the Governor’s Mansion in 2006, and
also receives Superior ratings at State Solo and Ensemble
Performance Evaluations. In 2005, the Saxophone commissioned
“Steam Pipes for Saxophone Ensemble” from Jim Stallings and
premiered the work at the 2006 GMEA Convention in Savannah.
In addition to his teaching responsibilities at Dickerson, Mr.
Palmer works as an instructor with the Walton High School Band
and is a marching band drill designer for several High Schools
in the Metro Atlanta area. He maintains an active clinician and
adjudication schedule throughout the Southeast, and teaches
saxophone lessons at the Pope High School Music Conservatory.
Mr. Palmer has also played alto saxophone in the Savannah Winds
and Tara Winds Community Bands. Mr. Palmer’s professional
affiliations include Phi Mu Alpha Sinfonia, the Georgia Music
Educators Association, the National Band Association, the World
Association of Symphonic Bands and Ensembles, Pi Kappa Lambda,
the Music Educators National Conference, Kappa Delta Pi, and the
Professional Association of Georgia Educators. The National Band
Association has twice awarded Mr. Palmer the Citation of
Excellence. Mr. Palmer lives in Woodstock, GA with his wife,
Elaine, and 1-year old daughter, Rebecca.
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Assistant Band Director/Percussion:
Scott Brown |
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 Scott Brown is currently the Assistant Band Director at
Dickerson Middle School in Marietta, GA and Assistant Percussion
Director and co-arranger for the percussion section of the 1998
& 2002 Bands of America Grand National Champion Lassiter High
School Band. Prior to coming to Dickerson, Mr. Brown was the
Associate Director of Bands at Pebblebrook High School in
Mableton Georgia and Percussion Director at North Buncombe H.S.
in Weaverville, NC.
Mr. Brown holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Music Education
from Western Carolina University where he was a recipient of the
prestigious North Carolina Teaching Fellows Scholarship. He was
a member of the Carolina Crown Drum & Bugle Corps and has worked
with concert and marching percussion ensembles throughout the
southeast including the Spirit of Atlanta Drum & Bugle Corps and
the Kennesaw Mountain High School Band.
Since it's inception in the spring of 2001 the Dickerson
Percussion Ensemble has performed for numerous regional and
national conferences. Mr. Brown has presented several clinics
for music educators on the development of percussionists at the
middle and high school levels and is in constant demand as a
clinician and adjudicator for middle and high school percussion
programs.
While Percussion Director at North Buncombe, the indoor drumline
was recognized as the 1999 & 2000 Carolina Indoor Performance
Association Champions and a Winter Guard International Regional
Finalist. The North Buncombe Band was a Finalist at the 1995
Bands of America Southeast Regional, winning "Outstanding Music
Performance" and 2nd place in Class AA.
In addition to the National Championships, the Lassiter Band has
won several BOA Regional Championships, participated in both the
Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade and the Tournament of Roses
Parade. The Lassiter Percussion Ensemble has performed for the
Bands of America National Percussion Festival and the Midwest
International Band and Orchestra Clinic. In 2003, the ensemble
presented a clinic "Developing Technique and Musicianship with
the High School Marching Percussion Section" for the Georgia
Music Educator's Association Conference.
Mr. Brown is a co-author of the Instrumental Music Curriculum
for the Cobb County School District and his articles on
percussion pedagogy have been selected for publication in the
Georgia Percussive Arts Society Newsletter, Percussive Notes
Magazine, and on the Vic Firth website. He received a citation
for "Significant Contributions to Bands in the State of Georgia"
from the Georgia Music Educator's Association and the "Citation
of Excellence" from the National Band Association. Mr. Brown is
an artist/endorser for Evans Drumheads, Ross Mallet Percussion,
Majestic Concert Percussion, and a member of the Vic Firth
Education Team, PAS, MENC, GMEA, NBA, Phi Mu Alpha Sinfonia
Fraternity, and the Cobb Wind Symphony.
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