Enabling youth to lead
The Mountain West Leadership Institute began in 2021 as a direct result of COVID. With many students in the state of Utah unable to attend the other leadership camps around the country, American Fork High School - with the help of the Utah Bandmasters Association - stepped in to offer a comparable leadership opportunity to the students in the mountain west.
The institute immediately set out to find the best clinicians to help educate students in leadership. Joel Denton was immediately contacted to head up the leadership and curriculum of the institute. The curriculum was set up to teach students the basics of service leadership and give students tools to take back to their band programs to help students and programs to be more successful. In addition to leadership skills, the institute also recognized the needs of students who would be running sectionals, teaching fundamentals, and other leadership tasks. For this reason at the leadership institute, we focus on giving students the opportunity to run sectionals, learn how to teach marching fundamentals, and other useful skills students will need to use during their season.
After several years of existence, the Leadership Institute has grown to incorporate not only drum majors but all leadership positions. There is also a track devoted completely to colorguard and the development of their service-oriented leadership and technique skills on flag, rifle, and saber. Each year, we welcome hundreds of students from over 30 different schools from around the Mountain West.
This year, the institute will welcome back Joel Denton as our Leadership Director. We will also welcome back Col Don Schofield, Director of the U.S. Air Force Band in Washington D.C. who offers a unique perspective to leadership with his years of military service. We are also happy to welcome Mr. Bobby Lambert, Director of Bands at the nationally acclaimed Wando High School in South Carolina. Mr. Lambert is a highly respected and sought-after clinician and will be heading up the drum major track. The colorguard track is championed by some of the best names in the colorguard world. This includes Rosie Queen (Miller) to head up the colorguard track. These leaders are the most sought-after clinicians around the country to teach both leadership and technique. It will be hard to find this kind of education anywhere in the country in terms of leadership and marching band.
We look forward to the Mountain West Leadership Institute becoming the destination for all leadership and colorguard in the Rockies for years to come.
MEET YOUR INSTITUTE STAFF
Orien Landis
Institute Director
Orien Landis is the Director of Bands at American Fork High School since 2019. During his time as Director of Bands, he has been able to maintain the long-standing tradition of excellence at American Fork High School. The marching band has won the Utah State Marching Band Championships each year under his direction. Along with top honors at state, the band has won the Bands Of American Utah Regional 3 times. in 2022 the band was 13th place at Bands of America Grand Nationals in Indianapolis, Indiana. In addition to his marching band responsibilities, Mr. Landis leads and directs 3 concert bands, the top jazz band, and beginning brass classes at American Fork Junior High.
Joel Denton
Clinician
It Joel L. Denton served as Director of Bands at Ooltewah High School for thirty-seven years. Mr. Denton is a graduate of the University of Tennessee and has completed graduate studies at UT-Chattanooga. Mr. Denton currently serves as an adjunct instructor of Instrumental Music Education at Lee University. Prior to his retirement in 2018, he was recognized as a CMA Music Teacher of Excellence. At the 2015 Midwest Clinic, Mr. Denton was awarded the John Phillip Sousa Foundation Legion of Honor for his contributions to band.
Don Schofield
Clinician
Colonel Don Schofield is the commander and conductor of The United States Air Force Band. He is responsible for all activities of this 184-member squadron, including equipping, training, and deploying Airmen musicians to perform nearly 1,600 missions each year. Schofield recently completed command with the United States Air Forces in Europe Band stationed at Ramstein Air Base, Germany, where he oversaw and directed more than 400 missions annually across Europe and Africa in a 104-nation area of responsibility
Aaron Gantt
Clinician
Philip Aaron Gantt is a native of Wagener, SC. He has seventeen years teaching experience. For the last four years he has been the director of bands at Lexington high school. Prior to his tenure at Lexington Mr. Gantt was an Associate Director at Rouse High School (Leander, TX) from 2015-2018, Director of Bands at Spartanburg High School (Spartanburg, SC) 2009-2015, and an Associate Director at Spartanburg High School from 2005-2009. He received his Masters of Music in Education from the University of South Carolina in 2005 and Bachelor’s of Music in Education from Furman University in 2003. His primary instrument is the Saxophone and his teachers have included Dr. Cliff Leaman, Dr. Matt Olson, and Sam Skelton. His ensembles have received consistent superior ratings at SCBDA and UIL marching and concert events. In addition to his band director duties Mr. Gantt is active in the WGI and DCI communities. Currently he is part of the color guard staff for the Boston Crusaders. When he is not busy doing band Mr. Gantt likes to lay down and hang out with his cats, Alfredo, Lana, and Jezebel
Colin McNutt
Clinician
Colin McNutt has instructed and arranged for the Star of Indiana Drum and Bugle Corps and the popular stage production Blast! He has also written for and instructed the Crossmen Drum and Bugle Corps, the Glassmen Drum and Bugle Corps, Magic of Orlando, and the Madison Scouts. Colin has served on the faculty of the University of Massachusetts at Amherst, where he is an alumnus and received degrees in Classics and Music Education. He was the Percussion Caption Supervisor and then Caption Head for the nine-time DCI World Champion Cadets Drum & Bugle Corps.
Currently he is the Caption Head for the Boston Crusaders.
He hasn't only instructed, as McNutt started marching drum corps his junior year in high school in 1988 with the Boston Crusaders of Boston, Mass, then aging out with the Santa Clara Vanguard of Santa Clara, California, in 1992.
McNutt has made a career out of his passion for music and percussion, while in between completing his double major of music education and classics from the University of Massachusetts at Amherst in 1998. When not instructing drum corps, McNutt conducts clinics for the percussion companies Avedis Zildjian Co., REMO, Inc., and Vic Firth. He also writes music for marching bands in the United States, Canada, Thailand & Japan.
Bobby Lambert
Clinician
Bobby is Director of Bands at Wando High School in Mount Pleasant, South Carolina. From 2001-2013, Mr. Lambert was the assistant band director at Marian Catholic High School in Chicago Heights, Illinois, where the marching band was a consistent finalist at the Bands of America Grand National Championships and a repeat winner of the 2A National Championship. At the state level, the band continued its winning streak as the Class Champion for the Illinois Marching Band Championship began in 1980.
Since 1997, Mr. Lambert has directed student leadership camps around the country. In 2013, Mr. Lambert headed the inaugural Bands of America Drum Major Institute at Ball State University as part of the BOA Summer Symposium. Over 1000 high school students participate in various leadership programs with Mr. Lambert each summer. In 2017, he began the Charleston Band Director Institute, which brings high school and middle school conductors to the campus of Wando to work with high school students as well as clinicians such as Greg Bimm on the art and craft of band direction.
In addition to serving as a consultant with several programs across the country, Mr. Lambert has worked with the All-American Marching Band sponsored by the U.S. Army and the Bands of America Tournament of Roses Marching Band. He has also served as guest conductor for honor bands in several states, including Texas, Ohio, Florida, Georgia, Virginia, and Illinois.
Robert Jordan
Clinician
Hello! I’m Robert Jordan, also known as ThatGuyWhoSpins! I'm a professional color guard performer, designer, and educator based in St. Louis, Missouri, and I've had the privilege of sharing my passion for color guard around the globe.
My journey in this field has been nothing short of fun, educational, and extraordinary! I've marched with some of the most prestigious groups in the world, including the RCC Marching Tigers, Gold Drum and Bugle Corps, Fantasia Winterguard, and The Blue Devils. Along the way, I've won two world championships and two George Zingali “Best Color Guard” awards.
But my work doesn't stop at performing. I'm committed to educating the next generation of color guard performers. I work with various A, Open, and World Class groups year-round, conducting clinics, private lessons, and teaching effective social media marketing. I've also had the honor of working with international groups and circuits, including Colorguard Indonesia, BMZ Indoor from Costa Rica, and Pride of the Netherlands.