NIU Wind Ensemble presents Music of Black Composers Showcase, Jan. 28

The NIU Wind Ensemble will present a special Music of Black Composers showcase concert, Tuesday, January 28 at 7 p.m. in Boutell Memorial Concert Hall. Tickets are available at go.niu.edu/arts-tickets. NIU students are admitted free of charge with a reserved ticket.

The Wind Ensemble have been invited to present the concert at the Illinois Music Education Conference (IMEC) in Peoria, Saturday, February 1, in the Peoria Convention Center.

The program for the showcase features nine pieces, by eight prominent Black composers.

Los Bailes Caliente, William Owens (b. 1963)
Castles in Europe, James Reede (1881-1919), arr. Chandler Wilson
Wishes and Wantings, Kelijah Dunton (b. 1999)
Meditation, Dwayne S. Milburn (b. 1963)
The Old Boatman, Florence Price (1887-1953), arr. Dana Paul Perna (b. 1958)
At Evening, Quinn Mason (b. 1996)
Soul to Soul, Quinn Mason (b. 1996)
Gale and Zephyr, Shawn Okpebholo (b. 1981)
On Parade, Amanda C.E. Aldridge (1866-1956), arr. Katilin Bove

The NIU Wind Ensemble is conducted by Thomas Bough, professor of music and director of athletic bands at NIU and he is assisted by graduate assistant Leif Albertson. Brandon Estes will guest conduct Castles in Europe, and Lia Snead will guest conduct The Old Boatman and At Evening.

Thomas Bough

Thomas Bough joined the faculty of Northern Illinois University in the fall of 2005 as  director of athletic bands. He also conducts the Wind Ensemble and the Wind Symphony and teaches graduate conducting and instrumental arranging. Bough holds MM and DMA degrees in tuba performance from Arizona State University, where he was a student of Sam Pilafian and Dan Perantoni. He holds a bachelor of science in music education from Missouri State University, where he was active in both vocal and instrumental music. From 1999 – 2005 Bough served as the assistant director of bands and professor of tuba and euphonium at Southern Illinois University in Carbondale, Illinois, and from 1992-1999 as the band director at Westwood High School in Mesa, Arizona. He served as the founding conductor and music director of the Fox Valley Brass Band in Aurora, Illinois from 2017 – 2021.

Leif Albertson

Leif Albertson is the current graduate assistant for the NIU Huskie Bands and studies wind band conducting with Thomas Bough. Leif grew up in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, and holds a bachelor’s degree in music education from Iowa State University. Leif has attended conducting symposiums at the University of Minnesota at Minneapolis, the University of Kansas City, Missouri, and Northern Illinois University, Leif has also participated at the Music For All Summer Symposium as a director in 2024.  Leif taught sixth-eighth grade middle school band in Elkhorn, Nebraska, for two years before coming to NIU to pursue a master’s degree.

Lia Snead

A native of Queens, New York, Lia Snead has a bachelor of music in music education from Georgia Southern University (formally Armstrong Atlantic State University). While pursuing her undergraduate degree, Snead was active within the community as a private trumpet instructor and as a brass instructor at Savannah State University. After graduation, she became the director of bands at Robert W. Groves High School where she revived the band program and led them to earn their first superior ratings at concert festival in over a decade. In 2014, Snead went on to study conducting at Northern Illinois University with Ronnie Wooten and Thomas Bough, where she was both the music education and conducting graduate assistant. After earning a master of music degree with an emphasis in wind conducting, she accepted a position as the associate director of bands at Richmond Hill High School in Richmond Hill, Georgia. While there, the program consistently received straight superior ratings and won numerous awards at both concert and marching festivals. She also performed with the Savannah Wind Symphony where she served on the board of directors and frequently guest conducted. In 2023, she received a DMA from the University of South Carolina, where she studied with Cormac Cannon.

Snead is currently the director of bands at Wartburg College in Waverly, Iowa. She is also active as a clinician, adjudicator, guest conductor, and performer. She is a member of the Iowa Music Educators Association (IMEA), the National Association for Music Education (NAfME), the Minority Band Directors National Association (MBDNA), and Tau Beta Sigma, National Honorary Band Sorority.

Lia is married to her college sweetheart, fellow musician, director of bands at Northern Iowa Area Community College, and PhD candidate at the University of South Carolina, Derrick Snead. Together, they have adopted an Old English Bulldog named Bruno.

Brandon Estes

Brandon Estes, co-director of bands at Naperville Central High School, is an active educator, clinician, and adjudicator throughout Illinois and Texas. His responsibilities include director of the Marching Redhawks, co-teaching three curricular concert bands, co-Director of the NCHS Drumshow Percussion Ensemble, Jazz 2 jazz ensemble, instructor for Music Theory I and music production classes.

NIU Wind Ensemble Roster