Matthew Buckmaster
Affiliation: Professor, Elon University
Artist's Biography
Dr. Matthew Buckmaster is Coordinator of Music Education and Assistant Professor of Low Brass at Elon University, where he teaches music education methods, supervises student teachers, directs the brass quintet, and teaches applied low brass. Prior to his appointment at Elon, Dr. Buckmaster served as Assistant Director of Athletic Bands at the University of South Florida in Tampa, where he taught undergraduate conducting, directed the brass choir and trombone jazz combo, and assisted with the Herd of Thunder athletic bands. He has also been on faculty at Southeastern University in Lakeland, Florida, where he taught music theory, jazz band, brass techniques, ear training, applied low brass, and directed the brass ensemble. Dr. Buckmaster has taught band and music in both public and private high, middle, and elementary schools.
As a performer, Dr. Buckmaster has extensive experience in a diverse array of musical genres, and can be heard on six recordings to date. He has performed with the Sarasota Opera Orchestra, the Opera Tampa Orchestra, and the Imperial Symphony Orchestra. He also performed at the Magic Kingdom in Walt Disney World for eight years, and was a regular performer at Busch Gardens Tampa Bay as well. He has also appeared with such groups as the Tommy and Jimmy Dorsey Orchestras, the Three Irish Tenors, Sam Rivers, the Sammy Kaye Orchestra, and the Epcot Candlelight Orchestra. In 2008, Dr. Buckmaster is also the principal trombonist for the Classical Music Festival Orchestra in Eisenstadt, Austria.
Dr. Buckmaster is a published arranger through Kagarice Brass Editions and Wehr's Music House, and is the staff arranger for the Elon University Fire of the Carolinas Marching Band. He is a member of MENC, CMS, IAJE, NCMEA, the International Trombone Association, Phi Kappa Lambda, and Phi Mu Alpha Sinfonia. Dr. Buckmaster's book, Successful Teaching Strategies of American College Trombone Professors, is available from VDM Verlag on Amazon.com. He also currently serves as News Editor for the ITA Journal.
A Florida native, Dr. Buckmaster holds the Ph.D. in Music Education and the M.M. in Trombone Performance from the University of South Florida, and the B.M. in Music Performance from Florida Southern College. Dr. Buckmaster currently resides in Gibsonville, North Carolina with his wife, Ana, and daughter, Zoey.
