Ryan Summers began teaching in the Fall of 2002 after receiving his Bachelor’s Degree, in Music, from Appalachian State University.  Band programs under his direction have been successful in many areas. The students have been accepted into honor bands at the county, district, and state levels; and have received only Superior ratings at Solo and Ensemble Music Performance Adjudication. The concert bands under his direction have earned Superior ratings at North Carolina Bandmasters Association Music Performance Adjudication and other local and national festivals.  The jazz ensembles have also received Superior ratings at various festivals including NC Jazz Region MPA.

While attending Appalachian, Ryan became involved with the Carolina Crown Drum and Bugle Corps during the 1997 season.  He performed in both the Baritone and Contra sections and then earned a position on Crown’s Brass Faculty in 2001. In 2003, the corps began a steady climb to become one of the elite organizations within Drum Corps International, eventually winning the DCI World Championship in 2013.  Along the way, Crown’s Brass Section received the Jim Ott Memorial Award for Excellence in Brass in 2009, 2011, 2012, and 2013.

After several years of teaching, Mr. Summers attended Western Carolina University where he completed a Master of Arts degree in Music Education.  At WCU, he taught Brass Pedagogy courses to rising music educators and served as a Graduate Assistant in several music courses and ensembles.

Ryan is currently the Director of Bands at North Henderson High School in Hendersonville, NC.  He composes and arranges music and assists in show design for several marching bands in the United States. He regularly serves as a clinician, and frequently judges band competitions and festivals in the southeast.  Summers is an active member of the North Carolina Bandmasters’ Association where is currently the chair and host of the Western District Solo and Ensemble MPA.  He has also served as the President of the Western District, and on the executive board of the Northwest District. Ryan spent several years as Chairman of the NCBA Marching Band Committee.  His other affiliations include the American School Band Directors Association, the North Carolina Music Educators’ Association, the National Association for Music Education, and Phi Mu Alpha Sinfonia.  Ryan lives in Hendersonville with his wife Jenny and daughter Addison.  His other children Alana, Connor, and Jacob are grown and pursuing their own passions.

Dr. J. Ben Jones is Director of Bands and Assistant Professor of Music at Catawba College where he serves as conductor for the Wind Ensemble, director of the Marching Band and Pep Band, and administers the entire Catawba College bands program. Prior to this appointment he served as the Assistant Director of Bands at Elon University from 2020 to 2022 and as interim conductor of the Duke University Wind Symphony during the fall of 2021. 

Ben earned his Doctor of Musical Arts degree in Instrumental Conducting at the University of North Carolina Greensboro in 2021. While at UNCG, he served as the principal conductor of the University Band and was the co-conductor of the Symphonic Band during the 2018–19 school year. He was also a frequent guest conductor with the Wind Ensemble, Casella Sinfonietta, and served as an instructor in undergraduate instrumental conducting. 

Prior to his graduate studies Ben taught in the public school system of North Carolina as the Director of Bands at Ashbrook High School in Gastonia, where he oversaw marching and concert bands and collaborative efforts within the community. An advocate for music education and building leaders in school music programs, Ben has presented leadership training workshops, worked with young music educators, adjudicated, and served as a guest clinician for many band programs around the Carolinas. 

Ben is a native of Gastonia, NC, and holds a BME from the University of South Carolina and an MM in Instrumental Conducting from UNCG. He has studied with Dr. Kevin Geraldi, Dr. John Locke, and Dr. Jonathan Caldwell, and is a member of the National Association for Music Education, the North Carolina Music Educators Association, the College Band Directors National Association, and Phi Mu Alpha Sinfonia.