The Director

Raised in Salem, OR. Darren McCoy graduated Magna Cum Laude from Willamette University in 2006 and earned his Masters Degree in 2008 with Honors from University of Oregon. Since graduation, he has spent the past 15 years as choral director at Oak Harbor High School on Whidbey Island in the Washington Puget Sound.  During this time, Darren has taught Show Choirs, Chamber Choir, advanced choirs and implemented non-auditioned choirs.  He also occasionally teaches piano, voice, theory, composition, and conducting during lunch, after school and during the summer.  

His Choir Club produces musicals such as "Mamma Mia", "Guys and Dolls", "You're a Good Man, Charlie Brown," and "Into the Woods".  They also host dinner and desert concerts such as "Puttin' on the Ritz" and "Cupid Song." At the Whidbey Playhouse, Darren has played roles such as Jervis Pendleton from "Daddy Long Legs", Jamie Wellerstein from “The Last Five Years,” Dylan Thomas in “A Child’s Christmas in Wales,” and has been Music Director for shows such as "Into the Woods" and “Joseph and The Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat.”  

Because of his numerous community involvement strategies, which include working with retirement homes, church choirs and bell choirs, and other schools, The Whidbey News Times named Darren, “Best Teacher in Whidbey 2011, 2015, 2016, 2017”.  His choirs have been featured on King 5 News, Fox News Q13, and KIRO Radio as examples of positive growth in arts programs.  In 2012, KCTS 9 awarded Darren McCoy the “Golden Apple Award” for outstanding teachers in Washington.  In 2018, he was in the top 10 for the nation wide Music Educator Grammy Award.  He is currently a member of Male Ensemble Northwest.