Jared Cassedy, Wind Ensemble

Jared Cassedy, NH Youth Wind Ensemble Conductor – began his career as a music teacher at Windham Middle School in 2005 directing all grade level instrumental ensembles, honors concert band, jazz ensemble, and string ensemble. In 2009, Jared was appointed as the first Director of Bands for the newly constructed Windham High School directing all instrumental ensembles and a variety of music electives. In the years that followed, his continued collaboration with his students and colleagues has enabled the WHS Concert Band to be recognized and to participate in a myriad of national performances and festivals. Recent performances include the Festival of Gold at Orchestra Hall in Chicago, Illinois (2013) and the National Band and Orchestra Festival at Carnegie Hall in New York City (2014). The band was also one of two high school concert bands in the Eastern Division selected to perform at the National Association for Music Education (NAfME) Eastern Division Conference in Hartford, CT (2013).  Most recently, the WHS Concert Band was selected to perform at that National Band Festival sponsored by Music for All and Yamaha in Indianapolis, Indiana (2015).  In 2011 the New Hampshire Band Director’s Association honored Jared with the “Outstanding Young Band Director of the Year Award.” The following year, he was appointed as the Dean of Fine, Living, and Technical Arts for Windham High School and in 2014, Jared was also nominated for New Hampshire Teacher of the Year. This year, Jared has been appointed as the Director of K-12 Fine Arts responsible for the supervision and evaluation of instruction as well as the development of curriculum for the district’s music and visual arts programs. He also still maintains his position as Windham High School’s Director of Bands. Along with his professional responsibilities, Jared also assumes the role of director of the NH Youth Wind Ensemble, which is an ensemble made up of students from around the state of New Hampshire who rehearse together and perform throughout the year. Most recently, Jared was selected as recipient of the 2015 GRAMMY Music Educator Award sponsored by the GRAMMY Foundation and The Recording Academy, out of a pool of more than 7,000 nominees.  Jared graduated Summa cum Laude from the University of New Hampshire – Durham where he received his Bachelor of Music degree in Music Education with an emphasis in wind ensemble and choral conducting. He is currently focusing on attaining his Administrative Certification in Curriculum and Instruction with a focus in Educational Leadership at Southern New Hampshire University.