PROGRAM NOTES

Lieutenant Commander Bruce A. McDonald reported for duty as Director of the

United States Naval Academy Band in October of 2012. Previously, he had served

as Director, U.S. Fleet Forces Band in Norfolk, VA, Fleet Bandmaster of both the

Pacific Fleet Band in Pearl Harbor, HI and SIXTH Fleet Band in Naples, Italy,

Associate Conductor of the United States Navy Band in Washington, DC, and as

Music Program Liaison Officer to the Chief of Information, also in Washington, DC.

LCDR McDonald enlisted in the Navy in 1989 as a trombonist with the U.S. Naval

Academy Band in Annapolis, Maryland.    There, he performed with the "Electric

Brigade" Top 40 Ensemble, the Brass Quintet, and as principal trombonist with the

Wind Ensemble.  After promotion to Chief Petty Officer in 1997, he transferred to

the U.S. Navy School of Music in Little Creek, Virginia, where he graduated first in

his class from both the Ceremonial Conductor/Drum Major and the Enlisted

Bandleader/Assistant Director courses.  He then transferred to the Atlantic Fleet

Band in Norfolk, Virginia, where he was the ceremonial band director and assistant

concert band conductor prior to his commissioning in October 2000 and

subsequent assignment to the U.S. Navy Band.

LCDR McDonald holds a master's degree in instrumental conducting from the University of Illinois at Urbana‐Champaign.

The United States Naval Academy Band, “The Navy’s Oldest and Finest,” has been providing music for the Brigade of

Midshipmen and surrounding community since 1852.  Located at the Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland, the band is

comprised of 68 professional, Navy musicians, who have studied at some of the best music schools and conservatories in

the country, and who have extensive résumés in performance and teaching.

At the Naval Academy, the USNA Band performs for dress parades, athletic events, pep rallies and other traditional events.

In the community, the band presents concerts, provides music for civic events, and presents instructional clinics and

performances for K‐12 and university students. The band also plays for military ceremonies and funerals throughout the

mid‐Atlantic region.     

In recent years, the band has supported the Naval Academy Admissions Department, touring throughout the country and

performing at admissions forums and high schools. These events have greatly contributed to diversity initiatives and an

overall increase in the number of applications to the Naval Academy.

The Naval Academy Band takes pride in representing the Naval Academy’s deep heritage of excellence. Performing at the

highest professional standard for the Navy, the Naval Academy, and the citizens of this great country remains our ultimate

goal.  
WIND QUINTET

MUC Lynda Dembowski, unit leader

FLUTE

MU1 Erin Ostrowski – Topeka, Kansas

OBOE

MU1 Emily Madsen – Reston, Virginia  

CLARINET

MUC Lynda Dembowski ‐ Waynesboro, Virginia

BASSOON

MU1 Micahla Hendrix ‐ Minneapolis, Minnesota

FRENCH HORN

MUCS Adam Tillett ‐ Norfolk, Virginia

BIOGRAPHIES

MU1 Erin Ostrowski is a native of Topeka, Kansas and joined the Naval

Academy Band as piccoloist/flutist in 1997. She earned a Bachelor of Music

degree in flute performance from the University of North Texas where she

studied with Dr. Mary Karen Clardy. She then spent a year studying with Dr.

Bradley Garner at the University of Cincinnati College‐Conservatory of Music.

MU1 Ostrowski’s professional experience includes serving as piccoloist with

the Irving Symphony, Northern Kentucky Symphony and the University of

North Texas Faculty Chamber Winds. She can be heard as a featured piccolo

soloist on the University of North Texas Wind Symphony recording of

“Luminaries” under the direction of Eugene Corporon.

MU1 Emily Madsen is from Reston, Virginia and joined the Naval Academy

Band as principal oboist in 2007. She received a Bachelor of Music degree

from the Eastman School of Music in oboe performance and music education

in 2001. In 2004, she earned a Master of Music degree in oboe performance

from the Yale School of Music and completed a Doctor of Musical Arts

degree at the University of Maryland in May 2010. Her primary teachers have

included Carol Stephenson, Richard Killmer, Mark Hill, and Jacqueline LeClair.

Prior to enlisting in the Navy, MU1 Madsen played the oboe and English horn

with the U.S. Army Field Band from 2004 to 2007. In the Army Field Band, she

performed as a soloist with the concert band, and as a clinician with the

Woodwind Ambassadors. In 2010 she was a featured artist at the

International Double Reed Society Conference in Tempe, AZ, and has served

on the faculty at Frostburg State University since 2009.   

MUC Lynda Dembowski is from Waynesboro, Virginia and joined the Naval

Academy Band in 1999, serving as principal clarinetist since 2003. She holds

multiple degrees from James Madison University, earning a bachelor’s

degree in music education in 1991 and a Master of Music in 1997. She

received an Artist Diploma from Duquesne University in 1999. In 2008, she

was awarded the Doctoral of Musical Arts degree from the University of

Maryland, College Park. Her principal teachers include Dr. S. James Kurtz,

Leslie Nicholas, Mark Nuccio, and Loren Kitt.

MUC Dembowski has performed with the Roanoke Symphony Orchestra,

American Sinfonietta Orchestra, Columbia Symphony Orchestra (MD), and

the Divertimento Wind Quintet. She has served as Principal Clarinetist of the

Londontowne Symphony Orchestra in Edgewater, Maryland. She has played

with Al Jarreau, Arturo Sandoval, and Bruce Hornsby. MUC Dembowski is a

charter member of the Shenandoah Valley Bach Festival Orchestra, with

whom she has been a featured soloist.

MU1 Micahla Hendrix is from Minneapolis, Minnesota and joined the Naval

Academy Band as principal bassoonist in 2012. She received her Bachelor of

Music in bassoon performance from the New England Conservatory of Music

in 2008 and her Master of Music in bassoon performance from Yale

University in 2010. Her primary teachers include J. Christopher Marshall,

Richard Svoboda and Dr. Frank Morelli.

In 2007, MU1 Hendrix won the Boston Woodwind Society Competition and in

2010 was a semi‐finalist in the Meg Quigley International Vivaldi

Competition. MU1 Hendrix has attended the Texas Music Festival, Banff

Master Classes for Strings and Winds, Sarasota Music Festival and Norfolk

Chamber Music Festival, and participated in Master Classes by Rick Ranti,

Richard Beene, Eric Arbiter and Chrisopher Millard.

MUCS Adam Tillett is from Norfolk, Virginia and joined the Naval Academy

Band in 1991. He earned a Bachelor of Music degree in horn performance

from the Peabody Institute of the Johns Hopkins University in 1988, and a

Master of Music degree in horn performance from Northwestern University

in 1989.

Senior Chief Tillett became Principal horn of the concert band in 2005, and

has additionally appeared as a featured soloist with the group.