Patrick Anderson is a junior trombonist from the Twin Cities, Minnesota. Currently a student at the Indiana University Jacobs School of Music, he is pursuing a BM in Trombone Performance. During his time at the Jacobs School of Music, Patrick has performed with orchestras, in ballet pits, and chamber ensembles such as the Indiana University Trombone Choir, Brass Band, and his trombone quartet.

His principal teachers include Professor Peter Ellefson, Kari Sundström, Dr. Terry Leahy, and Dr. Jonathan Whitaker. His primary chamber coaches are Professor Carl Lenthe and Dr. Denson Paul Pollard.

Aside from playing the trombone, Patrick likes to stay active by playing golf and baseball, and spending time with friends and family. During the summer months, he is a Greenskeeper at the Edina Country Club.

Peter Bye is a Master of Music Performance candidate at the Jacobs School of Music where he studies with Peter Ellefson. Originally from the Boston area, Peter spent several years in Canada, earning a Bachelor's Degree in music performance at the University of Toronto and subsequently serving as the Trombone Teaching Artist in the Sistema New Brunswick Saint John Centre. During his seven years with Sistema NB, Peter led students of all ages and levels from beginner trombone classes through to the province's youth orchestra composed of high school and university students. During this time, he also became the first and only certified Suzuki trombone instructor in Canada. Peter also serves as a Graduate Assistant with the IU Office of Financial Wellness and Education.

In addition to his interest in pedagogy, Peter is an avid performer across a variety of musical genres including orchestral, chamber, musical theatre, and funk. He has performed with Symphony New Brunswick, Tutta Musica Orchestra, Orchestre de la Francophonie, WTFunk, and The Temptations.

Apart from music Peter has a love for Italian cooking, making espresso and exploring the outdoors with his border collie, Ziggy.

Jocelyn Edgar is a Master of Music tenor trombone candidate at the Jacobs School of Music, where she studies with Peter Ellefson. She was born and raised in Monument, Colorado; where she learned trombone and piano, and primarily studied with Jon Hutchison, Sondra Bell, and Dale Backus. For her Bachelor of Music degree, she studied at the University of Oregon with Henry Henniger. In her time there she participated in a myriad of ensembles, including the Oregon Wind Ensemble, the premier UO Orchestra, the Oregon Wind Symphony, and the musical theater orchestra, among others. She sat as principal trombone in every large ensemble, getting the chance to perform a variety of works including West Side Story, Mahler 1, Prokofiev 5, and Scheherazade. She has performed at the Oregon Music Educator’s Association multiple times with the Oregon Wind Ensemble, performing challenging works such as The Low-Down Brown Get-Down, Star Wars Suite, Bernstein’s Prelude Fugue and Riffs, and Sueños de Calle Ocho. She also participated in the UO Trombone Choir, where the group performed at ITF 2023 and opened for the Slide Monsters US premiere performance.

Jocelyn has had the opportunity to cultivate her skills in teaching alongside her performance focus, spending the first 2 and a half years in Oregon studying music education. She has directed the Oregon Wind Ensemble, as well as led warm up classes for the Oregon Wind Symphony and rehearsals for the UO Trombone Choir. She also used her time in music education to learn all of the major instruments, as well as their repairs. Additionally, she thoroughly enjoyed working with the UO piano technician Mike Reiter. This job included tuning, regulation, and intensive repair work.

In her free time, Jocelyn enjoys weekend hiking and camping, doing jigsaw and logic puzzles, reading, and dressing her cats up as little businessmen.

Patrick Grimes is a trombonist, educator, and arranger from the Dallas-Fort Worth area. Currently attending the Indiana University Jacobs School of Music, he is a recipient of the Jacobs Scholar Award and is pursuing a BM in Trombone Performance and a BME in Instrumental Music Education with a minor in conducting. He has had the privilege of studying with some of the finest teachers in the country, including Peter Ellefson, Barry Hearn, Dr. Jonathan Whitaker, and Dr. Terry Leahy.

As an educator, Patrick teaches privately and has been on staff with many successful programs. In the marching arts, he has been on staff with the 2022 BOA San Antonio Champion Hebron High School Marching Band, 2022 BOA Grand Nationals Finalist Fishers High School Marching Band, and the 2022 ISSMA Class C Champion Edgewood High School Marching Band as a baritone and visual tech. For the 2023 season, Patrick is on the IU Marching Hundred Undergraduate Staff and serves as Performance Committee Chair. Patrick has taught sectionals at Batchelor Middle School and for the National Band Association at IU. In 2023, he was a counselor for the highly regarded IU Summer Music Clinic, which is a week-long camp for high school band and orchestra students. Formerly, Patrick served on the board of the IU chapter of NAfME as Outreach Coordinator where he played a role in the creation of a private lesson program that serves Title I schools in Monroe County. Patrick continues to maintain a studio of private students.

Patrick is an active arranger and composer. He has experience writing for wind ensemble, marching band, pep band, and various chamber ensembles at many different levels. His music has been performed by the Plano West Wind Ensemble, IU Marching Hundred, IU Big Red Basketball Band, Shepton Wind Ensemble, and more.

During his time at the Jacobs School of Music, Patrick has performed with numerous ensembles from bands to chamber groups. He has had the opportunity to perform in masterclasses for world-class pedagogues like Demondrae Thurman and John Stevens. Patrick is an active member of the IU athletic bands.

Leo Illari is an incoming freshman from Denton, Texas pursuing a Bachelor's degree in Trombone Performance and studying under Peter Ellefson. While in high school, he studied under Casey and Samson Flancbaum, Jordan Stone, and Tylar Bullion.

Leo attended Denton High School, where he participated in their Wind Ensemble for four years, and Jazz band for 3. He also played in the GNTYO Philharmonic directed by Jason Lim (2019-20, 2021-22), the LSYO directed by Dr. Kevin Pearce (2020-21), and the GDYO Wind Symphony directed by Jeremy Kondrat (2022-23).

Other than trombone, Leo enjoys watching movies and writing.

Wayne Kreml is a Master of Music student in his first year studying trombone performance under Peter Ellefson. Before attending the Jacobs School of Music, Wayne received a Bachelor of Music degree from the Eastman School of Music in the spring of 2023, where he participated in a myriad of ensembles. He was a member of the Wind Ensemble, Philharmonia, Trombone Choir, and Tuba Mirum where he doubled on euphonium, and also performed with the Hydra Brass Quintet and Remington Trombone Quartet. During his senior year, Wayne was awarded the Steve Witser Award for Excellence for his contribution to both of the trombone studios. Additionally, he served as a resident advisor for three years and received the Linda Muise Student Life Award for outstanding contribution to student life and the community.

Along with his peers, Wayne co-founded Waypoint Music Camps, a summer program designed to reach out to youth and foster both a passion for music and the ability to create it. At Waypoint, he aided in fundraising to make the camp affordable and accessible and served as the instructor of trombone and euphonium. During the camp, he gave faculty recitals, masterclasses, taught private lessons, and offered guidance to students pursuing their own musical talents past high school.

Wayne is originally from Columbus, Ohio, where he was a boy scout and became an Eagle Scout. He has a love for art of all kinds including painting and sculpture and a growing fascination with meditative practice. His greatest aspiration is to show those around him compassion each day; he believes everyone is deserving of kindness.

William Lee is a sophomore from Fredericksburg, Virginia who is pursuing a degree in trombone performance under the direction of Peter Ellefson. At Indiana University, he has performed with a trombone quartet under the coaching of Demondrae Thurman as well as the trombone choir directed by Carl Lenthe. He has been playing trombone since the 6th grade and studied with Adam Dippre of the Quantico Marine Corps Band during his later years of high school.

During the summer, William took part in the Brass Institutes of America in 2019 and 2022 which features amazing faculty and guest artists such as IU alumnus Dr. Kenneth Johnson. Most recently, William was part of the DC Trombone Workshop held at Shenandoah University including professors Peter Ellefson and Brittany Lasch, both faculty members at IU.

Outside of the practice room, some activities enjoyed by William include hiking, surfing, working out, and playing spikeball!

Brian McDonie is an active trombonist and educator. From 2020 to 2023, he was a member of the 566th Air Force Band of the Midwest performing in concerts, parades, ceremonies, and educational outreach programs across the midwest. Brian also served as a U.S. Marine Musician in Okinawa, Japan and Havelock, North Carolina from 2016 to 2020. While in the Marine Corps, Brian was a trombone section leader, fire-team leader, squad leader, music library non-commissioned officer in charge, staff music arranger, platoon guide, and brass quintet unit leader. He has performed in mainland Japan, Okinawa, Malaysia, Thailand, Guam, and throughout the United States.

Currently, Brian is pursuing a Doctorate of Music degree in music literature and performance at Indiana University with minors in music history and jazz. Brian also is the owner of Opus One, LLC, a music writing and talent hiring company that composes new music for live performance at weddings and other events. He also maintains an active teaching studio. Brian earned his Bachelors of Music in music education from West Chester University in 2014 and his Master of Music degree from Indiana University in 2016.

Brian is happily married to his wife, Sarah, a fellow lover of breakfast foods and outdoor adventures. They live with their Sheltie, Manford, in Bloomington, Indiana.

Wesley Nielsen is a trombonist, teacher, music arranger, and content creator from Boise, Idaho. He received his Bachelor of Music Performance degree from Boise State University and will be a Master of Music Performance candidate in his first year at the Jacobs School of Music this fall. Wesley's passion for classical music began in high school while playing in the Boise Philharmonic Youth Orchestra and ever since then he has known that music was what he wanted to do with his life.

Though his studies are founded in classical music, Wesley likes to explore the versatility of the trombone in nearly all genres of music. One of the ways that he does this is through his music arranging and content creation. Wesley began making YouTube videos as a hobby in January of 2020. Most of the videos Wesley makes feature his own arrangements for various sized trombone ensembles, some of which are published through Hal Leonard's ArrangeMe program and can be purchased via SheetMusicPlus.com

Wesley strongly believes that maintaining an online presence can be a great aid to the modern musician. His website WNTrombone.com contains more information about his arranging and teaching as well as links to his other social media presences on Instagram and YouTube (both @WNTrombone).

Wesley considers himself a connoisseur of cranberry juices, enjoys playing hacky sack, and likes backyard birdwatching.

Owen Riordan is an advancing trombonist who made his solo debut with the Northwest Indiana Symphony Orchestra at the age of 10. As of October 2022, Owen has been appointed a S.E. Shires Rising Artist, the only high school trombone artist that year. Among many achievements, Owen was a member of the World Youth Symphony Orchestra and the Interlochen Orchestral Trombone Scholarship in both 2020 and 2021. He has also been the principal trombonist of both the Chicago Youth Symphony and the Merit School of Music Philharmonic Orchestra for the past three years.

As a member of Merit’s Bone Rangers Trombone Quartet, Owen competed at many local and national chamber music competitions, including three Fischoff National Chamber Music Competitions, where his group was awarded the American Brass Quintet Prize. In 2022, he was featured with the group on an episode of the National Public Radio show From the Top. Along with being interviewed on NPR, Owen has also been featured on WFMT episodes on multiple occasions.

Owen has been a member of the Merit School of Music Trombone Choir for nine years and has twice performed at the International Trombone Festival. He was also named principal trombone of the 2019 ITA Youth Workshop trombone choir.

Owen has also participated in many other summer events, including Blue Lake Arts Camp, Washington Brass Institute Trombone Boot Camp, the Interlochen Arts Camp in 2021, and, in 2022, the Concert Orchestra and Symphonic Band at Brevard Music Center.

Owen has been a scholarship recipient of the Chicago Musical Pathways Initiative, a program that helps students from underrepresented backgrounds succeed in becoming professional orchestral musicians, since 2019. In his time with CMPI, Owen has performed alongside the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra, and Chicago Civic Orchestra. CMPI also offered scholarship for lessons, allowing Owen to study with esteemed musicians such as Michael Mulcahy, Steve Menard, Ralph Sauer, Joseph Alessi, and many more.

Along with his classical music experience, Owen has studied jazz with Alex Beltran, Dave Allie, and Aaron McEvers. He has performed with the Merit Jazz Ensemble for 4 years as Principal Trombone, and has also played in jazz quartets and combos at Merit. Recently, Owen also played lead trumpet in the Merit Jazz Band, under the direction of Mr. Dave Allie. In the future, he will continue pursuing jazz along with classical music, and aims to become a commercial and recording artist.

Owen was in the class of 2023 at Lake Central High School in Saint John, Indiana and at the Merit School of Music in Chicago, where he studied with his father, Timothy Riordan. Upon graduating from Merit, Owen received both the Chamber Music Award and the Bernice L. Ransley Vivace Award. He has also studied with Ken Wolff and Michael Mulcahy for extensive amounts of time, receiving some of the best trombone teaching the world has to offer.

In addition to playing the trombone, Owen also enjoys writing his own music, weightlifting, photography, reading, auto repair, and cooking. He has found tremendous success in weightlifting, and continues to do so in his collegiate years. Owen aspires to become a successful musician, whether that be a trombonist in a symphony, a songwriter and composer, or anything in between.

Bobby Sheridan is a first-year student from Reynoldsburg, Ohio coming to IU to pursue a BME in Instrumental Music Education. A trombonist for over 7 years, Bobby has had the privilege to study with Jim Dowdy, Bill England, and Tony Weikel. In high school he performed in the wind ensemble, marching band, and pit orchestra.

Outside of school, Bobby has had the opportunity to perform twice in OMEA’s All-State Band and once with the NAfME’s All-National Band. Bobby has also performed with multiple honor bands in the Columbus area. Since 2021, Bobby has become a regular substitute trombonist for the Rick Brunetto Big Band, a 17 piece legacy band performing tunes dating back to the 1930s!

Aside from trombone, Bobby has been playing piano for 10 years and organ for a little over a year. Throughout his senior year he was the Worship Music Intern at Messiah Lutheran Church, learning and playing handbells, organ, hymns, choir accompaniments, and other pieces to fill out their Sunday worship services.

At IU, Bobby looks forward to playing in the Marching Hundred and getting to know the rest of the PE studio!

Ryan Smith is a Senior from Lumberton, NJ who is pursuing a Bachelor of Music in Trombone Performance. He began playing trombone when he was ten years old and started studying privately with Christopher Hawkins, an IU graduate from Peter Ellefson’s studio, when he was twelve. As a Juilliard Pre-College student, he studied with Weston Sprott, Demian Austin, and Nicholas Schwartz. Some of his past accomplishments include winning first chair in the New Jersey All-State Wind Ensemble and Orchestra, as well as being accepted into the Curtis Young Artists Summer Program where he studied with Matthew Vaughn. Ryan was a member of the Philadelphia Young Artists Orchestra his junior year of high school. Furthermore, he considers himself lucky to have performed at Verizon Hall and Alice Tully Hall. During high school, Ryan was active in the marching band and was honored to serve as Drum Major. He participated in the school’s orchestra, wind ensemble, jazz band, pit orchestra, and chamber and concert choirs. He was also a member of the National Honor Society. While not playing trombone, Ryan enjoys rooting for any Philadelphia sports teams and Arsenal FC, playing soccer and building LEGO.

James Starkey is a current Performers Diploma student at the Jacobs School of Music, studying with Peter Ellefson.

Originally from the Cincinnati area, James completed his undergraduate degree at Indiana University, with a major in trombone performance and an outside field in small business management and entrepreneurship from the Kelley School of Business. During his time at Indiana University, James has made appearances in many of the school’s major bands and orchestras, as well as chamber and brass ensembles. His primary teachers have included Carl Lenthe, Liza Malamut, and Cristian Ganicenco.

In addition to his involvement in the Jacobs School of Music, James has been a finalist in the Kelley School of Business Innovation Competition. He has also worked in undergraduate advising in the university division of IU.

Outside of music, James enjoys fishing, playing pickleball, and his golden doodle Lola.

Jackson Stiver is a first-year Master's Student from the Bay Area pursuing a trombone performance degree. During his undergrad at Oregon State University, he had the privilege of studying with Carson Keeble. Throughout his time at OSU, he has been a part of the Corvallis-OSU Symphony, Wind Ensemble, Trombone Choir, Men’s Choir, and Tuba-Euph Ensemble. While in Oregon, he participated in Orchestra Next for the productions of The Nutcracker and Little Mermaid. Jackson has spent the last seven summers marching and touring with the Santa Clara Vanguard.

Outside of music Jackson likes to workout and cook.

Sam Swyers is a junior from Bloomington, Indiana, pursuing a degree in trombone performance with a minor in jazz studies. He started playing music at a young age with piano lessons which inspired him to pursue music at least through to high school. In the fifth grade, Swyers picked up the trombone, and by high school, began to pursue music more seriously. He would play in every ensemble available to him in high school, including concert band, jazz band, marching band, and honor bands, and began taking lessons with IU alumni Heather Miller, and Mark Soueidi, principal tromonist of the Billings Symphony. Swyers also played with community ensembles in high school on tenor and bass trombones, inlcuding the Bloomington Community Band, Southern Indiana Wind Ensemble, Bloomington Symphony Orchestra, and the Bloomington Jazz Orchestra. Swyers is also a composer, winning high school composition contests. While at IU, Swyers has played with orchestras, wind ensembles, and big bands while continuing to play with the Bloomington Symphony on trombone and euphonium and the Bloomington Jazz Orchestra as lead trombonist. He has also had one of his compositions premiered; a piece for brass trio written for a group Swyers played in. He has also had the pleasure of studying with Peter Ellefson, Terry Leahy, and Jonathan Whitaker at IU

Off campus, Swyers has started to form a career in music as both a performer and educator. He continues to stay in touch with his high school band director and is currently on the marching band staff as a music tech. He is also the interim director of the school's jazz combo program. Swyers has recently joined local rock band Gregory's Xit playing trombone, keyboards, singing, and horn arranger. He also has formed a musical duo with a high school friend called Gasb. The two write, record, produce, mix, and master music, having independently released their music digitally. Swyers has also played in his high school's musical productions and has played with the Carmel and Mooresville high school show choirs. Outside of music, Swyers has an interest in history and enjoys TV.

Catherine Tran is a tenor trombonist from Potomac, Maryland. She is a senior and is pursuing a Bachelor’s Degree in Trombone Performance under the tutelage of Peter Ellefson at the Jacobs School of Music. During her time at IU she has been a member of the Philharmonic Orchestra, University Orchestra, Wind Ensemble, Symphonic Band, Trombone Choir, Brass Choir, and a variety of chamber groups.

Prior to IU, Catherine studied primarily with Ken Wolff. She was a member of the Capital Wind Symphony, the World Youth Wind Symphony at Interlochen Arts Camp, MCYO (Maryland Classic Youth Orchestras) Philharmonic and Symphony, and MATCH (Mid-Atlantic Trombone Choir). She has performed solo in masterclasses for Joseph Alessi, Jörgen Van Rijen, James Markey, Jeremy Wilson, Amanda Stewart, Ralph Sauer, Daniele Morandini, Achilles Liarmakopoulos, Megumi Kanda, and more.

Catherine has been the Associate Director of the Washington Brass Institute for three years (www.washingtonbrass.com/catherine-tran). From the summers of 2021-2023, she was responsible for the administrative work and communications behind the annual Summer Brass Boot Camp.

When she is not playing the trombone, Catherine is an avid Amazon children’s book author, album cover illustrator, plant enthusiast, chef, and fashion connoisseur. Catherine is looking forward to going to law school and establishing a career as a music attorney.

Robert Cardon-Wake attends Indiana University’s Jacobs School of Music as a doctoral student of trombone performance; he studies with Professor Peter Ellefson. Prior to attending IU, Robert earned degrees in trombone performance from Vanderbilt University and the University of Denver where he studied with Jeremy Wilson and Richard Harris respectively.

At Vanderbilt University, Robert performed with the orchestra, wind symphony, contemporary music ensemble, and big band. For 3 years, Robert also performed with the West End Brass Quintet, which was selected by Vanderbilt faculty to study in Berlin with members of the Berlin Philharmonic and deliver two public recitals in Berlin through the Vanderbilt Music Academy. At the University of Denver, Robert performed with various large ensembles and the Graduate Trombone Quartet, which won second prize in the Lamont Chamber Competition, appeared as featured performers at two Big 12 Trombone Conferences, and delivered numerous professional recitals throughout the city of Denver. At DU, Robert also received the Brass Ring Award for Performance and Citizenship Excellence and a grant from the Levy Innovation Fund, which he used to commission and record Xavier Goine’s Etudes for an Echoing Trombone: the first collection of etudes designed to introduce student trombonists to the Boss RC-300 loop station, a piece of equipment which is utilized in many pieces of contemporary trombone repertoire.

Robert lives in Bloomington, IN with his wife Emma Cardon-Wake, who is earning a doctorate in composition through the Jacobs School of Music.