John Hersey High School Band Directors
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DIRECTOR OF BANDS |
ASSISTANT BAND DIRECTOR |
DIRECTOR OF BANDS, Scott Casagrande
Scott J. Casagrande has been Director of Bands at John Hersey High School in Arlington Heights, IL since 1999. He was previously Director of Bands at Plainfield High School in Plainfield, IL and Stephen Decatur High School in Decatur, IL. A native of Fairfax County, VA, Mr. Casagrande received his B.S. and M.S. in Music Education from the University of Illinois at Champaign-Urbana.
Ensembles under Mr. Casagrande’s direction have been selected to perform at the Midwest International Band and Orchestra Clinic (jazz and concert), 17 of the last 18 Illinois Superstate Concert Band Festivals (Honor Band 2008 and 2012) and four National Concert Band Festivals. In 2007, the John Hersey band program was awarded the prestigious Sudler Flag of Honor from the John Philip Sousa Foundation. Ensembles under his direction have also performed at the Chicago Jazz Festival, French Reeds Festival in the French Riviera, at Orchestra Hall in the Chicago Symphony Center (twice), at Carnegie Hall in NYC and throughout Europe (two tours). In addition, ensembles have been Grand Champions at the Jazz in the Meadows Jazz Festival (twice), and Honor Band at the Purdue Jazz Festival (8 times). Marching Bands under his direction have been the Governors Cup winner of the University of Illinois Marching Illini Festival and have won or placed near the top of all competitions entered since 2000.
In 2004, he was one of three conductors in the United States chosen to participate in the NBA International Conducting Symposium in Rome, Italy, conducting the Italian National Army Band. He has received 17 Citation of Excellence Awards from the National Band Association, three School District 214 Special Recognition Awards, the Plainfield HS Stephen Hunt Memorial Award for Excellence in Teaching, the Chicagoland Outstanding Music Educator Award, Mr. Holland’s Opus Award and the Stephen Decatur HS Teacher Excellence in Service Award. Mr. Casagrande was inducted into the prestigious American Bandmasters Association in 2009. He conducted the Illinois All-State Jazz Band in 2012.
Active in the National Band Association, he has been elected Second Vice President and has twice served as a High School Representative on the Board of Directors. He served as a member of the Revelli Composition Contest Committee from 2003-2011. He has been the Illinois District VII Jazz Representative since 2009 and recently became an Educational Consultant for Music For All/Bands of America. Mr. Casagrande has been published in the NBA Journal, as well as The Instrumentalist, and he has presented clinics at the Illinois Music Educators Association annual convention. In 2000, Mr. Casagrande and band parents began the Chicagoland Invitational Concert Band Festival, which has hosted the finest Chicagoland and Midwestern high school bands (26-28 bands), college, community and professional bands, as well as nationally recognized adjudicators in a non-competitive, supportive and educational environment. Students in the John Hersey program are very active in IMEA All-District and All-State bands and most Hersey band graduates continue to perform in their college ensembles and beyond.
Mr. Casagrande is an active guest conductor and adjudicator. He is a member of the National Band Association, Illinois Music Educators Association, Music Educators National Conference, Jazz Education Network and Phi Beta Mu. Scott and his wife, Janice, have two daughters, Mary and Julia.
ASSISTANT BAND DIRECTOR, Mark Hengesh
Mark Hengesh has been a music educator for over 35 years. He has directed bands at Schaumburg, Dundee, Glenbard West and Glenbard North High Schools. At Glenbard West his bands performed at the University of Illinois Superstate Band Festival on 10 occasions and also performed at the Bands of America National Concert Band Festival in 1995 and again in 2001. He also served as Music Department Chairman.
From 1992 – 2007, Mr. Hengesh was the director of the DuPage Community Concert Band at the College of DuPage. During his tenure there the band grew from 50 to over 90 members, and performed in London, England and in Maastricht, The Netherlands.
Mr. Hengesh was recently named music director for the Arlington Heights Community Concert Band beginning in September 2012.
In addition to his duties at Hersey, he is currently teaching 5th Grade Beginning Band at Waterbury and Greenbrook elementary schools in Hanover Park.
A Wheeling High School graduate, Mr. Hengesh received bachelor’s degrees in physical education and music education at Luther College and the University of Minnesota respectively. He received a master’s degree in music education from Northern Illinois University. Mr. Hengesh has studied tuba with Robert Getchell, Ross Tolbert and Robert Bauchens and has performed with the Minnesota Orchestra. He is currently playing tuba in the Fox Valley Concert Band, Illinois Brass Band and the Bethlehem Brass Quintet.
Mr. Hengesh has been an active member of IMEA/MENC, and has also adjudicated music festivals in Illinois, France, Scotland and the Netherlands. He has received eight National Band Association “Citations of Excellence” and is also a member of the American School Band Directors Association.