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Purdue Bands 12/4 Preview

John Cleary

WBAA's John Clare recently spoke with Douglas Fletcher, director of the Fall Concert Band, about the next Purdue Gold and Black Concert Bands performance, Sunday, December 4 at 2:30 pm at the Long Center in Lafayette.

Find out more about the concert here.

Douglas R. Fletcher is Visiting Instructor of Bands for the 2016-2017 academic year, and serves as assistant director for the “All-American” Marching Band, director of the Boiler Box Band, director of the Concert and Collegiate Bands, and director of Fall Concert Band.  Doug has had a highly successful thirty-one year career as a high school band director.

Mr. Fletcher’s public teaching career includes directorships at Monroe-Central Jr./Sr. High School (1985-1992), Winchester Community High School (1992-1998), Highland High School (1998-2010), Anderson High School (2010-2011), and a second stint at Winchester Community High School (2011-2016).  His high school concert bands have performed at the IMEA State Convention on three occasions with ensembles from three different schools, twice at the ISSMA State Concert Band Finals with the Highland Wind Ensemble, and numerous times at ISSMA Organizational and IMEA Concert Band Festivals.

Fletcher’s successes as a high school marching band director include several appearances at the ISSMA Marching Band State Finals.  His true niche and passion, however, has been with the historic Indiana State Fair Band Day contest.  He is the only director to win the Indiana State Fair Band Day at four different schools and holds a record twelve wins for the most State Fair championships won as a director.  His marching bands have performed in numerous major parades including the Indianapolis 500 Festival Parade, the Philadelphia Thanksgiving Day Parade, the Hollywood Christmas Parade, the National Memorial Day Parade in Washington D.C., and the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade in New York City.

John Nasukaluk Clare is comfortable behind a microphone, streaming video or playing violin. A former broadcaster for NPR, John has previously worked with Voice of America, the Canadian Broadcast Corporation and stations in Texas, Kansas, Nevada, California, and Pennsylvania. In 2005, Clare earned the Deems Taylor Award from ASCAP for radio broadcasting, citing his work on 20/20 Hearing. Having performed with famed tenors Luciano Pavarotti and Andrea Bocelli, John has worked with the Mozart Festival Texas, Mid Texas Symphony, Nevada Chamber Symphony, Shreveport Symphony, Abilene Philharmonic and Wichita Symphony Orchestra.