David Centers - Band Director

David Centers began his teaching career in Jeffersonville, IN in 1997 and also taught at East Hardin Middle School before coming to Central Hardin in 2004.  While at Central Hardin, the band program grew from ~52 students to over 100 students.  The band has received consistent distiguished ratings as a grade 6 band in KMEA festivals and has been a state semi-finalist in KMEA State Marching Band Competitions. 

Mr. Centers is orginally from Winchester, KY and currently lives in Louisville, KY with his wife, Staci (a cytologist), son (Noah) and daughter (Hannah).  He attended the University of Louisville where he studied with John Jones.  He graduated With Highest Honors and received the Outstanding Graduating Senior Award.  He holds a bachelors in music education and a masters in education.  His primary instrument is the Euphonium.  Mr. Centers has performed with many ensembles in Kentucky and Southern Indiana including the Derby City Brass Band, Commonwealth Brass Band, Advocate Brass Band, Lousville Brass and Friends, and the Derby City Tuba Quartet - a two time national champion small ensemble winner at NABBA.  He has also been a finalist in auditions with "The President's Own" United States Marine Band and the Washington D.C. based U.S. Air Force Band.  Mr. Centers is also a member and Deacon at the Okolona Christian Church in Lousiville, KY where he performs in the orchestra. 

__________________________________________________________________________

Matthew Baucum - Assistant Band Director

Matthew Baucum

Matthew Baucum is originally from Paducah, Kentucky. He holds a Master of Arts degree in trombone performance from the University of Iowa and a Bachelor of Music Education degree from Murray State University. Mr. Baucum is currently Director of Bands at East Hardin Middle School in Glendale, Kentucky and assistant band director at Central Hardin High School in Elizabethtown, Kentucky.  At East Hardin Mr. Baucum conducts 6th-8th grade bands, a jazz band, numerous chamber ensembles and has created a mentoring/private lesson program that in it's first year includes 25% of the students in the band program.  His ensembles have consistently received Distinguished ratings on the concert stage.  East Hardin Middle School band students consistently place well at all-district band auditions and also have had  great success at solo & ensemble festivals, recieving numerous Distinguished ratings. Before his appointment to East Hardin Middle School, Mr. Baucum was the Director of Bands at LaRue County Middle School in Hodgenville, Kentucky and at Reidland High School in Paducah, Kentucky.

Mr. Baucum has performed with the Oscaloosa Symphony Orchestra (Oscaloosa, Iowa), Ottumwa Symphony Orchestra (Ottumwa, Iowa), the Paducah Symphony Orchestra (Paducah, Kentucky), the Paducah Jazz Ensemble, the Todd Hill Orchestra, and many other chamber ensembles. He has also performed on the album "Daydreams from the Prairie", which was recorded and released by Johnson County Landmark, the premier jazz ensemble at The University of Iowa. 

Mr. Baucum currently resides in Cecilia, Kentucky with his wife Kelly and his two cats Sophie and Lilly.

__________________________________________________________________________

Ken Allen - Assistant Band Director

Mr. Allen has spent many years conducting and performing in military bands before coming to Central Hardin.  His primary instrument is the Saxophone.  He is also the director of bands at West Hardin Middle School.

__________________________________________________________________________

John Harris - Percussion Instructor and Percussion Arranger

John R. Harris received a Bachelor’s degree in music performance from the St. Louis Conservatory of Music. His major teachers were John Kasica and Richard Holmes, both members of the St. Louis Symphony Orchestra. Prior to his conservatory years, John attended the University of Kentucky where he was a student of David Davenport. He has also studied with Tom Vanarsdel, former percussion instructor at Murray State University. John received a Master’s degree in music performance from the University of Iowa as a teaching assistant of Thomas L. Davis. John is the former Principal Percussionist of the Des Moines, Cedar Rapids and Lincoln Symphony Orchestras as well as the Des Moines Metro Opera Orchestra. He has also been a member of the Omaha, Paducah, Lexington, Sioux Falls and Sioux City Symphony Orchestras as well as an extra with the Louisville Orchestra. John has taught percussion on the collegiate=2 0level at Iowa State University, The University of South Dakota, Simpson College, Central College, Grinnell College, Coe College, Kirkwood Community College, Cornell College and Dana College. John has taught percussion on the high school level at Cedar Rapids Jefferson(IA), Lincoln East(NE), Sioux Falls Lincoln(SD), and La Vergne, Glencliff and Franklin High Schools in Tennessee. He is currently percussion consultant at Central Hardin, Larue County and Louisville Butler High Schools in Kentucky and Paoli High School in Indiana. John was involved in the drum and bugle corps activity from 1987-1990 as an instructor for the Colts Drum and Bugle Corps from Dubuque, Iowa and the Emerald Knights Drum and Bugle Corps from Cedar Rapids, Iowa. John currently resides in Louisville, Kentucky and is pursuing a career as a free-lance percussionist.

__________________________________________________________________________

Kaleena Thompson - Guard Instructor and Choreographer

__________________________________________________________________________

Kayla Pucket - Guard Asssitant-Instructor

__________________________________________________________________________

Alan Emerson - Music Arranger

A native of Owensboro, KY, Mr. Emerson received his BME (1994) and MME(2004) from Murray State University. Mr. Emerson began his teaching career in Owensboro at Audubon Elementary School and Apollo High School. In 1995 Mr. Emerson began teaching for the Hopkins County School system and is currently working with Madisonville North Hopkins High School and James Madison Middle School Bands. James Madison Middle school currently has 42% of the student body involved in the instrumental music program. The 7th and 8th grade bands consistently receive distinguished ratings at KMEA large ensemble festival. Madisonville North Hopkins High School Band includes the following successful offerings for students: Marching Band, Symphonic Band, Concert Band, Jazz Band, Percussion Ensemble, and Chamber Winds.

Besides his teaching duties in Hopkins County, Mr. Emerson is also an active arranger for high school bands and has several private trumpet students. Mr. Emerson’s drum and bugle corps experiences include Star Of Indiana (1988), The Crossmen (1994-1998) and Eklipse (2003). Mr. Emerson has been awarded the KMEA 2nd District Middle School Music Educator of the year three times and is the 2004 winner of the Hopkins County Middle School teacher of the year.