Judges

2024 TMC Judge Bios

New in 2024!

We have added another Music GE judge to our panel, making for the most exciting wealth of experience and information in the history of our contest.

NOLA JONES, CHIEF JUDGE

Dr. Nola Jones is the Coordinator of Visual and Performing Arts for Metropolitan Nashville Public Schools in Nashville, Tennessee. Her duties include instructional supervision of four hundred professional arts education specialists, curriculum planning, and implementation of Music Makes Us.

Music Makes Us is a public/private partnership among Metro Nashville Public Schools, Nashville Mayor Karl Dean, and music industry and community leaders in Nashville.  Music Makes Us’ purpose is to ensure Metro Nashville Public Schools is a worldwide leader in music education, bringing the resources of the Nashville music community together to enable participation and foster student success for all of its 81,000 students.

Dr. Jones maintains an active schedule as a guest conductor, adjudicator, and clinician for concert bands, marching bands, and honor ensembles. She has appeared nationally in 38 of the 50 United States and internationally in Canada, Japan, the Netherlands, and Singapore. At the request of NAfME, she was Director of the 2010 and 2011 US Army All-American Band, performing at the NBC televised US Army All-American Bowl in San Antonio, Texas and served on its Blue Ribbon Committee to write National Standards for Marching Band.

She has judged for WGI, Bands of America and Drum Corps International and currently serves on the DCI Judge Liaison Team for the music caption. Dr. Jones received the Bachelor of Music Education degree from Mississippi State University and the Master of Music Education degree from Mississippi College. She received her Doctorate of Musical Arts in Conducting from the University of South Carolina where she was a student of Dr. William J. Moody.

Dr. Jones received the Bachelor of Music Education degree from Mississippi State University and the Master of Music Education degree from Mississippi College.

LEE CARLSON

Lee Carlson has been involved in the pagentry arts for over 45 years. He has spent the last 39 years as the drill designer and color guard instructor for the University of Southern California Trojan Marching Band. His High School teaching experience includes 18 years at Indio High, Indio, CA. He has taught and written drill for many high schools including four years with Kamehameha Hight School in Honolulu, HI. He has instructed the Denver Blue Knights, Great Bend Argonne Rebels, and the Hutchinson Sky Ryders.

He has been a judge for Drum Corps International, Bands of America, Winter Guard International and many Winter Guard and Marching Band Circuits across the United States. With Drum Corps International he has served 21 years as a judge, four years as Visual Caption Head, five years as Judges Training Coordinator and for the past 5 years has served in the position of Artistic Coordinator and Director of Competition. He has judged in Europe and Asia and has adjudicated the Drum Corps Japan Championships nine times.

He has written for and taught many mass bands including the opening and closing of the Los Angles Olympics (1984), Centennial of the Statue of Liberty (1986), and the Bicentennial of the French Revolution and the Centennial of the Eiffel Tower in Paris (1989). Lee owns and operates a successful pottery studio in Palm Springs, CA., where has have been an active member of the community for the past 39 years.

GLEN FUGETT

Glenn Fugett is a retired music educator. His career spanned 37 years in both Texas and Tennessee. From 2019 to 2022, he worked in Instructional Support for Metro Nashville Public Schools, which was a position initially funded by the Grammy Education Coalition. From 2015 to 2019, he was the Director of Bands and Orchestras at the Nashville School of the Arts. In 2019, the NSA Wind Ensemble received the Award of Distinction in Concert Performance from the American School Band Directors Association. Fugett’s Chamber Orchestra and Wind Ensemble were both selected to participate in the Music for All National Festival in 2017.

From 2007 to 2015, Fugett was the Director of Bands at Legacy High School in Mansfield, Texas. The group was a finalist at numerous Bands of America (BOA) Regional Championships and UIL State Marching Contest. They were the 3A Class Champions at the 2011 Arlington and 2013 Allen BOA Regional Marching Band Championships. In addition, the Legacy Wind Ensemble performed at the Music for All National Concert Band Festival in 2014. Prior to his time at Legacy High School, Fugett was the Associate Director of Bands at Westlake High School in Austin, Texas from 1991 to 2007. The Westlake Band performed at The Midwest Clinic in 2002, the Rose Parade® in 2003, and was a consistent finalist at the Bands of America San Antonio Super Regional Championship and the UIL State Marching Contest. Fugett was also the head middle school band director at Calallen Middle School in Corpus Christi, Texas from 1986 to 1991.

Fugett is a sought-after clinician for Music for All, Yamaha, and other music industry leaders. He has been an adjudicator for Bands of America since 1995 and Drum Corps International (DCI) since 1992. Fugett was the DCI Percussion Judge Caption Head from 2003 to 2008 and served as DCI Judge Liaison from 2012 to 2015. He now resides in San Antonio with his wife, Robin. They will celebrate their 36th wedding anniversary in August.

JAY KENNEDY

Jay Kennedy is Vice President for Academic Affairs and Vice Provost at Berklee College of Music in Boston.  

He has been an active adjudicator for marching band, drum corps, and indoor percussion competitions for over 35 years, has written for several drum and bugle corps, and composed the theme for the Drum Corps International contest broadcasts.  He was elected to the DCI Hall of Fame in 2007 for longtime contributions as an adjudicator, judge administrator, arranger, and composer.

Kennedy has composed music for hundreds of television commercials and his music has been heard in feature films, including Wayne’s World, Electric Horseman, and Lethal Weapon 2.  His published compositions include works for concert band, percussion ensemble, and marching band.

He received the Ph.D. from Boston College and Master of Music and Bachelor of Music Education degrees from Northwestern University.  

JOHN PHILLIPS

John Phillips is an active adjudicator and clinician, whose work has taken him around the world. Phillips has provided his unique approach to marching arts education across Japan, Malaysia, Europe, South America, and North America. 

Always in demand as an expert on marching music education, Phillips was a member of the MENC Blue Ribbon Panel on marching music standards. He chaired the DCI Marching Music Academy and in 2010, received the MENC award for Excellence in Marching Music Education. Since 2000 he has served as judge administrator for Drum Corps International and was inducted into the DCI Hall of Fame class of 2015.

Throughout his career, Phillips has participated in numerous initiatives with Music for All including the National Concert Festival – evaluator; the annual Summer Symposium – clinician; and the Bands of America Grand Nationals – adjudicator.  He regularly adjudicates for the World Association of Marching Show Bands (WAMSB) and numerous pageantry organizations in North America and abroad.

Phillips teaches at the Bower School of Music, Florida Gulf Coast University. He recently retired from the University of Western Ontario where he conducted the Symphonic Band, taught undergraduate conducting, and graduate seminars in Music Education. He also taught at York University and the University of Toronto in both the faculties of Music and Education.  

John Phillips is a Conn-Selmer Educational Clinician.

MICHAEL STONE

Michael Stone resides in West Hills, California and has been adjudicating various pageantry competitions since 1997. He attributes his interest in pageantry to his high school music and marching band program. Mr. Stone has studied, performed and taught in several music programs in California. He is recognized at the highest level of adjudicators for Drum Corps International, Winter Guard International and Bands of America.

Currently Mr. Stone serves as part of the judge Liaison team for DCI. He also is the Executive Director for the WGASC.

As a nationally recognized adjudicator, Mr. Stone is proud to be affiliated with the following organizations: 

  ♦ Drum Corps International (DCI)
  ♦ Winter Guard International (WGI)
  ♦ Music For All – Bands of America (BOA)
  ♦ Winter Guard Association of Southern California (WGASC/MBOS)
  ♦ Western Band Association (WBA)
  ♦ USBands
  ♦ Florida Federation of Colorguards Circuit (FFCC)