Everything Band: Episode 17 - Pat Vandehey

Patrick Vandehey of Portland State University joins me to discuss the importance of passionately believing in music education.

Topics:

• Pat's background, including his time as a rock and roll musician and an anecdote about a very bad school administrator
• The importance of a strong performance background and how experience as a player was his most valuable asset for his success.
• His high school programs and then his time at George Fox University and his move to Portland State.
• Thoughts about the future of music education
• The marching arts and competition in music education

Links:

• Portland State University
• George Fox University
• Phillip Sparke: A Savannah Story
• David Maslanka: Symphony no. 4

Biography:

Patrick Vandehey is an Associate Professor of Music at Portland State University in Portland, Oregon. Prior to the PSU position he taught 14 years at George Fox University, a small private liberal arts college in Newberg, Oregon and 23 years teaching in area public high schools. Mr. Vandehey received his Bachelors of Art and Bachelors of Music from the University of Washington, and a Masters of Teaching Music at Portland State University.

Mr. Vandehey is a Past-President of the Oregon Band Directors Association and serves as chairman of the Adjudication Training Board of OBDA. He served for two years as the Band Liaison to the Oregon Schools Activity Association. He has served twice on the Oregon Music Education Association’s Board as Band Chair and served on the OMEA Executive board as President in 2005-2006.

In 1993 Mr. Vandehey was the State, Regional and National recipient of the ASBDA- Stanbury Award for Outstanding Young Band Director. In 2000 he was inducted into the Band World Legion of Honor by the John Philip Sousa Foundation. Also in 2000 he was named one of Oregon’s top ten Music Educators by the Oregon Music Educators Association in the Teaching Music Magazine. In 2002 Mr. Vandehey received the Citation of Excellence from the National Band Association. He is a founding member of the Oregon Chapter of Phi Beta Mu, and in 2006 was inducted into the Northwest Bandmaster’s Association. Mr. Vandehey was named the Oregon’s Outstanding Music Educator in 2010 by the Oregon Music Educators Association.

Mr. Vandehey is married to Kristin, his wife of 40 years and they have two daughters, both of whom are educators.