After 30 years in music education, Steve Hendricks decided to turn his focus from working daily in his own band room to sharing what he has learned along the way with music educators and their students. To that end, he published his book Life Lessons in the Band Room, a book that Dr. Tim Lautzenheiser calls “required reading for all!” and now serves as a guest conductor, clinician, and adjudicator throughout the United States.

Steve was instrumental, as the Band Director at Davis High School, in establishing and supporting the first indoor percussion ensemble in Utah. He was a constant advocate for the activity, when many other Directors did not support the growing circuit.

Steve began his career at Carbon High School in Price, Utah. In 1990 he became the director of bands at Davis High School in Kaysville, Utah, where he taught until his retirement from secondary education in 2018. His 28 years at Davis High were filled with many accomplishments, including a performance at the 1998 Midwest Clinic, performances at the 2003 and 2013 Tournament of Roses Parades, and performance in the 2017 Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade. Davis High is the only school in Utah history to have three bands earn a straight superior rating at the state festival—a feat they achieved twice, in 2015 and again in 2017.

During his tenure at Davis High, Steve was recognized with the “Superior Accomplishment” award and the “Outstanding High School Music Educator” award from the Utah Music Educators Association. He received eight citations of excellence for concert band, jazz band, and marching band from the National Band Association, and in 2015 his band program was selected as the western division NBA Blue Ribbon Award Winner. In 2014 he received the Utah High School Activities Association’s “Music Educator of the Year” award. He was featured in the 2013 “50 Educators Who Make a Difference issue of School Band and Orchestra Magazine. In 2017 Steve was named Davis School District Teacher of the Year and was the first runner up for Utah State Board of Education Teacher of the Year. He is also a recipient of the Sorenson Legacy Award for Excellence in Arts Education and the Jon M. Huntsman Award for Excellence in Education. In honor of his retirement, a consortium of music educators from Utah and Indiana commissioned Another Day in the Park by Benjamin Dean Taylor.

Steve is an active adjudicator and clinician throughout the United States. He is a current or past member of the National Association for Music Education, the Utah Music Educators Association, the National Band Association, and the National Education Association. He served as the UMEA Marching Band Committee Chair and as the UMEA Vice President-Band. He counts among his greatest accomplishments his marriage to his wife Tammie, their four children—all of whom were members of the Davis High Band—and their ten grandchildren.

Ray began his drumming career at age 10 by joining the award-winning Utah Scottish Pipe Band and began traveling and competing with the ensemble throughout the United States and Canada. Ray also found personal success as he medaled in every solo competition that he entered during his time with the band.

At the age of 12, Ray was selected to perform with the Southern Utah University Ceremonial Band in Atlanta, Georgia for the Coca-Cola 100 th Anniversary celebration and parade. While still in junior high school he was hired to teach weekly highland drumming clinics for the percussionists at Payson High School. He found great joy in teaching at a very early age.

As a high school student, Ray was part of the Davis High Marching Band as a member of its drumline. His senior year, the percussion instructor unexpectedly departed and Ray was asked to tap into his previous teaching experience and assumed the role of student instructor. This was also Ray’s foray into arranging percussion parts for the drumline and front ensemble.

After successfully leading the percussion section as a student, Ray was hired back as the full time instructor and arranger for Davis High School. Ray continued teaching at Davis from 1991 to 2005 with a 2-year hiatus while he served an LDS mission in South America.

Under Ray’s direction, the Davis Drumline saw tremendous success with highlights that include: yearly caption awards during field show competitions, being a featured unit with the 2002 Salt Lake Winter Olympics, marching in the 2003 Rose Parade, performing alongside the Tabernacle Choir, and opening for the Big Bad Voodoo Daddy’s, Disney on Ice, and STOMP at Kingsbury Hall amongst many others.

In 2001, with the aid and support of the Utah Winterguard Association, Ray established the first indoor percussion organization with Davis as its only member performing an entire season in judged exhibition. Over the next few years, Ray was instrumental in helping other high schools and directors establish indoor percussion programs and within 2 years, there were over a dozen units in the state of Utah as members of a full-fledged competitive circuit. Ray served as the president of the circuit until he stepped down from his role at Davis in 2005.

Ray is a graduate of Brigham Young University and is the Vice President of Operations at a circuit board assembly company in American Fork. He currently resides in Centerville, Utah with his partner and fiancé, Derek.