June 15, 2021
T. ANDRÉ FEAGIN
Behind the music, beyond the podium
Dr. T. André Feagin serves as Director of Bands and Associate Professor in the Department of Music at Central Washington University, where he guides the educational and artistic vision of a comprehensive band program. He leads the graduate wind band conducting area and conducts both the Symphonic Band and the Wind Ensemble, the university’s premier wind band. Under his direction, the CWU Wind Ensemble has been recognized for its artistic and musical excellence with featured performances at the 2022 and 2026 College Band Directors National Association Western/Northwestern Division Conferences and the 20th World Association for Symphonic Bands and Ensembles International Conference in Gwangju, South Korea (2024). Prior to joining CWU, Dr. Feagin gained extensive teaching experience at both the university and secondary school levels across the United States.
Dr. Feagin has been recognized for his outstanding contributions to teaching, service, and building a supportive learning environment at CWU. In 2024, he received the Outstanding Tenured/Tenure-Track Faculty Teaching Award from the College of Arts and Humanities. In 2023, he was honored with two President’s Diversity Awards in both the "Faculty" and "Community" categories for his efforts to foster meaningful relationships and broaden access to opportunity within the university and the wider community. He also serves as Dean Fellow of Student Success in the College of Arts and Humanities, where his work focuses on student achievement, community engagement, and cultivating a model learning environment grounded in connection, access, and opportunity.
Dr. Feagin has appeared as a guest conductor with numerous all-state and honor bands, as well as professional ensembles throughout the United States, Canada, Central and Southwest Europe, and Southeast Asia. His work as a conductor, educator, and advocate for music education has also led to invitations to appear as a guest conductor at Carnegie Hall and the Kennedy Center. As a clinician and presenter, he has been invited to speak on topics including conducting, educational leadership, and broadening participation in music education at conferences and institutions across the U.S. and internationally. In 2022, he was a featured presenter at the 19th WASBE International Conference in Prague, Czech Republic.
Recognized nationally for his work with leading U.S. military ensembles, Dr. Feagin has conducted guest engagements with the United States Air Force Band of Mid-America, the United States Military Academy Band, "The President’s Own" United States Marine Band, and the United States Coast Guard Band. In 2024, he was also invited to present and collaborate as a guest speaker at a leadership summit for conductors within the United States Air Force Band Program.
Dr. Feagin holds a Doctor of Musical Arts degree in wind conducting from the University of Arizona School of Music, where he studied with Gregg I. Hanson. His doctoral research focused on Spanish wind composer Bernardo Adam Ferrero and his work Homenaje a Joaquín Sorolla. He also holds a Master of Music degree in instrumental wind conducting from the University of Memphis Rudi E. Scheidt School of Music. Dr. Feagin is deeply grateful to the many mentors and teachers who have shaped his passion for conducting and music education. Among them are Gregg I. Hanson, Eugene Migliaro Corporon, Kraig Alan Williams, Thomas Cockrell, Bruce Chamberlain, Pat Morrow, Darry Pilkington, and Sallie Vines White.
Actively engaged in the professional music community, he holds memberships in the National Association for Music Education, the College Band Directors National Association, the World Association for Symphonic Bands and Ensembles, and the Washington Music Educators Association. He is a Patron of Mu Phi Epsilon and holds honorary memberships in both Tau Beta Sigma and Phi Mu Alpha Sinfonia. He currently serves on the Diversity and Research Committees of CBDNA and is a member of the advisory board for Emergence: Research & Performance Topics in Black Music, the scholarly publication of the National Association of Negro Musicians, Inc.
Dr. Feagin’s leadership in ensemble performance and music education spans more than two decades, including national and international guest conducting, adjudication, and mentorship. His experiences in the marching arts, including leadership roles with Drum Corps International ensembles and the U.S. Army All-American Marching Band, have informed his work as an artistic conductor and educator, providing a foundation in ensemble leadership, rehearsal techniques, and program development. He has been recognized with numerous honors, including the DCI Jim Jones Leadership Award (2000), DCI Division III Director of the Year (2007), an official proclamation designating “Professor T. André Feagin Day” in El Paso, Texas, and contributions as an author to multiple volumes of Teaching Music Through Performance in Band (GIA Publications).