Conductor
Travis J. Cross is an assistant professor of music at Virginia Tech, where he conducts the Symphonic Wind Ensemble and teaches courses in conducting. He completed doctoral coursework at Northwestern University in Evanston, Ill., where he studied with Mallory Thompson. He previously earned the bachelor of music degree cum laude in vocal and instrumental music education from St. Olaf College in Northfield, Minn., and the master of music degree in conducting from Northwestern.
Cross taught for four years at Edina (Minn.) High School, where he conducted two concert bands and oversaw the marching band program. In 2004, he was selected to participate in the inaugural Young Conductor/Mentor Project sponsored by the National Band Association. The same year he received the Distinguished Young Band Director Award from the American School Band Directors Association of Minnesota. From 2001–2003, Cross served a two-year term as the recent graduate on the St. Olaf College Board of Regents. In 2006, he was named a Jacob K. Javits Fellow by the United States Department of Education. He currently serves as national vice president for professional relations for Kappa Kappa Psi, the national honorary band fraternity.
Cross contributed a chapter to volume four of Composers on Composing for Band, available from GIA Publications. His original works and arrangements for band, choir, and orchestra are published by Boosey & Hawkes, Daehn Publications, and Theodore Music. Current commissions include works for bands in Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, and Virginia. He has appeared as a guest conductor, composer, and clinician in several states and at the Midwest Clinic and leads honor bands in Massachusetts, Virginia, and West Virginia during the 2011–2012 season.
