Skip Gray
Encyclopedia
Dr. Skip Gray ranks among the finest performers and professors of the tuba in the world. Dr. Gray currently serves on the faculty of the University of Kentucky
as Professor of Tuba and Euphonium, a position he has held since 1980. Gray was born in Cleveland, Ohio
and attended Baldwin Wallace College
earning a Bachelor of Arts in Music Performance degree studying under Ronald Bishop of the Cleveland Orchestra
and went on to earn both the Master of Music and Doctor of Musical Arts degrees from University of Illinois
studying under Daniel Parentonni. Dr. Gray has been presented twice at the prestigious Midwest Clinic and at Carnegie Hall
as well as throughout North America
, South America
, Europe
, Australia
, and Japan
. He hosted the 1992 International Tuba-Euphonium Conference
at the University of Kentucky
in Lexington
.
Dr. Gray has held the appointment of principal tuba of the Lexington Philharmonic since 1980. From 1988-1990, Gray served as principal tuba in the RAI National Symphony Orchestra
in Turin, Italy
, a national orchestra that performed live as well as on broadcasts on television all over the world. Gray served as tubist in the Munich Brass, as brass quintet based in Munich, Germany that toured extensively throughout Germany and Europe. He also served as principal tuba in the Cleveland Ballet Orchestra from 1974-1977, beginning his appointment at the age of 19. Dr. Gray has been featured at multiple ITEA conferences over the past 25 years including at those in Lahti, Finland
, Sapporo, Japan, Greensboro, North Carolina
, and Regina, Saskatchewan
. In addition, Gray has been presented with the Cincinnati Symphony
, St. Louis Symphony
, Budapest Symphony, Florida Orchestra
, Cleveland Ballet Orchestra, the United States Army Band
, and the United States Marine Band
. Along with performing, Dr. Gray has a passion for the research of music and music composition. At the 2010 ITEC in Tucson, Arizona, he was awarded the Clifford Bevan Award for his contributions to the research of tuba. Dr. Gray also has composed, transcribed, and arranged numerous works for the tuba and other ensembles including bands and orchestras of varying levels.
From 1992-1998, Dr. Gray served as Associate Dean of the College of Fine Arts at U.K. He has also served as Associate Director of the School of Music. Gray has served in advisory capacities at the Midwest Clinic, Bands of America
Honor Band of America and Grand Nationals competition, and Yamaha's band and orchestra division. Dr. Gray served as President of the International Tuba Euphonium Association from 2001 to 2003. Previously, he served as Corresponding secretary and executive director
. Gray is a Lifetime Member of the International Tuba Euphonium Association.
Dr. Gray is well known in schools as a music educator throughout Kentucky, Illinois, Indiana, Ohio, Virginia, and Washington D.C for his special presentations. In Kentucky, he presents his program "Tubas Around the World: A Musical Journey Across the Continents!" This program complies with the Kentucky Education Reform Act (KERA). Dr. Gray is a frequent clinician at Bands of America
: Honor Band of America, Grand Nationals, and Summer Symposium and at the Kentucky Music Educators Association
Annual In-Service Convention in Louisville, Kentucky
. He is in constant demand as a clinician, performer, and adjudicator throughout the United States.
Dr. Gray was a founding member of the Lexington Brass Band and served as its co-conductor from 1992 until 1999 leading the ensemble to local and national prominence with performances at the Midwest Clinic and the Great American Brass Band Festival
. He has since returned to perform in the tuba section of the band beginning in the 2007 season. In 1984, Gray served as principal guest conductor of the Solitaire Brass Band in Melbourne, Australia.
In 2004, Gray released a Solo Tuba compact disk
with his German pianist Rudolf Ramming entitled "Tuba Europa: A Musical Journey Across the Continent." This CD was a finalist for the Roger Bobo
recording award. Rudolf Ramming has been presented with Gray throughout the United States and Europe.
Dr. Skip Gray is a Yamaha Performing Artist.
University of Kentucky
The University of Kentucky, also known as UK, is a public co-educational university and is one of the state's two land-grant universities, located in Lexington, Kentucky...
as Professor of Tuba and Euphonium, a position he has held since 1980. Gray was born in Cleveland, Ohio
Cleveland, Ohio
Cleveland is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and is the county seat of Cuyahoga County, the most populous county in the state. The city is located in northeastern Ohio on the southern shore of Lake Erie, approximately west of the Pennsylvania border...
and attended Baldwin Wallace College
Baldwin-Wallace College
Baldwin–Wallace College is a liberal arts college in Berea, Ohio, founded in 1845. It is home to the Riemenschneider-Bach Institute and the Baldwin–Wallace Conservatory of Music, an internationally renowned music school. The college is affiliated with the United Methodist Church. Students receive a...
earning a Bachelor of Arts in Music Performance degree studying under Ronald Bishop of the Cleveland Orchestra
Cleveland Orchestra
The Cleveland Orchestra is an American orchestra based in Cleveland, Ohio. It is one of the five American orchestras informally referred to as the "Big Five". Founded in 1918, the orchestra plays most of its concerts at Severance Hall...
and went on to earn both the Master of Music and Doctor of Musical Arts degrees from University of Illinois
University of Illinois system
The University of Illinois is a system of public universities in Illinois consisting of three campuses: Urbana-Champaign, Chicago, and Springfield. Across its three campuses, the University of Illinois enrolls about 70,000 students. It had an operating budget of $4.17 billion in 2007.-System:The...
studying under Daniel Parentonni. Dr. Gray has been presented twice at the prestigious Midwest Clinic and at Carnegie Hall
Carnegie Hall
Carnegie Hall is a concert venue in Midtown Manhattan in New York City, United States, located at 881 Seventh Avenue, occupying the east stretch of Seventh Avenue between West 56th Street and West 57th Street, two blocks south of Central Park....
as well as throughout North America
North America
North America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...
, South America
South America
South America is a continent situated in the Western Hemisphere, mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere. The continent is also considered a subcontinent of the Americas. It is bordered on the west by the Pacific Ocean and on the north and east...
, Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
, Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
, and Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
. He hosted the 1992 International Tuba-Euphonium Conference
International Tuba Euphonium Association
The International Tuba Euphonium Association , founded in 1973 as the Tubists Universal Brotherhood Association , is an international organization dedicated to performers, teachers and friends of the tuba and euphonium....
at the University of Kentucky
University of Kentucky
The University of Kentucky, also known as UK, is a public co-educational university and is one of the state's two land-grant universities, located in Lexington, Kentucky...
in Lexington
Lexington, Kentucky
Lexington is the second-largest city in Kentucky and the 63rd largest in the US. Known as the "Thoroughbred City" and the "Horse Capital of the World", it is located in the heart of Kentucky's Bluegrass region...
.
Dr. Gray has held the appointment of principal tuba of the Lexington Philharmonic since 1980. From 1988-1990, Gray served as principal tuba in the RAI National Symphony Orchestra
RAI National Symphony Orchestra
RAI National Symphony Orchestra is a major Italian symphony orchestra, based in Turin and owned by State radio and television company RAI.-History:...
in Turin, Italy
Turin
Turin is a city and major business and cultural centre in northern Italy, capital of the Piedmont region, located mainly on the left bank of the Po River and surrounded by the Alpine arch. The population of the city proper is 909,193 while the population of the urban area is estimated by Eurostat...
, a national orchestra that performed live as well as on broadcasts on television all over the world. Gray served as tubist in the Munich Brass, as brass quintet based in Munich, Germany that toured extensively throughout Germany and Europe. He also served as principal tuba in the Cleveland Ballet Orchestra from 1974-1977, beginning his appointment at the age of 19. Dr. Gray has been featured at multiple ITEA conferences over the past 25 years including at those in Lahti, Finland
Lahti
Lahti is a city and municipality in Finland.Lahti is the capital of the Päijänne Tavastia region. It is situated on a bay at the southern end of lake Vesijärvi about north-east of the capital Helsinki...
, Sapporo, Japan, Greensboro, North Carolina
Greensboro, North Carolina
Greensboro is a city in the U.S. state of North Carolina. It is the third-largest city by population in North Carolina and the largest city in Guilford County and the surrounding Piedmont Triad metropolitan region. According to the 2010 U.S...
, and Regina, Saskatchewan
Regina, Saskatchewan
Regina is the capital city of the Canadian province of Saskatchewan. The city is the second-largest in the province and a cultural and commercial centre for southern Saskatchewan. It is governed by Regina City Council. Regina is the cathedral city of the Roman Catholic and Romanian Orthodox...
. In addition, Gray has been presented with the Cincinnati Symphony
Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra
As the fifth oldest orchestra in the United States, the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra has a legacy of fine music making as reflected in its performances in historic Music Hall, recordings, and international tours...
, St. Louis Symphony
Saint Louis Symphony Orchestra
The Saint Louis Symphony Orchestra is an American symphony orchestra based in St. Louis, Missouri. Founded in 1880 by Joseph Otten as the St. Louis Choral Society, the SLSO is the second-oldest symphony orchestra in the United States as it is preceded by the New York Philharmonic.-History:The St...
, Budapest Symphony, Florida Orchestra
The Florida Orchestra
The Florida Orchestra is a performing arts company located in Tampa Bay, Florida. It is one of the leading professional symphony orchestras in Florida, and one of the best regional orchestras in America....
, Cleveland Ballet Orchestra, the United States Army Band
United States Army Band
Founded in 1922, the United States Army Band – known as "Pershing's Own" – is the premier musical organization of the United States Army. Before 2002, the United States Army Band was the only Washington-based military band to have participated in a theater of foreign combat operations...
, and the United States Marine Band
United States Marine Band
The United States Marine Band is the premier band of the United States Marine Corps. Established by act of Congress on July 11, 1798, it is the oldest of the United States military bands and the oldest professional musical organization in the United States...
. Along with performing, Dr. Gray has a passion for the research of music and music composition. At the 2010 ITEC in Tucson, Arizona, he was awarded the Clifford Bevan Award for his contributions to the research of tuba. Dr. Gray also has composed, transcribed, and arranged numerous works for the tuba and other ensembles including bands and orchestras of varying levels.
From 1992-1998, Dr. Gray served as Associate Dean of the College of Fine Arts at U.K. He has also served as Associate Director of the School of Music. Gray has served in advisory capacities at the Midwest Clinic, Bands of America
Bands of America
Bands of America , a division of Music for All, Inc., is an organization that promotes and organizes marching band competitions for high school students. Competitions include both Regional and Super Regional Championships as well as the Grand National Championships...
Honor Band of America and Grand Nationals competition, and Yamaha's band and orchestra division. Dr. Gray served as President of the International Tuba Euphonium Association from 2001 to 2003. Previously, he served as Corresponding secretary and executive director
Executive director
Executive director is a term sometimes applied to the chief executive officer or managing director of an organization, company, or corporation. It is widely used in North American non-profit organizations, though in recent decades many U.S. nonprofits have adopted the title "President/CEO"...
. Gray is a Lifetime Member of the International Tuba Euphonium Association.
Dr. Gray is well known in schools as a music educator throughout Kentucky, Illinois, Indiana, Ohio, Virginia, and Washington D.C for his special presentations. In Kentucky, he presents his program "Tubas Around the World: A Musical Journey Across the Continents!" This program complies with the Kentucky Education Reform Act (KERA). Dr. Gray is a frequent clinician at Bands of America
Bands of America
Bands of America , a division of Music for All, Inc., is an organization that promotes and organizes marching band competitions for high school students. Competitions include both Regional and Super Regional Championships as well as the Grand National Championships...
: Honor Band of America, Grand Nationals, and Summer Symposium and at the Kentucky Music Educators Association
Kentucky Music Educators Association
Kentucky Music Educators Association is the Kentucky state-level affiliate of MENC: The National Association for Music Education. KMEA consists of over 2,000 professional music educators at all levels from kindergarten to the university level...
Annual In-Service Convention in Louisville, Kentucky
Louisville, Kentucky
Louisville is the largest city in the U.S. state of Kentucky, and the county seat of Jefferson County. Since 2003, the city's borders have been coterminous with those of the county because of a city-county merger. The city's population at the 2010 census was 741,096...
. He is in constant demand as a clinician, performer, and adjudicator throughout the United States.
Dr. Gray was a founding member of the Lexington Brass Band and served as its co-conductor from 1992 until 1999 leading the ensemble to local and national prominence with performances at the Midwest Clinic and the Great American Brass Band Festival
Great American Brass Band Festival
The Great American Brass Band Festival is a music festival held annually in Danville, Kentucky since 1990. The open-air festival features a wide variety of brass bands, a hot air balloon race, a picnic, and other activities...
. He has since returned to perform in the tuba section of the band beginning in the 2007 season. In 1984, Gray served as principal guest conductor of the Solitaire Brass Band in Melbourne, Australia.
In 2004, Gray released a Solo Tuba compact disk
Compact Disc
The Compact Disc is an optical disc used to store digital data. It was originally developed to store and playback sound recordings exclusively, but later expanded to encompass data storage , write-once audio and data storage , rewritable media , Video Compact Discs , Super Video Compact Discs ,...
with his German pianist Rudolf Ramming entitled "Tuba Europa: A Musical Journey Across the Continent." This CD was a finalist for the Roger Bobo
Roger Bobo
Roger Bobo b. 1938 is a renowned and critically acclaimed American tuba virtuoso and internationally respected brass pedagogue. He retired from active tuba performance in 2001 in order to devote his time to conducting and teaching. He gave what is reputed to be the first solo tuba recital in the...
recording award. Rudolf Ramming has been presented with Gray throughout the United States and Europe.
Dr. Skip Gray is a Yamaha Performing Artist.