Linfield College has announced that it has hired Seth F. Wollam as its inaugural marching band director. He will start full-time in August 2018.
Wollam is an 18-year veteran of music education and band leadership. He is currently in his fourth year as the Director of Bands at Lock Haven University in Lock Haven, Pennsylvania. While at Lock Haven, Wollam led and conducted the athletic and concert bands and community orchestra, as well as taught applied saxophone clarinet, and percussion, as well as individual advanced music studies in marching band techniques, music history and introduction to music.
“Seth rose to the top of the applicant pool because of his commitment to musical excellence, his ability to inspire an engaged group of students for this new project and his enthusiastic personality,” said Susan Hopp, vice president of student affairs and athletics and dean of students. “He is both a seasoned music professional and an experienced educator. He is a great match for the Linfield community.”
Prior to his position at Lock Haven University, Wollam was the Director of Bands at the Homer-Center School District in Homer City, Pennsylvania. Before that, he spent five years as the Director of Bands at Grand Junction High School in Grand Junction, Colorado. He is a Doctor of Musical Arts candidate at the University of North Texas and holds a Master of Arts in wind conducting from Indiana University of Pennsylvania and a Bachelor of Music in Music Education from Youngstown State University.
“I am thrilled to become a member of the Linfield community at such an exciting time in its history,” said Wollam. “A small school can have a strong musical performance program. I’m looking forward to working with the students to create a high-quality, recognized marching band.”
With the launch of the marching band, first announced in September of 2017, Linfield becomes the first NCAA Division III team in the Northwest Conference to have a full marching band. Nationwide, only a small number of Division III programs have marching bands.
The marching band will be Linfield’s first in the modern era. Its previous marching band ended before World War II, and the program wasn’t revived.
As details of the marching band program are finalized, information will be added to the Linfield web page linfield.edu/marchingband. Students who are interested in joining the inaugural marching band can email marchingband@linfield.edu.
For students interested in studying music, Linfield offers both a Bachelor of Arts degree and a minor in music. The college also offers multiple performance opportunities outside of the marching band, including wind symphony, woodwind ensemble, jazz band and brass choir. To learn more, visit linfield.edu/music.
