Peter Perry is a lifelong Maryland resident, and has traveled the world teaching and performing music. He is currently in his twenty-sixth consecutive year as Instrumental Music Director at Richard Montgomery High School in Rockville, Maryland. Here he conducts the: Chamber Orchestra, Concert Orchestra, Advanced Orchestra, Pit Orchestra, Jazz Ensemble, Symphonic Band, Concert Band, and Marching Band. These ensembles consistently receive critical acclaim on local, state, national, and international levels.

 

He holds a Doctor of Musical Arts degree in Music Education from Shenandoah Conservatory, as well as a Master’s Degree in Music Education-Instrumental Conducting Concentration, and a Bachelor of Science Degree-Instrumental Music Education, both from the University of Maryland. While at the University of Maryland, Dr. Perry was awarded the prestigious Creative and Performing Arts Scholarship in Music.

 

Dr. Perry is a strong advocate for music technology usage in the large ensemble. His doctoral dissertation, "The Effect of Flexible-Practice Computer-Assisted Instruction and Cognitive Style on the Development of Music Performance Skills in High School Instrumental Students," focused on how the practice software, SmartMusic™, and the cognitive styles of field dependence and field independence affect musical performance skill development. His book, Technology Tips for Ensemble Teachers (published by Oxford University Press), is the first text to specifically outline technology use and instructional strategies using technology in the large Ensemble. He frequently lectures and writes about music technology and its use in music and ensemble music instruction.

 

In 2006, Dr. Perry received a Japan Fulbright fellowship and participated in the Japan Fulbright Memorial Fund Teacher Program. This program annually provided American primary and secondary school teachers and administrators with opportunities for professional development through short-term study visits to Japan. It aimed to increase the understanding of U.S. educators who help shape and educate the next generation. The program was designed to provide educators with first-hand opportunities to experience Japanese culture and education through school visits, interactions with teachers and students, seminars, and home stays. Upon returning to the U.S., participants shared their experiences in Japan with their students, colleagues, and communities in the form of curriculum improvement, development of teaching materials, workshops, and other activities. Dr. Perry was one of four Maryland educators chosen for the November 2006 cycle. He composed an orchestral work highlighting his experiences in Japan that was premiered by the Richard Montgomery High School String Orchestra.

 

Dr. Perry is an active guest conductor, clinician, adjudicator, lecturer, author, composer, and performer. He is past vice president of the Maryland state unit of the International Association for Jazz Education (IAJE). He is a contributing writer for the National Association for Music Education (NAfME) Teaching Music Magazine and Music in a Minuet blog, as well as a contributing reviewer for its Music Educators Journal. Dr. Perry has presented sessions at the Maryland Music Educators Conference, Music Teacher's National Association Conference, and the National Association for Music Education (NAfME) Eastern Division Conference. He has also served as trumpet professor at Montgomery College in Rockville, Maryland. Dr. Perry currently serves on the music education faculty of The Catholic University of America teaching instrumental methods.

In 2009, Dr. Perry received the Presidential Scholar Teacher Award.

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In 2019, he received the Brent Cannon Music Education Alumni Achievement Award from Kappa Kappa Psi, recognizing outstanding contributions to secondary music education.

 

In October 2019, he took a group of student musicians to Yilan, Taiwan to perform in the Yilan International Arts Festival, representing the United States (the third American ensemble in the festival's history).

 

Dr. Perry is a member of the National Association for Music Education (NafME), Alpha Chi and Phi Kappa Phi National Honor Societies, the Maryland Music Educators Association, The International Trumpet Guild, Technology in Music Education (Ti:ME) and is an alumnus of Kappa Kappa Psi-National Honorary Band Fraternity.

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He lives in Montgomery Village, Maryland with his wife, Deborah and son, Peter.