Darren Hicks

Darren Hicks received his bachelor’s and master’s degrees in Music Education as well as a master’s degree in Educational Organization and Leadership from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. He taught in Galesburg, Illinois for nine years before coming to Urbana, Illinois in the fall of 2004. Darren has taught both band and choir and is currently the Director of Bands at Urbana High School and the Music Coordinator for the Urbana School District. He is a vocalist and plays bassoon, euphonium, and piano. While at the University of Illinois, he was a member of the Marching Illini. He played in the baritone section for 2 years and was a drum major for 4 years. This summer marks the 28th year that Darren has worked as a staff member at Smith Walbridge and his 24th year as the head clinician of the Mace and Signal Baton Clinic. Darren is a product of Smith Walbridge Clinics having attended the drum major and mace camps in Indiana. Darren is also an active professional member of ILMEA, NAfME, the National Band Association, and Phi Beta Mu. Even though Darren has gotten older, he still looks forward to this “weekend of spinning” every summer!