Jon Gomez - Director of Bands
Jon A. Gomez is Director of Bands at Dobson High School. His responsibilities include team teaching within the instrumental idiom. Prior to his Dobson appointment in 2000, he served as Director of Bands at Coronado High School and as the District Team Leader for Bands in the Scottsdale Unified School District.
Mr. Gomez received a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree (1987) and Master degree in Education Administration (1993) from Arizona State University. In past years, he has performed with notable organizations including: the McDonalds All-American Band, the 1984 All-American Olympic Band, and served as principal clarinetist with the Tempe Wind Ensemble. Gomez has also been involved with: Music for All, the Arizona Band and Orchestra Directors Association (ABODA) Board, and the Sudler Shield John Philip Sousa Foundation.
In 2004, Mr. Gomez was awarded the O.M. Hartsell Excellence in Teaching Music Award. He has been honored twelve times as a, Who’s Who Among Teachers Recipient. During his tenure at Dobson, the band program has performed at the Bands of America National Concert Band Festival (2007 and 2004), at Carnegie Hall (2005), Arizona Music Educators Conference (2005, 2002), and the Fiesta Bowl Parade (2003).
As Co-Founder of Synergy Leadership Endeavors, Gomez produced a video & CD-ROM entitled, “Leadership Success” published by GIA Publications. He is actively called upon to serve as an adjudicator/clinician/guest conductor/guest speaker for various music festivals and leadership workshops throughout the United States.
Rob Lubbers - Associate Director of Bands
Rob Lubbers has been the Associate Director of Bands at Dobson High School since 2002. His teaching responsibilities include Marching Bands, three Concert Bands, Full Symphony Orchestra, and AP Music Theory, Prior to his position at Dobson, Rob was Director of Bands in Gretna, Nebraska. He has been called upon as a guest clinician and adjudicator in Nebraska and Arizona. Most recently, he filled in as an interim director at Desert Vista High School in Tempe, AZ. Rob received his Bachelors of Music Education at the University of Nebraska – Lincoln and is working on his Masters of Music Education at Arizona State University.
His affiliations include Nebraska Music Educators Association, Nebraska State Bandmasters Association, Pi Kappa Lambda Music Honorary, Mu Phi Epsilon Music Fraternity, Music Educators National Conference, Arizona Music Educators Association, and Arizona Band and Orchestra Directors Association. He has performed in every corner of the United States as well as Europe, and has played trumpet with the Nebraska Wind Symphony, cornet with the Salt River Brass, and trumpet in the Agape Brass Quintet.
Joseph Goglia - Percussion Assistant
Joseph Goglia has served on the Dobson Band Staff since 2003 and has recently assumed the position of Percussion Coordinator for the Dobson Band Program. His responsibilities include team teaching with the Marching Band, supervision and instruction of the Concert Percussion Ensemble, and consultation with the Concert Band Ensembles. Mr. Goglia has received a Bachelor of Percussion Performance degree from Arizona State University (2006).
In addition to his teaching responsibilities at Dobson, Goglia has served as the Percussion Instructor at South Valley Junior High in Gilbert, Arizona and has maintained a private percussion studio for individualized instruction since 2003. He has served as a percussion clinician throughout Arizona and has pursued composition and arranging for various mediums.
Goglia also maintains an active performance schedule. Opportunities of note are: performances at the Phoenix Suns games, performances with Urban Trash Bash, the Bill Ravel Jazz Trio, the Boston Brass Big Band, and two performances at the Percussive Arts Society International Convention. His recording experiences include: Black Dog, featuring nationally renowned clarinetist, Dr. Robert Spring; Damn, composed by John Mackey; the KJOS Publishing Company; and his own band, the Neoprimitive.
When not pursuing the musical profession, Joe enjoys snowboarding in the Canadian Rockies, jet skiing in the Barnegat Bay, and quality time with family and friends.
Bart Evans - Choral Director
Bartlett R. Evans has taught music in Arizona since 1978. In that time he has taught instrumental and choral music in Snowflake and in Mesa. Since 1981, he has been the choral director at Dobson High School. From 1981 through 1991 he was also the chairman of the Performing Arts Department at Dobson High School.
Bart holds the Bachelor of Music Education Degree from Northern Arizona University, and the Master of Music Degree from the University of Oregon. He completed a sabbatical leave from Dobson High School at the University of Oklahoma, where he began work on the Doctor of Musical Arts Degree. Mr. Evans has held leadership positions in the Arizona Music Educators Association (AMEA) and in the American Choral Directors Association (ACDA) at both the state and divisional levels. He recently completed his seventh year as the Vocal Chair for the AMEA Southwest Regional Honor Choir. His choirs have appeared at state and divisional conventions of ACDA and at state conventions of AMEA.
Bart has served as the choir director for the Arizona Ambassadors of Music completing eight European tours with that organization. Mr. Evans has been the guest clinician for three of Arizona’s Regional Honor Choirs and was the guest conductor for the 1998 Alaska All State Choir. In October of 2001 he was named the 2001 recipient of the “Distinguished Professional and Community Service Award” by the Alumni Association and the School of Performing Arts at Northern Arizona University.
Celebrating his sixth year as a Grandfather, Bart now sings more lullabies than any other kind of vocal literature. Bart and his wife Cris reside in Gilbert, Arizona.
Rob Nichols - Orchestra Director
Robert R. Nichols is a graduate of Northern Arizona University with a Bachelor of Music Education degree. He also holds the degree Master of Music in Cello Performance from Arizona State University (ASU). Additionally, he has completed all but his dissertation in pursuit of a DMA degree in cello performance from ASU.
Mr. Nichols has been teaching orchestra to all ages in the Mesa Schools since 1982. He is currently the Orchestra Director at Dobson High School. While on sabbatical from Mesa Schools, he taught undergraduate music education majors at ASU, and performed in numerous ensembles. He has served on the Arizona Band and Orchestra Directors Association (ABODA) and Arizona Music Educators Association (AMEA) Boards.In 1994 he was a recipient of the AMEA George C. Wilson Leadership/ Service Award.
He has guest conducted both region and district orchestras, and teaches private cello. He has performed in numerous orchestras including the Mesa, Flagstaff, Flagstaff Festival of the Arts, Sun City, and Tempe Symphonies. He has been the featured soloist with the Tempe Symphony. He has taught in the NAU Summer Music Camp faculty and served as Assistant Director in the administrative team.
Mr. Nichols has been married to his wife Jennifer for 23 years, and has four children, ages 19,17,6,and 4.
Friends and Former Faculty of the Dobson Music Program
Richard Mayne
Richard Mayne currently serves as Professor of Music/Associate Director of Bands and Director of the “Pride of the Rockies” Marching Band at the University of Northern Colorado (UNC). In addition to his conducting responsibilities Dr. Mayne teaches a variety of music education courses including conducting and secondary instrumental methods courses. Dr Mayne also spends a significant amount of time out in the public schools supervising student teachers. Most recently Dr. Mayne was inducted into the American Bandmasters Association.
Dr. Mayne is the conductor of the UNC Symphonic Band. This ensemble serves as the official ensemble for the annual UNC Conducting Symposium which brings 75 music educators to campus each January. The Symphonic Band also is featured annually on the CD recording by Grand Mesa Music company. Numerous clinics and concerts have been given by the Symphonic Band at the annual Colorado Music Educators Association Convention in Colorado Springs. An annual concert tour is also part of the Symphonic Band schedule.
The “Pride of the Rockies” Marching Band has performed for several Denver Broncos football games. The Pride also gives an exhibition performance each year at one of the Colorado Bandmasters Association regional marching contests and is recognized in the Rocky Mountain region as an outstanding musical organization.
Dr. Mayne has served as an adjudicator, clinician, and conductor throughout the United States and Canada. He is also very busy in the state of Colorado as a clinician, mentor, and colleague to the public school directors. Before coming to UNC, Dr. Mayne completed his Ph.D. in Music Education at The Ohio State University. He studied conducting with Craig Kirchhoff and Rick Blatti and was the conductor of the University Band for two years.
As a public school teacher Dr. Mayne taught in Arizona at the high school level for eleven years: nine of those being at Dobson High School. While teaching public school he served as President of the Arizona Band and Orchestra Directors Association, and played trombone in the Tempe Symphony for ten years. He received his bachelors and masters degrees in Music Ed from Arizona State University, where he studied conducting with Richard Strange and Robert Fleming.
Brian Murphy
Brian Murphy served as the band director and assistant orchestra director at Dobson High School in Mesa from 1991 through 2000. During his tenure at Dobson, the bands received numerous awards including invitations to perform at the AMEA State Conference (1996, 2000) and at the AMEA State Conference (1998). Mr. Murphy was also part of the Dobson Symphony Orchestra’s performance at the Mid-West International Band and Orchestra Clinic (1996).
Mr. Murphy began studying music in the public schools of Orlando, Florida and continued his education at Arizona State University where he earned a Bachelor of Music degree and a Master of Music degree. Mr. Murphy is active as a band/orchestra adjudicator and clinician throughout the state of Arizona.
Mr. Murphy currently serves as the Director of Bands at Horizon Community Learning Center, a K-12 charter school in Phoenix. His teaching duties include directing bands at the elementary, middle school and high school levels. The band program at Horizon has grown to include 220 students in grades 5-12. The bands at Horizon have consistently earned superior ratings at festivals in Arizona. In addition to his duties at Horizon, Mr. Murphy also conducts the orchestra at Mesa Community College.