Brian Vincent

Brian Vincent is currently a Faculty member at the International Community School of Addis Ababa in Ethiopia.  As Director of Bands, Brian has taught at both the High School and Middle School levels at ICS. Currently, Brian is running the Middle School Band program and the General Music classes for the 2021-2022 school year.

 

Brian is a graduate of the Faculty of Music at the University of Toronto (Bac. Mus Perf. 2001) and completed his Bachelor of Education and Teaching Certification at Simon Fraser University in Vancouver. (PDP 2003)

 

Brian began his career as a professional Music Educator in 2003 as an elementary music specialist at Abbey Lane Public School in the Halton District School Board in Ontario, Canada.  After three years at Abbey Lane P.S., Brian was asked to Lead the Music Department and fulfill the role of Director of Bands at Thomas A. Blakelock High School in the Halton District School Board also in Ontario. Brian guided the Band program at Thomas A. Blakelock H.S. to multiple awards at the provincial and national levels for the following thirteen years. In 2019 Brian and his family left Canada for Ethiopia and joined ICS Addis Ababa.

 

Brian has been active as a Band and Jazz Band conductor throughout his career. He founded and directed the town of Oakville’s High Rendition Youth Jazz Band from 2006-2009. He served as interim-Conductor of the Oakville Symphony Youth Orchestra 2009-2010 and was conductor of the Halton District School Board’s district’s wide High School Honour Band in 2008-2010, 2012-2014, 2016-2018. Brian sat on the board of directors of the Ontario Band Association as the Director of the Ontario Provincial Honour Band 2007-2009. In 2017 Brian was invited to join the Lambda Lota chapter of Phi Beta Mu, International Bandmaster’s Fraternity.

 

During his 13 year tenure as Director of Bands at Thomas A. Blakelock High School, the music program Brian served continued to grow and develop. Each year Blakelock’s Band program participated in an annual performance tour.  Some highlights of these tours included: travelling to Boston, including a performance at the Berklee School of Music; Chicago, participating in the North Shore Concert Band Festival; Cuba, including a joint public performance with National Concert Band of Cuba; China, where they played on the Great Wall of China; Halifax, earning a Gold Medal at the Atlantic Music Festival; Ottawa, where over 140 student musicians from his school competed in four ensembles at Musicfest Canada; and another trip to Boston, earning a Platinum Award at the Great East Music Festival. On the strength of their achievements, Brian and Thomas A. Blakelock H.S.’s Wind Ensemble were invited to perform as part of the Baldwin Wallace Conservatory's youth Band festival in Carnegie Hall in New York City in 2019.

 

Brian himself has recently earned three notable honours. In 2017 & 2018, Brian received an Inspire Award from the Halton District School Board. Also, in the spring of 2017, Brian received the “Keith Mann” Canadian National Outstanding Band Director of the year at MusicFest Canada’s Nationals Concert Band festival.