JUDGES

Below are the names and qualifications of our 2024 Festival judges.

Alan Sharps – Music/Marching Judge

Alan Sharps received both Bachelors and Masters degrees in Music Education from the University of Miami in Coral Gables, FL. While at U.M. he served as the Graduate Assistant Director of the U.M. “Band of the Hour”. He began his teaching career in 1980. After teaching in Florida for five years he taught in Virginia Beach, VA for an additional eleven years. His bands were awarded the Virginia Honor Band plaque five times.

Mr. Sharps is proud of all of his current and former students. One stands out in particular due to his career in the music business. Artist-producer Pharrell Williams was a percussionist in Mr. Sharps band at Princess Anne H.S. in Virginia Beach. Pharrell was named Music Producer of the Decade from 2000-2010. Pharrell served as a judge on the NBC show “The Voice”. His most famous hits Happy and Get Lucky propelled him from music producer to superstar fame.

In 1997, Mr. Sharps moved to San Antonio to take a position at Winston Churchill High School. He taught there for eleven years. In 2008 Mr. Sharps opened the new C.T. Johnson High School also in North East I.S.D. He taught there until his retirement in 2020. He currently works at C.T.J. as a clinician and director of the jazz bands.

The bands Mr. Sharps taught were honored to be Bands of America Regional Champions twelve times. They were also finalists at the B.O.A. Grand National Championships in Indianapolis eight times. They placed between third and sixth place seven times at the Texas State Marching Band Championships before being awarded first place in 2020. The bands were invited to participate in the Tournament of Roses Parade in 2005 and 2014. The C.T.J. Wind Ensemble also performed at the Midwest convention in 2019 and the band received the Sudler Shield award for marching band excellence in 2015.

Peter Warshaw – Music/ Marching Judge

Peter J. Warshaw is a member of the Texas Bandmasters Hall of Fame class of 2024. He retired as the Fine Arts Director for Leander ISD in 2022 after a 44-year career in public music education. He received the TBA Lifetime Administrator Award for 2016 and was named Music Administrator of the Year by the Texas Music Administrators Conference in 2014.

Previously, Mr. Warshaw served as the Coordinator of Fine Arts in Bryan ISD, as well as Director of Bands at J.J. Pearce High School in Richardson, TX from 1993-2002. During his tenure at Pearce, the band performed twice by invitation in Carnegie Hall, was awarded the Sudler Flag of Honor in 2000, and was selected as the TMEA Class 4A Honor Band in 2001.

He is a life member of the International Percy Grainger Society and received the Grainger Medallion in 1998, in recognition of his distinctive contribution to the music of Percy Grainger.

Under his leadership, Leander ISD groups performed at TMEA, TBA, WIBC, and ACDA conventions, and the Midwest Clinic. He is a frequent presenter at TMEA, TBA, CEDFA, the Midwest Clinic, and the Sam Houston State University Center for Music Education, and has served as a guest lecturer at Sam Houston State University and The University of Texas at Austin. He is in great demand as an adjudicator, clinician, and speaker throughout the state and is a published writer, music transcriber, and poet. In retirement, he serves as a clinician and adjudicator and is the Executive Secretary for the Texas Fine Arts Administrators Association.

Rick Rodriguez – Percussion Judge

Mr. Rick Rodriguez is currently the percussion director and Associate Band Director at Cedar Ridge High School, Round Rock TX. Rick has also been the director of the Cedar Ridge Symphonic Band as well as the director of the Cedar Ridge Jazz Ensemble and is currently assisting all of the Cedar Ridge Concert Bands as well as the Cedar Ridge Wind Ensemble.

Rick Rodriguez is from McAllen, TX and grew up in the Rio Grande Valley nine miles north of Mexico. He became interested in percussion in 1971 at the age of six when his father Henry Rodriguez started him on percussion. Many years later, Rick is in the Blue Devils snare line under Tom Float and Scott Johnson and eventually earns a degree in Music Education from the University of North Texas under Dr. Schietroma. Some of his UNT college colleagues include Mike McIntosh, Paul Rennick, Ben Maughmer, Jeff Prosperie, Jim Reilly, Kevin Murray, Dr Brian West, Jason Sutter and Jeff Ausdemore. Mr. Rodriguez now has well over 30 years of percussion and band ensemble/masterclass experience.

Since the early 90’s, Mr Rod and his percussion ensembles have several several appearances at the Midwest Band and Orchestra Clinic held annually in Chicago IL. During his work at Spring High School, the Spring Percussion Ensemble was scouted by John Paynter in 1994 and was invited to perform with John Paynter and the North Shore Concert Band of Chicago at Northwestern University. Most recently, the Cedar Ridge Percussion Ensemble has been awarded 1st place in the Blackswamp Percussion Ensemble Showcase.

Rick Rodriguez is an active percussion arranger and versatile band and percussion clinician. In his younger days, Rick was the “center snare” of the infamous University of North TX PASIC Drum Line and was also a snare drummer for the Sky Ryders Drum and Bugle Corps as well as the Concord Blue Devils. He has been on the working staff of Phantom Regiment, Blue Knights, under Ralph Hardimon, Blue Devils well as on the percussion staff of The Cavaliers Drum and Bugle Corps under Mike McIntosh. Rick Rodriguez has also been on the adjudicating staff of Drum Corps International, Bands of America and the Wgi percussion judging panel. Mr. Rodriguez is currently endorsed by the Zildjian Cym Co., Innovative Percussion, Marimba One and Evans Drum Heads.

Keith McKeachie – Colorguard Judge

Keith McKeachie is currently a freelance adjudicator for marching bands, color guards and winter guards based in Austin, TX. He has enjoyed many years of designing and teaching successful and award-winning programs in various capacities. When not working on projects with bands and color guards, Keith works full-time as a Property Manager and Real Estate Agent for a boutique real estate office in Austin, employed as part of their growing Property Management business.

Keith designed for the 2009 UIL Texas State Marching Band champion, Dripping Springs HS as well as many other award-winning ensembles in Texas. As a Winter Guard International designer, he has served most recently as Designer/Program Coordinator for ATX Winterguard, the 2014, 2015 and 2016 WGI Independent A Class Finalist and 2013 WGI Independent A Class Semi-finalist. Previously he was involved with the 2009 WGI Independent A Class Winter Guard finalist and 2010 and 2011 WGI Independent Open Semi-finalist, Identity, where he served as designer and program coordinator. He was the Guard Designer/Instructor for the 2005 and 2007 UIL State Finalist Connally and Hendrickson Marching Bands in the Pflugerville ISD in Austin, TX. Both schools were also BOA Regional Finalists as 4A schools during this period, and Connally was a BOA Grand National Semi-finalist in 2007. In addition to these programs, he has been honored to work with many other award-winning programs in his twenty plus years in the activity.

In addition to serving as the Judges Coordinator for the Texas Color Guard Circuit since 2018, Keith is an active adjudicator for the Texas Color Guard Circuit, the North Texas Color Guard Association, the Mid Continent Color Guard Association, Atlantic Indoor Association, Carolina Winter Ensemble Association, Florida Federation of Colorguard Circuit, South Florida Winterguard Association, West Coast Winterguard Association and many other circuits around the country. He also judges Color Guard, Visual, and General Effect across the country at various state and regional marching band events including US Bands Regionals and the KMEA (Kentucky Music Educators Association) Arizona Marching Band Association State Championships events.