Robert Johnston - Director of Bands

Robert Johnston is the Director of Bands at Reagan High School.  Mr. Johnston began teaching in 2005 at Table Rock Middle School, and in 2011, was named as the Director of Bands at Freedom High School, his alma mater.  Mr. Johnston began teaching at Reagan High School in the fall of 2017.

As a graduate of Western Carolina University, Mr. Johnston was very active in the music department while earning his Bachelor of Science degree in Instrumental Music Education. During his time there he was a drum major of the WCU "Pride of the Mountains" Marching Band for two years and served as staff coordinator for one.  In addition, he performed with the Wind Ensemble, Symphony Band, Jazz Ensemble, and many others. Also during that time and in the summer of 2002, Mr. Johnston performed across the country with the Madison Scouts Drum and Bugle Corps from Madison, Wisconsin. 
 
As a director, Mr. Johnston earned has earned thirty-four Superior ratings at NCBA Music Performance Adjudication events in Concert Band and Jazz. Under his direction in 2009, the Table Rock Middle School Jazz Ensemble was selected and performed for the North Carolina Music Educators Conference, as will the Reagan Jazz Ensemble 1 in 2018. During his time at Freedom and Reagan, his marching bands have received many Grand Champion awards and the Wind Ensembles have earned Superior ratings in Grade VI and Masterworks literature. His bands have also participated in the 2016 National Pearl Harbor Parade in Hawaii to help commemorate the 75th Anniversary of the attacks on Pearl Harbor, the 2018 National Independence Day Parade in Washington, DC, and at Carnegie Hall in 2022.
 
In addition to teaching band, Mr. Johnston is an active drill designer for marching bands throughout western North Carolina and is a clinician and adjudicator for concert, jazz, and marching bands.  His professional affiliations include the North Carolina Bandmasters Association, Phi Mu Alpha Sinfonia, and the Alpha Lambda Delta National Honors Society.

While away from the band activity Mr. Johnston enjoys riding motorcycles on the Blue Ridge Parkway and supporting his favorite NFL team, the Carolina Panthers.

Kenny Tysor - Director of Orchestras and Associate Director of Bands

Kenneth Tysor is the Director of Orchestral Activities and Associate Director of Bands for Reagan High School. Groups under his direction received superior ratings and have consistently seen substantial growth in both quality and quantity. During his tenure teaching in North Carolina, Mr. Tysor has chartered partnerships with local universities, established vibrant small-ensemble programs, utilized peer-tutoring strategies, coordinated high school mentorship programs, and seen dramatic increases in the number and quality of students selected for national, state, regional, district, and county level honor bands, jazz bands, and orchestras. Mr. Tysor had the distinct honor of conducting the Reagan High School Orchestra at Carnegie Hall in the spring of 2022.

Mr. Tysor received a Bachelor of Music degree in Music Education from UNC Greensboro and a Master of Music degree in Music Education from Appalachian State University. While at ASU, he was the primary conductor of the Concert Band and the Graduate Conducting Assistant for the Wind Ensemble, Marching Band, Basketball Band and conducting classes.

Primarily a clarinetist, Mr. Tysor performed as principal clarinetist of the Philharmonia of Greensboro and was also a member of the Wilmington Symphony Orchestra. As a former member of the NC All-State Band and All-State Orchestra, he sees the value in preparing for honors band, honors orchestra, and youth symphony auditions. He has repeatedly coached students who were selected for principal positions in the NC All-State Band and All-State Orchestra.  

Mr. Tysor currently serves as the chairperson of the Western Region Orchestra Section of the North Carolina Music Educators Association. He was named Orchestra Director of the Year by the Winston-Salem/Forsyth County Schools in 2020. He is a member of the Phi Mu Alpha Sinfonia music fraternity.

During the summers, Mr. Tysor writes marching drills for high school marching bands, is in demand as a clinician, and has served as a conductor for the UNCG Summer Music Camp. An avid sailor, he also holds a limited captains license from the US Coast Guard, and can be found cruising and sailing his sailboat "Alibi."

Danny Green

Danny Green, Co-Founder and Artistic Director of the Wachovia Winds Youth Wind Ensemble, was born in Winston-Salem and graduated from North Forsyth High School. He performed for three years as a Bandsman in the U. S. Army, and received his Bachelors Degree in Music Education from ECU and his Masters Degree in Clarinet Performance from the UNCSA. Mr. Green was formerly the Band Director at Mt. Tabor High School. Under his direction the Mt. Tabor Band program grew from 40 to 180 members, received numerous superior ratings in grade levels IV through VI, placed over 200 students in the Northwest NC All-District Honors Band, and for fourteen consecutive years placed more students in the WS/FCS Honors Band, and the NWNC District Honors Band than any school in the WSFCS system. During the last year of his tenure the Mt. Tabor Wind Symphony commissioned a new work for Band, and performed the world premiere, under the direction of Mr. Green, in historic Carnegie Hall.

After leaving Mt Tabor, he served as the Band Director at Clemmons Middle School where in just three years the program grew from 130 to nearly 400 members. Mr. Green has twice been elected “Band Director of the Year” by the Forsyth County Band Directors Association. At the 1999 commencement ceremonies for the North Carolina School of the Arts, Mr. Green received an award and was recognized for his outstanding contribution to music education in North Carolina. He has also served as an assistant conductor for the UNCSA Musica Piccola summer music camp. In 2001, Mr. Green was awarded the “Silver Baton Award” from the Kappa Kappa Psi fraternity at Appalachian State University. He is a former conductor of the Winston-Salem Youth Symphony, and for several years performed with the Piedmont Wind Symphony, where he served as a clarinetist and guest conductor. In February 2005, Mr. Green was chosen to conduct the 100 member Western Region Repertory Orchestra at Appalachian State University.

Mr. Green retired in 2013 from fulltime work, but remains very active and continues to work with bands throughout Piedmont NC. In 2015, Mr. Green was named as one of 12 “Chief Judges” for the NC Bandmasters Association. Also in 2015 Mr, Green was elected to the “Hall of Fame” at Mt. Tabor High School. Mr. Green resides in Clemmons, NC with his wife Rebecca. They attend Clemmons Moravian Church where he serves as President of the Men’s Fellowship.