Joe, Winds
Joe DeRaad started his musical career at 10, playing Alto Saxophone. By 15 it was evident he had a flair for wind instruments and the band director sent him home with a bassoon for summer vacation. A year later, he started his professional performing career playing bassoon with the Rochester Symphony Orchestra in Rochester, MN. He received a scholarship to the University of Minnesota for bassoon, where he was Principal Bassoon in the University Symphony Orchestra and the Concert Band Ensemble. He also played saxophone, clarinet, and bassoon professionally in the Minneapolis/St. Paul area, including Broadway shows like “Hello Dolly” and many others, and was a member of the sax section of a Big Band. Joe was also Principal Bassoon with the Minneapolis Civic Symphony and the St. Paul Civic Orchestra. During this time, he taught private students and was the Conductor of a 15 piece beginning band at a private school. He graduated from the U of M with a Bachelor of Science degree in Music Education and earned the license to teach all aspects of music in Elementary, Junior High and Senior High Schools. After college, Joe spent time in the Army Band playing Clarinet, Saxophone and Bassoon. During that time, he contributed arrangements for the band and also conducted the concert band as a sub. He taught band and choir in a K – 12 school in Northern Minnesota. Displeased with the cold winters, he moved to Southern California and became involved in the music business in the Los Angeles area, where he became the Manager of a large Band Instrument retail store and then an Import/Export company which handled musical instruments and accessories. After retiring, Joe moved to Northern California and did some private teaching in the small town where he lived. In 2006, he moved to the Tucson area and started actively playing his instruments. He joined the Tucson Concert Band and played Euphonium with them for a year (he says he had always wanted to play a brass instrument with a band). At the same time he played Bassoon with the Green Valley Concert Band. He was then invited to play with the Old Pueblo Brass Band and was the Solo Euphonium player with them for 7 years. At the same time he held the Principal Bassoon Chair with the Southern Arizona Symphony Orchestra and played 7 seasons with them including a 10 day trip to China. He formed a Tuba/Euphonium Quartet and Trio, and started arranging and composing for various ensembles and bands; many of these arrangements have now been published at Cimarron Music Press. Joe loves teaching wind students of all ages from 9 to adult+ and specializes in teaching all of the fundamentals up to and including advanced musicianship while having fun at the lessons.
