Will Sugg

Bitter Jester Music Festival Judge

Will Sugg is currently serves as the co-director of band at Downers Grove South High School in Downers Grove, Illinois. Prior to his appointment in 2020, Will completed his Doctor of Musical Arts degree in Wind Conducting at the University of Illinois while serving as a graduate assistant with the University of Illinois Band and Orchestra programs.

During his time at Illinois, he was fortunate enough to have had a diverse collection of experiences, including conducting five concert bands, teaching courses in undergraduate conducting, and conducting the University of Illinois Marching Illini, as well as the Fighting Illini Volleyball Band, Basketball Bands, and the Illinois Philharmonia Orchestra.

While pursuing his degrees from the University of Illinois, he has maintained an active schedule as a conductor and educator, having served as Conductor and Audio Producer for Transit Brass (a local professional brass ensemble), Conductor of the Trinity Lutheran Church choir, and instructional staff for the Illinois Summer Youth Music program.

Prior to attending Illinois, he served for three years as the Director of Bands and Chair of the Performing Arts Department at Martin Luther King, Jr. Academic Magnet School in Nashville, TN, instructing and administrating the activities of almost 400 students across five concert bands and four orchestras. The school's ensembles have earned a strong reputation, as evidenced by the MLK Wind Ensemble being selected to perform at the Tennessee Music Education Association State Conference in April of 2015.

In addition to his professional teaching positions, Will has worked with several marching band programs throughout the state of Tennessee. He is a 2009 Summa Cum Laude graduate of the University of Tennessee-Knoxville Honors Program with a Bachelor of Music degree in Music Education.

While at UT, he also functioned as instructional staff for the UT Pride of the Southland Marching Band. He also served as a member of several professional organizations and was elected as the Regional President for the East Tennessee chapters of the TN Collegiate Music Educators National Conference. These and other academic pursuits led the faculty at UT to select him as their Outstanding Graduate in Music Education.