Band Directors

Ross Grant

Ross Grant just finished his fourth year as head band director at Azle High School. The band has grown by 150 students during this time. In 2003 The Marching Green Pride finished 14^th at the UIL State Marching Contest. In 2004 the MGP was a finalist at the UTA, DeSoto and Mesquite Marching Contests, finishing in 2^nd place at Mesquite.  In 2005 the bands won all categories at the Breckenridge Music Festival.  During the spring of 2005 and 2007, the Azle Honor Band advanced to the Area Level of the TMEA Honor Band Competition, where they placed 3^rd both times. In 2006 the Azle Honors Band won Outstanding High School Band at the 2006 Peak Performance Music Contest at UNT’s Murchison Center. Also in 2006, all three Azle Concert Bands earned UIL Sweepstakes awards. In the fall of 2006, the Marching Green Pride placed 4^th at the UTA Marching Festival, and 3^rd at DeSoto. In 2007 all three Azle Concert Bands won “Best in Class” at the Musicfest Orlando Competition, and earned superior ratings in UIL concert performance.

 Prior to Azle, Dr. Grant served for two years on the faculty of Texas Christian University, where he taught band method courses, supervised student teachers, assisted with the TCU Marching and Concert Bands, and directed the Basketball Band.  Prior to TCU he was Director of Bands at DeSoto High School.  The DeSoto Band has received superior ratings at the Buccaneer, South Coast, World Wide Events, American Classic and UIL State Wind Ensemble Contest, winning Best in Class at festivals in Saint Louis, Breckenridge, Winter Park, Orlando and in the Meyerson Symphony Center.  The DeSoto Marching Band has been named Grand Champion four times at the UTA Marching Festival, twice at the Sam Houston University Marching Contest, and eight times at the State Fair of Texas Parade of Champions.  The Marching Band has been a finalist at the UIL State Marching Contests eight times, winning the Governors Cup for “best overall artistic performance” in 1985. The marching band has also performed in the Dallas Adolphus, Cotton Bowl, Orange Bowl and Tournament of Roses Parades (1992 and 2002).  In 1997 he launched the “DeSoto in the Meyerson Concert Series,” featuring junior and senior high bands, guest artists, commissioned works, community church choirs, and school choirs.  Dr. Grant has served as a clinician and adjudicator in Texas, Oklahoma, Arkansas, Illinois and Arizona.  His wife, Liz, is head band director at Azle Junior High.  They have two children, Gary and Gina.

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Mr. Darrin Duff      

Darrin Duff is currently in his fifth year as the Assistant Band Director and Percussion Director at Azle High School.  During his tenure the Azle Band has grown from 130 members to now over 270 strong.  The percussion program has also flourished earning high marks at numerous marching band invitationals and his percussion ensembles have received first division medals at the state solo and ensemble contest.  His concert bands have earned consistent sweepstakes awards.  Mr. Duff hails from Salina, Kansas where he began his musical career studying percussion with Dean Kranzler.  He then studied at Kansas State University with Dr. James Strain where he graduated in 1996 with a Bachelors degree in Music Education.  He soon moved to Texas as an assistant band director at Cross Timbers Middle School in Grapevine, Texas under the tutelage of honor band director, Jolette Wine. While at CTMS, he also instructed the percussion at Grapevine High School, making it to finals of the State Marching Band Championships twice during his tenure. Darrin has also instructed band and percussion in the Keller and Birdville school districts as well.  While working on his Masters degree at the University of North Texas he studied with Dr. Bob Schietroma, Mark Ford, and Ron Fink.  Darrin is also a former member of “America’s Corps” - The Troopers Drum and Bugle Corps. Mr. Duff has been a freelance percussion teacher and music arranger for many of the top marching bands in Texas, including: Grapevine High School, Fossil Ridge High School, Richland High School, Robert E. Lee High School (Midland, Texas), Killeen High School, Birdville High School and of course, Azle High School. He is a member of Percussive Arts Society, Texas Bandmasters Association, and Texas Music Educators Association.  The Azle Band program has twice been to the state marching championships during his tenure and the bands under his direction have won Sweepstakes Awards consistently during four of those five years.

Mr. Duff is married to LaRae Duff, a band director at Harwood Junior High School in Bedford, Texas. In his spare time Mr. Duff enjoys snow-skiing, reading, playing fetch with his golden retriever Morgan, and watching Kansas State Football.

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Mr. Bob Hayes        

Mr. Bob Hayes is originally from Mississippi where he graduated from Clarksdale High School and was a member of the award-winning Pioneer Band. Mr. Hayes received his Bachelor of Music Education from the University of Southern Mississippi in May, 1973 after he served in the U.S. Air Force from 1966 to 1970.

Bob Hayes is about to complete his 10th year as a band director at Azle I.S.D.. He has been in charge or worked at all levels of the Band program at Azle, except the head high school position. Prior to teaching at Azle, Bob was Head Band Director at Aledo I.S.D. for five years and first came to Texas in 1984 as Head Band Director at Yoakum, Texas. He has been married to his wife, Myra, for 38 years and has one son, Marc, and twin grand-daughters Madison and McKenzie.

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Mrs. Liz Grant

Mrs. Liz Grant is pleased to be starting this school year as director of bands at Azle Jr High.  Since the fall of 2000, she has been teaching in the Lewisville Independent School District as Director of Bands at Briarhill MS (in the Marcus HS cluster).  

 A graduate of MacArthur HS in Lawton, OK, she attended the University of North Texas where she earned the Bachelor of Music degree and the Master of Music Education degree. At an early age, she knew that she wanted to follow in her father's footsteps and become a public school band director. Many fine band directors, private lesson teachers, and school teachers have influenced, inspired, encouraged, and mentored her along the way.   She has had the privilege of working with hundreds of students and parents and believes that she has learned a lot from each and every one of them.   With twenty years of Texas public school Band and General Music teaching experience, and more than thirty years of experience as a clarinet teacher, Mrs. Grant is very happy and proud to be a music educator. She is a member of the Texas Bandmasters Association, the Texas Music Educators Association and Phi Beta Mu honorary band director fraternity.  She served as the 2005-06 MS Band Chairman for TMEA Region 24.  While at Briarhill MS, both the Varsity Band and the Non-Varsity Band received “sweepstakes awards” at UIL Concert and Sight Reading Contest for seven consecutive years.  This past fall, the Marcus HS band won 1^st place at the Texas 5A State Marching Band Contest.

Mrs. Grant is very proud of her husband, Dr. Ross Grant.  The Grants have a son who lives in Arkansas with his lovely wife; and a daughter who is in college.

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Mr. Kevin Chapman

Mr. Kevin Chapman.

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Mrs. Teresa Waresback

Mrs. Teresa Waresback.

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Mrs. Debra Oldroyd

Debra Oldroyd has been the Azle High School Colorguard Director since 2001, and started the AHS Winterguard program in 2003.  Under her direction both groups have won several awards.  In 2004 the Winterguard were the Bronze Medalists in the Regional A Division Championships, and recent highlights include several top 3 finishes, and the advancement of the Winterguard to the Scholastic AAA division this past season.  Her innovative ideas, and pageantry skills have contributed to the visual design of the AHS Marching Band shows for the past 6 years.

Mrs. O, as many call her, also has experience as the Director and Artistic Director to the AHS Emerald Dazzlers. She has worked in the dance industry as a teacher, choreographer, company director, and adjudicator for the past 26 years  Many of her works have received awards for choreography at local and national competitions.

As a native of Salt Lake City, Utah, she feels fortunate that her development as a dancer was influenced by several icons of the dance world.  Awarded a Governors Scholarship for the Arts, Mrs. Oldroyd studied Martha Graham technique with Toni Pickall at Snow College.  She performed with Company Orchesis, and was a member of the Central Utah Ballet Company.  At Brigham Young University she studied with Les Ditson, participating in an extended program that provided learning experiences from many important choreographers of the time including Murray Louis, Martha Graham, and Alwin Nickaolai.  She continued performing, and later worked as Choreographer in Residence at the Alhambra Theatre where she received an A.P.A. award for her contemporary choreography of Oklahoma.  In 1996, she traveled to Montreal, Quebec, Canada and directed the St. Adele Dance Company.

 Mrs. Oldroyd serves on the Executive Board of Dance/ Drill Team Directors of America and is a member of Texas Dance Educators Associations and National Dance Educators Association.  She is a Nationally Certified Master Adjudicator, and writes for an online dance publication.

 Her most treasured accomplishment is being married to her husband Paul, and the mother of 3 wonderful sons, Andrew, Danny and Patrick.

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Mr. Luke Riley

Luke Riley has been a part of the Azle community since 2002. He has a Masters degree in Christian Education from Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary. Luke received his Bachelors degree in Music Education from Delta State University. He is a full time Youth Minister at Ash Creek Baptist Church in Azle. He has been a Youth Minister since 1999 serving in Mississippi and Texas. Luke has been teaching percussion for over 10 years. He taught private lessons and numerous drum lines throughout the states of Mississippi and Texas. Luke graduated from Hatley High School in 1995 where he was a member of the Mississippi All-State Band for two years. He has had the opportunity to play the drums in many different countries including Brazil, Austria, the Czech Republic and Korea.

Luke is married to Jennifer Riley who has an elementary education degree. She taught for seven years in Mississippi and Texas. She is currently a stay at home Mom to their 1 year old son Thomas. Jennifer is also pursuing a graduate degree in Christian Education from Dallas Baptist University.

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