MEET THE DIRECTORS

Joey Lucita

Director of Bands

In December of 2018 Mr. Lucita was selected as the Director of Bands at Moe and Gene Johnson High School; a 4A high school, in Buda Texas and part of the Hays Consolidated Independent School District. Mr. Lucita is responsible for conducting the Wind Ensemble, Jaguar Marching Band and all Administrative duties within the Johnson Music department and its feeder programs.

Mr. Lucita is currently in his 25th year of teaching in the Hays Consolidated Independent School District. He was previously the Director of Bands at Lehman High School for 14 years and was part of the faculty when the school opened its doors in 2004. Mr. Lucita was also the Associate Director at Jack C. Hays High School for 11 years, where his duties included conducting the Hays High School Symphonic Band I, Hays High School Jazz Ensemble, assisting with the Pride of Rebel Country Marching Band, and assisting with the Wind Ensemble, Symphonic Band II, and Symphonic Band III. Before coming to the Hays CISD in 1994 Mr. Lucita was the assistant director at Calhoun High School in Port Lavaca, Texas from 1992-1994. Prior to that, he was the assistant director, for one year, at West Columbia High School outside of Lake Jackson, Texas.

Mr. Lucita received his Master’s Degree in Education Administration from Texas State University. He received his Bachelor Degree in Music Education from the Southwest Texas State University School of Music where he served as Drum Major of the Bobcat Marching Band. He began his secondary education as an undergraduate by attending Southeastern Louisiana University located in Hammond, Louisiana.

Under his direction Mr. Lucita’s bands have accomplished many distinguishing honors. Multiple performances in the Texas UIL State Marching Band Championship Prelims, multiple performances in the Texas UIL State Marching Band Championship Finals, have been awarded numerous UIL Sweepstakes Awards and have been selected Outstanding in Class, Champions or received Superior Ratings at invitational Concert and Marching Festivals including USBands and Bands Of America. His bands have had the honor of performing in venues in England, Ireland, Hawaii, New York, Florida, Colorado, New Mexico and Louisiana. In addition Mr. Lucita has been the host for the Central Texas Regional Marching Festival, UIL Area D Marching Festival, TMEA Region 14 & 18 All-Region Band Clinic/Concerts, TMEA Region 18 State Honor Band Regional Taping, UIL Texas State Solo and Ensemble Contest (Texas State University site), UIL Region 18 Solo and Ensemble Contest, UIL Region 14 & 18 Concert and Sight-Reading, TMF Invitational Concert Festival, Perform America Texas Invitational Concert Festival. In addition to the various music festivals, Mr. Lucita’s band programs have also hosted WGI and TCGC local, Regional and Super Regional events.

Mr. Lucita is an active adjudicator throughout the state of Texas. He has had the honor of judging HS Marching Band at the Texas UIL Region and Area levels as well as numerous invitation festivals throughout Texas. He also judges UIL Concert and Sight-reading for both High School and Middle School and judges for numerous invitational festivals in concert venues. He has served as the TMEA Region 18 Band Division Chair; a position he held for 9 years. He currently holds the position of TMEA Region 18 President and is a member of the TMEA State Board of Directors.

He is a member of Phi Beta Mu, TMAA, TMEA, TBA, Phi Mu Alpha Sinfonia, and Kappa Kappa Psi. Mr. Lucita has performed as a Trumpet player in the ITG (International Trumpet Guild), as a member of both the Brazosport Symphony Orchestra and Brazosport Jazz Orchestra. In addition he has performed as a member of the Austin Symphonic Band under the direction of Mr. Dick Floyd. The Austin Symphonic Band has performed at various venues including TBA, TMEA, and the Midwest International Band Conference in Chicago. His hobbies include playing golf (better stated as losing golf balls), SCUBA diving and attempting to restore his classic 1969 Mustang. He has been married to his beautiful wife Karen for 26 years and has a daughter, Mia, who was born July 3rd, 2002.

Christopher Lunsford

Assistant Director

Christopher Lunsford is a percussionist, educator, arranger, and adjudicator from Kentucky, with over 20 years of teaching experience at the middle school, high school, and collegiate levels.

Mr. Lunsford has been a percussion instructor/arranger for various notable programs in Kentucky, Indiana, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and Texas including Kentucky state champions Beechwood High School, Boyle County High School, Williamstown High School, BOA and WGI finalist Centerville High School, and the two-time WGI Independent open medalist Penn State indoor drumline.

His percussion programs in Texas have won two Indoor Percussion State Championships and have been in the UIL Texas State Marching Championships. Most recently he has been an Assistant Band Director/Percussion Director at Lehman High School for 5 years, 2014-2019. During that time the percussion program nearly doubled in size and has experienced incredible successes at local and regional competitions. Under his direction Lehman HS expanded it's ensemble opportunities which allowed his students to enjoy a curriculum of a variety of percussion genres including African drum and dance, steel pan and competitive indoor marching percussion, as well as the traditional western percussion ensembles.

From 2007 to 2013, Lunsford was the Assistant Band Director and Director of Percussion Studies at the John B. Alexander High School cluster in Laredo, TX. His time at Alexander High School was spent directing the percussion ensemble, teaching private lessons, directing the basketball pep band, and writing/arranging for and directing the marching percussion section. His ensembles received several outstanding percussion awards as well as being named the 2009 Texas Educational Color Guard Association Scholastic A champion and the 2010 Scholastic Open champion. During his time in Laredo he also taught private lessons and percussion methods at Texas A&M International University as an adjunct faculty member and performed with the Laredo Philharmonic Orchestra.

Lunsford studied Music Performance at Eastern Kentucky University. Under the tutelage of Dr. Jason Koontz, he was exposed to a highly diverse musical curriculum comprised of Brazilian percussion, African drum and dance, Indian tabla, and Caribbean steelpan. He attended the University of Delaware as a Graduate Assistant for the University of Delaware Fightin’ Blue Hen Marching Band under the direct supervision of Jim Ancona. His duties included assisting with the marching percussion section, marching percussion techniques class, percussion methods and the basketball pep band. Lunsford was also a member of the Cadets Drum and Bugle Corps in 1999 and 2000. His teachers include Jim Ancona, Orlando Cotto, Harvey Price, Dr. Jason Koontz, Rob James, Neil Larrivee, Tom Aungst, and Jaime Eckert.

Mr. Lunsford holds a Master’s degree in Music Performance from the University of Delaware, a Bachelor’s degree in Music Performance from Eastern Kentucky University, a Texas teaching certificate, is a member of the Texas Music Educators Association, Texas Bandmaster’s Association, Percussive Arts Society and has been a member of the Vic Firth Education Team since 2002.

David Duffy

Assistant Director

Mr. Duffy is a native of Collinsville, Virginia. In 1989 he received his BMEd from James Madison University in Harrisonburg, Virginia. He is in his 30th year of teaching and his 8h year as a Texas music educator.

His previous teaching opportunities include Powhatan HS (VA) 1990-1992, Nelson County HS (VA) 1992-1994, Bassett High School (VA) 1994-2003 and West Johnston HS (NC) 2003-2011, Hendrickson HS (TX) 2011-2018, and Dripping Springs HS (TX) 2018-19.

While at these high schools, Mr. Duffy has performed the duties of head director, assistant director, marching band show designer, color guard director, drill designer, choreographer and consultant. While in competition these groups have been consistent VBODA/NCMEA/UIL Sweepstakes winners in concert band, BOA Regional Finalists over 30 times, BOA Grand National Finalist/Semi-Finalist and A and AA class silver medalist numerous of times, WGI National finalists 16 times, State/Circuit Champions over 40 times, and WGI National Champion Bronze (2019), Silver (2004) and Gold Medalists (2010).

Mr. Duffy is an active adjudicator in marching band and Winter Guard. He spends a great deal of time designing and consulting with groups all around the country. His designs have been seen in BOA, WGI and DCI finals. He helped in designing the World Cup Soccer Opening Ceremonies in Orlando, Fl in 1994, and groups have Performed twice in the Macys Thanksgiving Day parade (2008 and 2016) and was the featured high school band in the Walt Disney World. Christmas Day Parade(2009).