Dave Faires is the Director of Bands and a Music Education Professor at Brigham Young University-Idaho, where he has been a faculty member since 2019. In his current role, he conducts the Symphony Band, the premiere concert band at BYU-Idaho. Previously, he directed Sound Alliance, the top jazz ensemble at BYU-Idaho.
Dave holds a Master's in Instrumental Conducting and a Bachelor's in Music Education from Brigham Young University in Provo, UT, and has also studied at Ricks College, The American Band College, and Boston University.
Prior to joining BYU-Idaho, Dave spent over 15 years as a secondary-level music educator in Utah, teaching at all levels from elementary to high school. His versatile experience includes directing concert bands, jazz bands, marching bands, orchestras, and percussion ensembles, as well as teaching adaptive music appreciation classes for students with special needs. Additionally, Dave was an adjunct professor at BYU in Provo, UT, where he directed jazz and concert bands and taught trumpet lessons and conducting courses. Throughout his career, Dave has received numerous accolades, including various Outstanding Educator Awards and a Citation of Excellence from the National Band Association. As a Music Education student, Dave was recognized as a Theodore Presser Scholar. In 2022, he was inducted into the BYU Jazz Program Hall of Fame.
In 2019, under Dave’s direction, the Willowcreek Middle School Jazz Band from Lehi, UT, was selected as a co-winner of Downbeat Magazine’s “Outstanding Junior High Jazz Band” and a “National Winner” by The Mark of Excellence National Jazz Honors Project. Dave was also the co-director of the Crescent Super Band, which was a national finalist selected for the Jazz at Lincoln Center Essentially Ellington High School Band Jazz Competition hosted by Wynton Marsalis in New York City in 2016.
Dave is an active conductor, honor band and music education clinican, and festival adjudicator across the country. His secondary-level ensembles have consistently achieved superior ratings at regional and state festivals. He enjoys commissioning and premiering new works for concert band. Dave actively participates in several professional conducting and education associations. He has served in several leadership roles, including Vice President of the Utah Music Educators Association. He is currently the President-Elect of the Idaho Bandmasters Association Board. Dave was also a co-founder and assistant conductor of the Timpanogos Symphony Orchestra in Highland, UT.
As a trumpeter, Dave performs in classical, jazz, and contemporary styles. He has toured nationally and recorded with the Mormon Tabernacle Choir and has been a member of the Utah Wind Symphony, the Orchestra at Temple Square, and the Utah Premiere Brass Band. His performances include notable events such as The Midwest Clinic, the 2002 Winter Olympics, and the Montreux and Umbria Jazz Festivals. Dave has performed in many renowned settings, including Avery Fisher Hall (NYC), Ravinia (Chicago), Wolftrap (Philadelphia), Chautauqua (New York), Interlochen (Michigan), Benaroya Hall (Seattle), The Orpheum (Victoria, B.C.), Abravanel Hall (Salt Lake City), and the Walt Disney Concert Hall (Los Angeles). In 2002, Dave recorded many of the national anthems heard at the medal ceremonies in the Salt Lake City Winter Olympics.
Dave's trumpet and band students have achieved significant honors, earning Outstanding Soloist awards from Downbeat Magazine and performing at prestigious events, including the Midwest Clinic, Essentially Ellington Jazz Band Competition, Montreux Jazz Festival, Drum Corps International Finals, Grand National Marching Band Championships, Winter Drumline International Championships, and Jazz Education Network Conference.
Originally from Concord, CA, Dave now lives in Rexburg, Idaho where he enjoys spending time with his wife Jenny and their four children in addition to rooting for the San Francisco Giants.
Dave holds a Master's in Instrumental Conducting and a Bachelor's in Music Education from Brigham Young University in Provo, UT, and has also studied at Ricks College, The American Band College, and Boston University.
Prior to joining BYU-Idaho, Dave spent over 15 years as a secondary-level music educator in Utah, teaching at all levels from elementary to high school. His versatile experience includes directing concert bands, jazz bands, marching bands, orchestras, and percussion ensembles, as well as teaching adaptive music appreciation classes for students with special needs. Additionally, Dave was an adjunct professor at BYU in Provo, UT, where he directed jazz and concert bands and taught trumpet lessons and conducting courses. Throughout his career, Dave has received numerous accolades, including various Outstanding Educator Awards and a Citation of Excellence from the National Band Association. As a Music Education student, Dave was recognized as a Theodore Presser Scholar. In 2022, he was inducted into the BYU Jazz Program Hall of Fame.
In 2019, under Dave’s direction, the Willowcreek Middle School Jazz Band from Lehi, UT, was selected as a co-winner of Downbeat Magazine’s “Outstanding Junior High Jazz Band” and a “National Winner” by The Mark of Excellence National Jazz Honors Project. Dave was also the co-director of the Crescent Super Band, which was a national finalist selected for the Jazz at Lincoln Center Essentially Ellington High School Band Jazz Competition hosted by Wynton Marsalis in New York City in 2016.
Dave is an active conductor, honor band and music education clinican, and festival adjudicator across the country. His secondary-level ensembles have consistently achieved superior ratings at regional and state festivals. He enjoys commissioning and premiering new works for concert band. Dave actively participates in several professional conducting and education associations. He has served in several leadership roles, including Vice President of the Utah Music Educators Association. He is currently the President-Elect of the Idaho Bandmasters Association Board. Dave was also a co-founder and assistant conductor of the Timpanogos Symphony Orchestra in Highland, UT.
As a trumpeter, Dave performs in classical, jazz, and contemporary styles. He has toured nationally and recorded with the Mormon Tabernacle Choir and has been a member of the Utah Wind Symphony, the Orchestra at Temple Square, and the Utah Premiere Brass Band. His performances include notable events such as The Midwest Clinic, the 2002 Winter Olympics, and the Montreux and Umbria Jazz Festivals. Dave has performed in many renowned settings, including Avery Fisher Hall (NYC), Ravinia (Chicago), Wolftrap (Philadelphia), Chautauqua (New York), Interlochen (Michigan), Benaroya Hall (Seattle), The Orpheum (Victoria, B.C.), Abravanel Hall (Salt Lake City), and the Walt Disney Concert Hall (Los Angeles). In 2002, Dave recorded many of the national anthems heard at the medal ceremonies in the Salt Lake City Winter Olympics.
Dave's trumpet and band students have achieved significant honors, earning Outstanding Soloist awards from Downbeat Magazine and performing at prestigious events, including the Midwest Clinic, Essentially Ellington Jazz Band Competition, Montreux Jazz Festival, Drum Corps International Finals, Grand National Marching Band Championships, Winter Drumline International Championships, and Jazz Education Network Conference.
Originally from Concord, CA, Dave now lives in Rexburg, Idaho where he enjoys spending time with his wife Jenny and their four children in addition to rooting for the San Francisco Giants.