Spirit of San Antonio Staff
RON ELLIS
Director of Bands / Director of Athletic Bands
Ron Ellis serves as Director of Bands and Assistant Professor of Music at The University of Texas at San Antonio. Prof Ellis is the principal conductor and music director of the UTSA Wind Ensemble, and oversees all activities of the UTSA Band Program that includes the UTSA Symphonic Band, The UTSA University Band, and the UTSA Athletic Bands.
A nationally recognized guest conductor, adjudicator, and composer/arranger, his works for concert band, orchestra and choir are performed by university, community, High School and professional wind bands as well as in Carnegie Hall. He also currently serves as a Music Director for Walt Disney Attractions Entertainment in Orlando where he has directed the Toy Soldiers and the Student Musician Program since 1993.
He is a member of the College Band Directors National Association, Music Educators National Conference, Texas Music Educators Association, Texas Bandmasters Association, Florida Music Educators Association, Florida Bandmasters Association, and Phi Mu Alpha Sinfonia Music Fraternity. He is also an honorary member of Kappa Kappa Psi, and Tau Beta Sigma.
Prof Ellis received his Bachelor of Arts in Trombone Performance from the University of Central Florida and a Master of Music in Wind and Orchestral Conducting from the University of South Florida where he was a conducting student of William Wiedrich.
Email: ron.ellis@utsa.edu
JOHN ZARCO
Director of Instrumental Ensembles
John Zarco is currently the Associate Director of Bands at the University of Texas at San Antonio, where he conducts the UTSA Symphonic Band, & Wind Ensemble, University Band, and Chamber Winds on occasion, in addition to teaching undergraduate and graduate courses in conducting, wind literature, and music education. Dr. Zarco is the founder and conductor of the San Antonio Chamber Winds. He has recently been named conductor of the Youth Orchestras of San Antonio (YOSA) Symphonic Winds, starting in the 2014-15 season.
Dr. Zarco received a D.M.A. in conducting from the University of Minnesota as well as B.M. and M.M. degrees from California State University, Sacramento. His primary teachers include Craig Kirchhoff, Robert Halseth, and Harvey Benstein. In 2006, he was inducted into Pi Kappa Lambda, an honorary music fraternity.
In addition to being an active clinician and guest conductor, Dr. Zarco is a published contributor to the GIA Publications resource series, Teaching Music Through Performance in Band. He serves on the Executive Board of the Texas Music Educators Conference and is a member of the College Band Directors National Association, the Texas Music Educators Association, and the Texas Bandmasters Association. His book, Rehearsing the Band, volume 3 is published by Meredith Music and distributed through Hal Leonard.
Email: john.zarco@utsa.edu
Hector Garcia
Assistant director of athletic bands
Hector Garcia, a native of San Antonio, Texas, is currently Assistant Director of Athletic Bands at UTSA and is the conductor of the UTSA University Band as well as the director of the UTSA Athletic Pep Band. In the fall semester, he assists directing the UTSA Spirit of San Antonio Marching Band.
Hector graduated with a master's degree in instrumental conducting from University of Texas at San Antonio in 2023 under the mentorship of Dr. John Zarco and Ron Ellis. While a graduate student at UTSA, Hector performed with the UTSA Wind Symphony and was a teaching assistant for several undergraduate courses including Conducting I & II, Marching Band Techniques, Wind Symphony, and Symphonic Band.
Prior to attending UTSA, Hector taught brass/woodwind beginning band classes, marching band, concert band, and jazz band at the high school and middle school levels for three years. He received a bachelor's degree in music studies from Texas State University in 2017. Hector’s primary instrument is trumpet and actively performs in local community bands. Hector’s professional affiliations include Texas Music Educators Association and Kappa Kappa Psi. Some of his hobbies include photography, traveling, and doing card tricks for those around him. Fun fact: his favorite food is sushi!
Email: hector.garica3@utsa.edu
Don Marchand
Music Program Specialist
Don Marchand serves on the music faculty at the University of Texas at San Antonio, where he coordinates administrative requirements for UTSA’s Spirit of San Antonio Marching Band.
A native of Houston, Texas, Mr. Marchand studied music at the University of North Texas, McNeese State University, Middle Tennessee State University and the University of Arkansas at Monticello. He has an Associate Degree in Applied Sciences from the Community College of the Air Force, a Bachelor of Music Performance with a concentration in jazz and commercial music from McNeese State University in Lake Charles, Louisiana and a Masters of Music from University of Arkansas at Monticello. He has been a teacher and professional musician for over 40 years, 23 of those years he served active duty as a Trombonist, Staff Arranger, Director of Strategic Communications, Production Manager and Director of Operations in the USAF Band career field and retired in 2012 as a Master Sergeant.
Before joining the military Mr. Marchand worked in Nashville, TN as a member of Danny Davis and the Nashville Brass, the Nashville Contemporary Pops Orchestra and a music contractor with Ross Productions. Mr. Marchand has appeared professionally with such artists as Burt Bacharach, Natalie Cole, Bob Hope, The Four Seasons, Frank Mantooth, Bob Mintzer, Jim McNeely, Rob McConnel, Al Vizzutti, Lori White, Andy Williams, Rufus Reid, and Toni Tennille. He has performed on 10 recordings with the USAF Bands and was a featured soloist on 3 recordings with the USAF “Dimension in Blue” jazz ensemble of which he was a member of for 13 years and the musical director for 7 years. Mr. Marchand can also be heard on the soundtrack to the motion picture “Rocky IV”.
He is a member of the College Band Directors National Association, Texas Music Educators Association, International Trombone Association and Phi Mu Alpha Sinfonia Music Fraternity. He is also an honorary member of Kappa Kappa Psi.
Mr. Marchand has taught public school in the Pearsall and Edgewood school districts before most recently serving as Director of Bands at the University of Arkansas at Monticello teaching Low Brass, Improvisation I & II, Music Technology, Secondary Methods, Music Appreciation and Jazz History. Mr. Marchand joined UTSA’s music department this summer as a Music Program Specialist.
Email: donald.marchand@utsa.edu
BENJAMIN PYLES
Director of Athletic Percussion and Ensemble Arranger
Benjamin Pyles is currently the Director of Athletic Percussion at the University of Texas at San Antonio. Previously, Ben majored in music education at Indiana University of Pennsylvania and Lamar University, with a primary focus in Percussion. His most intensive studies came under the direction of Chris Hestin, Mike Macintosh, Travis Fife, and Michael Kingan.
Ben has several years of World Class performing, and instructional experience, including the Bluecoats from Canton, OH; The Crossmen from San Antonio, TX; Monarch Independent from Houston, TX; Glassmen from Toledo, OH; and Spirit of Atlanta from Atlanta, GA. Ben currently serves as the Percussion Caption Head and Designer for the Colts Drum and Bugle Corps from Dubuque, Iowa.
Along with teaching, Benjamin is also an active arranger and composer for multiple Indoor and Outdoor ensembles across the country. Ben is endorsed by Sabian Cymbals, Innovative Percussion Inc. and Pearl and Adams Percussion.
Email: benjamin.pyles@utsa.edu
RANDI MILES
Head of Auxiliaries
Randi L. Miles graduated Magnum cum laude from Texas State University-San Marcos in December 2006 where she earned a Bachelor of Science in Dance and her Teacher’s Certification for the secondary level. May 2011 marked her graduation from Arizona State University with her Master of Fine Arts degree in Dance.
Ms. Randi Miles has performed locally, nationally, and internationally. She has made performance and choreographic appearances in Opening Door Dance Theatre, American College Dance Festival, 10 Minutes’ Max, the Promising Artists of the 21st Century (Costa Rica), Phoenix Fringe Fest, Breaking Ground, Eureka Dance Festival (D.C.), and most recently the Big Range Austin Dance Festival. Her hard work has earned her the Connie Webb Brown scholarship for performance/choreography, the inaugural Karen Earl Memorial Scholarship, the Hope & Robert Heimann Scholarship, the ASU School of Dance Outstanding Education Practice Award, among many others.She has studied with and had the opportunity to perform with such artist as Michelle Nance, Tammy Fife, Katherine Duke, Shouza Ma, Karen Schupp, Mary Fitzgerald, Thomas Lehmen, Carley Conder, Rebecca A. Ferrel, John Jaspers, to name a few.
Miles was a performing member with the Crossmen Drum and Bugle Corps (2001-2004) as well as the Blue Devils (2005) where she was awarded Rookie of the Year! She has also taught with the Crossmen (2007-2008) and the Academy Drum and Bugle Corps (2010). And now works with the Blue Knights Drum and Bugle Corps (2013-current) from Denver, Co. as the movement specialist and choreographer for the color guard. Randi has worked with many color guards including Dripping Springs High School, Winston Churchill High School, Richland High School, Arizona State University, FeniX Independent and Cypress Independent.
Currently, Randi works full time at the University of Texas at San Antonio as the Head of Auxiliary with the Spirit of San Antonio (SOSA) Marching Band. She is also dance faculty at UTSA where she continues to focus on developing her own technical style, unique choreography, and discovering her own personal choreographic process. Her classes include Modern 2, Contemporary Jazz, Modern 3, and Introduction to Dance.
Email: randi.miles@utsa.edu