The Northwestern High School Band program is proud to announce the appointment of Joshua Walker as the new Director of Percussion Studies at Northwestern High School. In addition to his responsibilities at Northwestern, Mr. Walker will work with percussion students at Rawlinson Road Middle School and Dutchman Creek Middle School.
As a professional musician, Mr. Walker has worked in the Carolina region for twenty years, including as a percussionist with the Charlotte, Charleston, and Union Symphonies. He has performed with Andrea Bocelli, the Moody Blues, Manhattan Transfer, The Four Tops, Natalie Cole, and many other artists. Josh frequently performs on timpani, drum set, jazz vibes, marimba, and ethnic and orchestral percussion.
As a private instructor, Mr. Walker has sent students to All-Region and All-State Honor Bands in South and North Carolina, Interlochen Summer Arts Camp, and colleges such as the University of Cincinnati, Winthrop University, Furman University, the University of South Carolina, UNC Greensboro, and the North Carolina School of the Arts.
As a composer and arranger, Mr. Walker has recently recorded, produced, and released an album of his jazz-influenced arrangments of classic hymns. It is entitled Re-imagined: Classic Hymns for a Modern Audience. He also writes music exclusively and non-exclusively for several music libraries.
Mr. Walker studied at Winthrop University where he earned a Bachelor of Music Performance in 1998 and a Master of Music Performance in 2001.
He and his wife, Michelle, live in Fort Mill, SC with their daughter.