Michael Douty, PhD, is Director of Bands and Orchestra at Fairview Middle School and Assistant Conductor of the Big Bend Community Orchestra in Tallahassee. Dr. Douty completed a BA in Instrumental Music Education at Milligan College, a MM in Wind Conducting at the University of Tennessee, and a PhD in Music Education at Florida State University. He has taught music, band, and orchestra for 14 years in Tennessee and Florida, serving in elementary, middle school, and high school settings. An advocate for new music, Dr. Douty has conducted chamber music by Ondřej Štochl for the biennial FSU Festival of New Music and has commissioned and directed new works by Michael Markowski and Jorge Variego. In his 2019 dissertation, Dr. Douty analyzed significant works for chamber winds by female composers. Dr. Douty presents at state and national conferences on topics related to band pedagogy, and he enjoys time with his wife and children in Tallahassee.