ABOUT REID
REID ATKINSON
Music Arranging & Program Coordination
Reid Atkinson is an arranger, program coordinator, and consultant known for his work with marching bands and winds groups across the country.
Reid resides in Leander, TX, with his wife Alison and his two children, Ainsley and Paxton.
Learn more:
Arranging
Reid arranges for marching bands across the country where his groups have been successful in the BOA and Texas UIL circuits. His clients have performed in BOA Finals, as well as UIL Area and State championships.
Reid draws upon his experience as a successful band director to deliver engaging, effective, and educationally sound arrangements that will make your band sound great! Through his writing process, Reid puts an emphasis on the details that will make the difference for your students! Things like range selection, avoidance of out of tune notes or ranges (like throat tones of a clarinet), careful harmonic construction to avoid overloading the thirds of chords, finger patterns through technical passages - all get careful consideration!
In addition, having served as a band director, Reid understands the stress one has when waiting on a show or not “in-the-know.” Reid places as much care and detail in his communication and timeline management as he does his scores. Your music will be on time and in your design team’s hands so they have the opportunity to do their best work for you!
Coordinating
Reid’s coordination clients have consistently earned top placements in BOA regionals, US Bands regionals, and state marching championships across the country. As a program coordinator, Reid places an emphasis on collaboration. He works to ensure the design team has the structures needed to be creative and effective for students. As a former band director, Reid understands the pain-points that often cause the most stress. He has created a series of systems and processes that allow his clients to focus less on admin work and more on teaching students.
Reid loves helping directors provide effective and engaging shows that are student-centered. Programming the right materials to both showcase students’ strengths and empower them towards success is one of many benefits to working with Reid. Students who perform shows that fit their talents and skills are more engaged in the entire program.
Teaching
Before transitioning to pageantry design, Reid had a successful career as a band director. He began his career building the Grain Valley Band Program in the Kansas City area where he was named Missouri Young Music Educator of the Year in 2015. Under his tenure the Grain Valley Band Program received numerous accolades in marching and concert bands include two MMEA honor band invitations, multiple class champions at the St. Louis BOA Super Regional, top 5 BOA Super Regional finalist, and Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade invitation.
After Grain Valley, Reid accepted the position of Marching Director at Vista Ridge High School in Cedar Park, TX. Under his direction, and with the help of an incredible team of educators, the Vista Ridge Band was named 2018 6A UIL Texas State Champions. Under his direction, the Vista Ridge Ranger band was named a BOA regional champion, was a consistent San Antonio Super Regional finalist and earned their first bid into BOA Grand National Finals.
Reid currently serves as an ensemble specialist for Santa Clara Vanguard and a student leadership facilitator for SASi Leadership.
Ultimate Drill Book
Reid is proud to serve as the Director of Education for Ultimate Drill Book. As the Director of Education, Reid has the opportunity to work with world-class educators and designers around the country to develop educational resources and content specifically for students and directors in the marching arts.
Serving in this capacity, he has had the privilege of clinicing all around the country including prestigious events such as the Texas Music Educators Association Convention, the Texas Bandmasters Association Convention, the Western Carolina Directors Symposium, and more!
