2026 Gateway Championship Judges

Suzanne Dell

Suzanne Dell Is Director of Bands at L.D. Bell High School in Hurst, Texas. Prior to her teaching at Bell, she taught in American Fork, Utah, at American Fork High School and Mountain Ridge Junior High and in Texas at Carroll Middle School in Southlake as well as Bedford Junior High. During her tenure with the L.D. Bell Blue Raider Marching Band, they have been a Bands of America DFW Regional Finalist, Atlanta Super Regional Class Champion, San Antonio & Atlanta Super Regional Finalist, and a University Interscholastic League 6A State Marching Contest finalist. Concert groups under the direction of Mrs. Dell have been awarded numerous Texas UIL Sweepstakes Awards and have received top honors at participating festivals and competitions Mrs. Dell received her Bachelor’s in Music Education from the University of North Texas where she studied horn with Bill Scharnberg, and her Master’s in Conducting from Messiah College, studying with Dr. Brad Genevro. She has performed with Dr. Brian Bowman in the University of North Texas Brass Band and played in the Utah Premiere Brass under Alan Boyer. She is a clinician and adjudicator in both the symphonic and marching activities, including adjudicating the Texas Festival of Brass in 2025. She is has also served as a member of the brass staff for the 21-time World Champion Blue Devils Drum & Bugle Corps since 2016. Suzanne has been married to her husband, Nick, since 2000 and they are the proud parents of two sons, Jacob, a percussionist and Bell alum, and Jonathan, a horn player in the Bell Band.

Tom Davoren

Tom Davoren is a conductor and composer with an international reputation in wind music. He holds a D.M.A from the University of Kansas, a Master of Music from Cardiff University School of Music and a Bachelor of Music (honors) from Cardiff University School of Music. In addition, he holds a Diploma of Higher Education in Performance from the Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama where he studied tuba with Nigel Seaman. As a conductor of brass bands, Dr. Davoren began his career with the BTM Band in Wales, later holding positions with the famous Desford Colliery and Fairey Bands. With his own band, Filton, he won titles including the first section National Brass Band Championship of Great Britain in 2014, British Open Senior Trophy in 2016, and British Open Senior Cup in 2017. He served as conductor of the National Youth Brass Band of Wales in 2016 and taught conducting and directed bands at the University of Salford from 2015 - 2019. Tom is currently Professional Conductor to Tokyo City Concert Brass in Japan. In the wind band world Dr. Davoren currently serves as Director of Bands and Assistant Professor of Music at Benedictine College, Kansas, USA. He has presented at conferences including the Kansas Music Educators and Bandmasters associations, International Society for the Research and Promotion of Wind Music, and World Association of Symphonic Bands and Wind Ensembles (WASBE) International Conference. As a guest conductor he has appeared with collegiate and honor bands across the USA, as well as bands in Austria, Canada, Japan, Lithuania, Great Britain, Norway, Sweden, and South Korea. Dr. Davoren is a respected adjudicator in the brass band world having presided over the elite level national band championships of Great Britain, Switzerland, and New Zealand, the U.S. Open Championship, Whit Friday marches, as well as the Yorkshire and Scotland Regional Championships. As a composer Dr. Davoren's music is commissioned and played wherever bands are in the world. Highlights include performances at the American Bandmasters Association Convention, Midwest International Band and Orchestra Clinic, CBDNA National and Regional Conferences, WASBE, World Music Contest Kerkrade, Royal Northern College of Music Festival of Brass, Carnegie Hall in New York, and the national band championships of many nations. In 2019 Dr. Davoren, a proud Welshman, was delighted to become composer in residence with the Band of the Welsh Guards, of the Household Division of the Royal Corps of Army Music. He was a BASCA British Composer Awards finalist in 2011, a prizewinner at the EBBA European Composers Competition in 2012, winner of the ITEA Harvey Phillips Award for Excellence in Composition in 2012, and winner of the National Band Association Merrill Jones Composition Prize in 2020 for his work, ‘A Midwestern Suite’. Most recently his work was selected as the winner of the ABA-Ostwald composition

Tony Granados

Tony Granados is a Producing Coordinator for Carolina Performing Arts and a freelance musician in central North Carolina. Tony can be seen performing with the orchestras for the Carolina Ballet and North Carolina Opera, Chamber Orchestra of the Triangle, and is a founding member of the Boylan Brass. Tony maintains a private studio of high school and middle school students, and regularly runs sectionals for school bands. Tony is an adjudicator for marching bands and teaches brass techniques for several local high school marching band programs. Tony was the Brass Supervisor for Carolina Gold Drum and Bugle Corps, winning the DCA – A Class Championship and Best Brass in 2012, 2018 and 2019. Tony serves on the Board of Directors for the North American Brass Band Association (NABBA), including two terms as President from 2019 – 2023. From 2008 to 2023, Tony was the Artistic Director for the Triangle Brass Band, winning the 3rd section in 2022, 2018 and runner up in 2019 at the NABBA Championships. From 2001-2013, he was the Director of the Triangle Youth Brass Band program, building it from 17 students to over 70 in two bands and winning eight NABBA Youth Section Championships. As a soloist, he has made appearances with college bands, high schools bands, allcounty bands, gave a solo recital at the North Carolina Governors School Summer Program at Meredith College, was a featured artist at the 2002 International Tuba Euphonium Conference, performing the Gregson Tuba Concerto with the Triangle Brass Band, and was a guest soloist with the Triangle Wind Ensemble at the 2005 North Carolina Music Educators Convention. Other solo appearances include the St. Francis Brass Band, Tar River Symphonic Band, Advocate Brass Band and the Greensboro Concert Band. Tony attended the University of Kentucky and has studied at the University of North Carolina at Greensboro and Towson State in Maryland. While a student in Kentucky, he was first runner up in the University Concerto Competition in 1997, and Principal Tuba in the Wind Ensemble and Orchestra. He played solo E-flat tuba with the Lexington Brass Band and was featured with the Bass section of that band several times, including the LBB compact disc release Images. Tony also played with the Advocate-Messenger Brass Band in Danville, KY, appearing on three compact discs and making a solo appearance. Tony was also a driving force in the Four Horsemen Tuba Quartet, the resident student tuba quartet at the University of Kentucky. The FHTQ was the busiest performing ensemble at UK during this time, making an appearance at the 1998 Great American Brass Band Festival, and winning the Adult Ensemble competition at the 1998 NABBA competition.