The Hawai`i Pacific University Band is comprised of instrumentalists from Hawaii and abroad, all of whom must audition for entry. Providing the musical spirit at HPU women's volleyball and men's basketball games, the Sea Warrior Pep Band knows how to motivate fans and athletes with their rousing renditions of Pep Band tunes. Scholarships are available for incoming HPU students as well as continuing band members.
A select jazz/wind ensemble is taken from the larger group. These students must pass secondary performance criteria and be willing to put in extra rehearsal time. They prepare more difficult and challenging music for distinguished audiences and in official capacities as musical representatives of the University. The bands are under the direction of Dr. Patrick Hennessey.
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| Symphonic Band, 2011-2012 |
Partial tuition waivers are available for qualified students. Live auditions will be by appointment. Please call 544-0891 to schedule an interview. Videotape auditions will be accepted. Before you audition you must be accepted into the University. HPU Sea Warrior Band: Audition Information 2012-2013
Director of Bands
Patrick Hennessey, Ph.D.
A native of New Orleans, but a long-time resident of Hawai‘i nei, Patrick Hennessey brings a wide breadth of experience in performance, teaching, and ensemble direction to his current position as the Director of Bands at Hawai‘i Pacific University. He holds degrees in trombone performance from California State University at Long Beach and music education from the University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa. In 2007 Dr. Hennessey earned his Ph.D. in musicology from the University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa, writing his dissertation on Henry Berger (1844-1929), the longtime bandmaster of the Royal Hawaiian Band. Die Internationale Gesellschaft zur Erforschung und Förderung der Blasmusik (IGEB) recently selected Dr. Hennessey’s dissertation for the 2010 Fritz Thelen Prize, given bi-annually to the outstanding dissertation in the field of wind music research.
Dr. Hennessey began his professional career as a teenager in New Orleans, playing in numerous venues around the city, including clubs in the French Quarter. His performance experiences in Southern California and Hawai‘i have included the touring Broadway shows A Chorus Line, Hello Dolly, Evita, Peter Pan, and Grease, and playing for luminaries such as Burt Bacharach, Sammy Davis Jr., Frank Sinatra, Liza Minelli, Natalie Cole, and Johnny Mathis. He has recorded with Nā Hōkū Hanohano winners Hula Joe and the Hutjumpers, The Mana‘o Company, Jake Shimabukuro, and drummer Noel Okimoto. In addition, his performance career also extends to the orchestral field, having concertized with the Lakewood Philharmonia, the Long Beach Symphony, the Honolulu Symphony, the Honolulu Symphony Pops Orchestra under the direction of Matt Catingub, and the Hawai‘i Opera Theater Orchestra.
Prior to joining the ohana at HPU, Dr. Hennessey served as the principal trombonist for the Royal Hawaiian Band until his retirement in 2009 after 26 years of distinguished service. In addition, he directed the award-winning jazz ensemble program at the University of Hawai‘i from 1983 to 2007. Dr. Hennessey is a member of numerous professional and musicological organizations and has presented his research both nationally and internationally. He has published in the Journal of Band Research, the New Grove Dictionary of American Music, and the upcoming edition of Alta Musica.
Contact: phennessey@hpu.edu or (808) 544-0891
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Student Conductor |
Hawai'i Pacific University
