David Ratliff is the Director of Bands at Madison Southern High School in Berea, Kentucky. Previously, he was the Associate Director of Bands at Madison Central High School (MCHS), also in Kentucky. While with MCHS, the concert percussion ensemble performed at the 2002 Kentucky Music Educators Association (KMEA) State Convention, as well as the 2006 Bands of America (BOA) National Percussion Ensemble Festival. The marching drum line was invited to perform with the Cavaliers Drum & Bugle Corps in 2004, 2005, and 2006 as part of the marching band track of the Music For All Summer Symposium.
David holds a bachelor’s and master’s degree in music education from the University of Kentucky, where he studied with James B. Campbell, and holds a Rank I Certificate in music from Eastern Kentucky University. He serves as Secretary of the Kentucky Chapter of the Percussive Arts Society (PAS), and is the KMEA All-State Percussion Coordinator. He is proud to have help create the formation of the KMEA All State Percussion Ensemble, one of the first officially MEA sanctioned high school All State Percussion Ensembles in the United States.
David has published articles in Percussive Notes and the Bluegrass Music News as well as contributing study guides to the band reference series Teaching Music Through Performance in Band volumes five and six and Beginning Band volume two. With over 200 musical works to his credit, his arrangements and compositions have been performed by groups across the United States, and have been published through Advantage Network, Marching Show Concepts, Tapspace Publications, and the Yamaha Sounds of Summer instructional booklet. He was on the faculty of the BOA World Percussion Symposium, and taught numerous Yamaha Sounds of Summer camps since 1992. He presented percussion clinics at the 2006, 2007, and 2009 KMEA State Conventions.
He has performance experience with the Boston Crusaders and the Cavaliers Drum & Bugle Corps, including performing in the battery in 1991 – winning the DCI High Percussion award and performing in the front ensemble in 1993 – winning the DCI Percussion Ensemble Championship; as well as teaching experience with the Phantom Regiment Drum & Bugle Corps, and arranging experience with the Cavaliers Alumni Corps. He was also co-section leader of the 1993 BOA National Champion and PAS Runner-Up University of Kentucky indoor drum line.
He is a proud endorser and clinician for the Yamaha Corporation of America, Evans drumheads, Innovative Percussion sticks and mallets, and Tapspace Productions. Professionally, he is a member of KMEA, NAfME, PAS, and Phi Beta Mu.
