The Long Island Wind Ensemble is a musical group comprised of approximately 45 music educators and performers who unite twice a year to perform concerts of adventurous repertoire for our students and communities.
Unlike many classical performances, our venue and atmosphere purposely welcomes student musicians and we strive to make it as inclusive and educational as possible. At intermission, we break the barrier of performer and audience as students come onto the stage to eagerly speak with their teachers and performers go into the audience to welcome our patrons. We work hard to inform the audience about each piece being performed using the Leonard Bernstein Young People’s Concerts as a model. Our ultimate goal is to inspire our audience to fall in love with music while providing a substantially challenging music making outlet for our educators. It is our hope that the audience leaves a concert to run home and practice and our ensemble members leave feeling like they have grown both as performer and educator.
Our Conductor: Matthew Sisia
Since 2003, Matthew Sisia has served as the Director of Bands at Oyster Bay High School where he conducts the Wind Ensemble, Symphonic Band, Jazz Ensemble, and Pit Orchestra.
An advocate for new music, Mr. Sisia and the OBHS bands have collaborated with several of today’s leading composers including Paul Moravec, Joel Puckett, Roger Zare, Samuel Adler, Thomas Duffy, Shelley Hanson, Rossano Galante, Julie Giroux and Frank Ticheli. The OBHS bands have commissioned works from Roger Zare and Shelley Hanson and participated in consortiums to commission Kathryn Salfelder, Kenneth Amis, Michael Weinstein, Steven Bryant, Jennifer Jolly, Kristen Kuster, Joel Puckett, Rolf Rudin and Pulitzer Prize-winning composers William Bolcom, Michael Colgrass and Paul Moravec.
In 2017, the OBHS Wind Ensemble performed at the New York State Band Directors Association Symposium presenting a performance clinic titled “Repertoire is the Curriculum.” The OBHS bands have performed at Carnegie Hall in 2010, 2014 and 2018.
Outside of his work in the public schools, Mr. Sisia is the founder and former director of the New York Chamber Ensemble and was recently named Principal Conductor of the Long Island Wind Ensemble. He has served as the Director of Bands at Adelphi University and Associate Conductor and adjunct professor in music education at Long Island University.
Mr. Sisia holds degrees from SUNY Potsdam’s Crane School of Music and The Pennsylvania State University with advanced doctoral work at the Hartt School. His conducting teachers include Timothy Topolewski, Dennis Glocke and Glen Adsit as well as additional studies with Michael Haithcock, Jerry Junkin, and H. Robert Reynolds. Mr. Sisia’s saxophone teachers include Timothy McAllister and Carrie Koffman.
From 2005 to 2016, Mr. Sisia has proudly dedicated his time as a member of the executive board of the New York State Band Directors Association and was awarded their Distinguished Service Award in 2015. A recipient of the 2013 Distinguished Music Educator Award from Yale University, Mr. Sisia is also a member of the National Association for Music Education, the College Band Directors National Association, and the Nassau Music Educators Association. Mr. Sisia lives in Long Island with his wife, Nicolle, and two sons, Jason and Nathaniel.
To contact Matthew, email: matthewsisia@yahoo.com
Executive Board of the Long Island Wind Ensemble
Michael Giannetta
Brian Mankuta
Sara Pinto
Matthew Sisia
Long Island Wind Ensemble 