John Thomas Madden is an American conductor, music educator, music arranger, educational clinician, and trumpet player. In July of 2024, he was named Artistic Director and Conductor of the Savannah Wind Symphony in Savannah, Georgia. The “Savannah Winds” is an audition only, community ensemble whose personnel is made up of professional musicians, former and current music educators, and dedicated community musicians. The Savannah Wind Symphony, founded in 1977, will celebrate its 50th anniversary in the 2026–2027 season.

John is an Emeritus Professor of Music in the College of Music at Michigan State University where he served on the faculty for 28 years (1989 to 2017). There, he served as the Conductor of the MSU Symphony Band, the Associate Director of Bands, and the Director of the famed Spartan Marching Band. Additionally, he taught advanced instrumental conducting at both the undergraduate and graduate levels. Prior to coming to MSU, Madden served from 1987-1989 as Associate Director of Bands in the Mason Gross School of the Arts at Rutgers University in New Brunswick, New Jersey.

Madden’s awards and honors include receiving the Dortha J. and John D. Withrow Award for Excellence in Teaching, as awarded by his faculty peers, from the MSU College of Music in 2014. In 2008, John was inducted into the prestigious American Bandmasters Association. In 2016, he was awarded the distinction of “Yamaha Master Educator.” He has published articles in the Instrumentalist Magazine as well as the World Association of Symphonic Bands and Ensemble (WASBE) Journal. His 2016 revised edition of the Paul Creston “Celebration Overture” was published by the Shawnee Press and Hal Leonard. He conducted the Brass Band of Battle Creek (MI) on their internationally distributed “Saturday Spectacular!” CD recording of Fight Songs and Alma Maters of the universities of the Big Ten Conference and is credited with 15 commercial CD recordings of the Spartan Marching Band. In 2007, John was invited to join the Drum Corps International quarterfinals “Cinecast” broadcast team (Pasadena, Bloomington, and Indianapolis) as the on-air music and color commentator.

John is an active collaborator and maintains a guest-conducting schedule with school, university, community, and honor/all-state bands. He’s conducted throughout the United States, in Shanghai China, and across Central Europe. He has partnered with composers who have praised him for his commitment to their music and his interpretation of their works including, Samuel Adler, David Biedenbender, Steven Bryant, Scott Boerma, James Curnow, O’Neal Douglas, Eric Ewazen, Joni Greene, Karel Husa, Jere Hutchison, Robert Jager, Micah Levy, John Mackey, Michael Markowski, David Maslanka, Carter Pann, Andrew David Perkins, Nicole Piunno, H. Owen Reed, Charles Ruggiero, Joseph Spaniola, Jack Stamp, Frank Ticheli, and Charles Rochester Young. His primary conducting teachers and mentors have been Myles Mazur, Richard Blatti, William Wiedrich, and Jay Decker. He was a principal performer in ensembles under Carl St. Clair, Stanley DeRusha, and Eugene Corporon. He participated in conductor workshop residencies under H. Robert Reynolds and Frederick Fennel. John’s trumpet teachers include Byron Autrey, Walter J. Myers, Michael Mainguth, and Mark Barton.

John Madden is highly respected as a versatile musician and professional who is in demand as a clinician, adjudicator, music arranger, drill designer, and trumpet player. He has presented scholarly workshops for the Midwest Clinic (Chicago), the College Band Directors National Association (CBDNA), the Michigan Music Conference (MMC), the Michigan School Band and Orchestra Association (MSBOA), Drum Corps International (DCI), and for numerous “state” music education conferences and symposiums. His adjudication associations have included Bands of America (BOA), Michigan Competing Bands Association (MCBA), MSBOA, University Interscholastic League (UIL Texas), Festivals at Sea, Festival Disney, and Music in The Parks, among others. He is the owner of “Madds Music Services,” a music arranging and drill writing business providing services to collegiate and high school bands. John’s arranging credits stretch coast to coast among collegiate and high school bands and holds the position of staff arranger for the Los Angeles based “Drum Palace Productions,” serving professional recording and performing artists. As a trumpet player, John has performed with the Brass Band of Battle Creek, as well as the Savannah Wind Symphony.

For 15 summers, John served as the resident conductor of the Symphony Band at the New England Music Camp (NEMC) in the Belgrade Lakes region of Maine. Additionally, he conducted bands at the Great Lake Music Camps (Indianapolis) for over a decade and twice toured with their Ambassador ensembles as director. John was selected to conduct the summer European tour band of the American Musical Ambassadors (W. Lafayette, Indiana) in the summer of 1995. He is the previous conductor of both the Lansing (MI) Concert Band and the Meridian (MI) Community Band. In Drum Corps International, John performed with the Phantom Regiment of Rockford, IL and instructed the brass sections of both the Phantom Regiment and Cadets of Bergen County (NJ). John chaired the Athletic Bands Committee of the CBDNA as well as the Big Ten Band Directors Association. He also served the John Phillip Sousa Foundation as a member of the Sudler Trophy Selection Committee for Collegiate Marching Bands. Madden served Kappa Kappa Psi, the National Honorary Band Service Fraternity as the Vice President for Professional Relations. John holds honorary memberships in the Varsity “S” Club at Michigan State University, Golden Key Honor Society, Phi Mu Alpha Sinfonia, and Tau Beta Sigma. He is also an honorary board member of the Leonard Falcone Internation Euphonium and Tuba Festival.

Madden was born in New Jersey and grew up in the Metropolitan Detroit region of Michigan. He received his Master of Music Education (MME) and Master of Wind Conducting (MM) degrees from Wichita State University (KS) in 1987, where he served as graduate teaching assistant in the University Bands area and is a 1985 graduate of the Michigan State University College of Music, where he received his Bachelor of Music Education (BME) degree.

As a former instructor of conducting and music education, John takes great pride in the appointments of his former music students to band and orchestra conducting positions at middle schools, high schools, colleges and universities, and professional ensembles across the United States. John and his wife Shelly reside in Savannah in the southeastern coastal region of Georgia. They have two daughters and one grandson.