BAND DIRECTORS
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THOMAS TURPIN
Director of Bands
tturpin@eanesisd.net
Thomas Turpin currently serves as Director of Bands at Westlake High School in Eanes ISD. Prior to his appointment as Director of Bands in 2024, he served as Director of Bands at Westwood High School in Round Rock ISD. During his 15 years at Westwood High School, Mr. Turpin taught the marching band, all four concert ensembles, and all three symphony orchestras, leading each group to consistent UIL Sweepstakes ratings in Concert and Sight Reading Evaluations. The Wind Ensemble at Westwood HS was named a TMEA 6A Honor Band Finalist, a Mark of Excellence Commended and National Winner, and was a performer at the 77th Annual Midwest Clinic in December of 2023. Mr. Turpin also co-conducted the award-winning Westwood Symphony Orchestra, an ensemble that was invited to perform at the 2019 Midwest Clinic and was most recently selected as the 2024 TMEA Honor Full Orchestra. Prior to his time at Westwood, Mr. Turpin served as Assistant Director of Bands at John Paul Stevens High School in San Antonio, Texas, where he coordinated the marching band program and co-conducted all four concert ensembles and the Jazz Band.
Mr. Turpin is a proud native of Alabama, where he attended Athens High School and The University of Alabama for his secondary education, earning both his Bachelors and Master of Arts in Music Education. During his time at The University of Alabama, he served as Section Leader, Drum Major, and Graduate Teaching Assistant of the “Million Dollar Band.” Mr. Turpin was also a member of The Cavaliers Drum and Bugle Corps in 2004 and 2005. Mr. Turpin is an active drill designer for marching organizations across the United States, an ensemble clinician, and a leadership consultant. His professional affiliations include Texas Music Educators Association (TMEA), Texas Bandmasters Association (TBA), the National Band Association, the Texas Music Adjudicators Association, Phi Mu Alpha Sinfonia, and Phi Beta Mu. He has served TMEA as both Region 26 Band Division Chair and Region 26 President.
JOHN PEARSON
Assistant Director of Bands
jpearson@eanesisd.net
Mr. Pearson is a native of North Carolina where he earned his Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees at East Carolina University in Greenville, NC. He served as Director of Bands at Speight Middle School in Wilson, NC from 2004-2006. While leading the Cougar Band Program, enrollment nearly doubled and a band booster organization was formed for the first time in program history.
Mr. Pearson served as Director of Bands at Clayton High School in Clayton, NC from 2006-2016. During his tenure at Clayton the program was considered one of the strongest in the state. Accomplishments include being a 6 time BOA Regional Finalist, WGI Regional and World Championship Finalists and Medalists in both Winter Guard and Concert Percussion. In 2013, the Percussion won the gold medal in Scholastic Concert Open class for the first time in school history.
In Fall of 2016, Mr. Pearson relocated to Texas where he became the Associate Director of Bands at Belton High School. During his 3 years at Belton, the band program showed growth in nearly all areas. All 4 Concert Bands earned sweepstakes at UIL Contest and Sight-Reading for the first time in the Spring of 2019. The Color Guard program grew from 18 members to 46 and were a two-time TCGC State Finalist in Scholastic A.
In Fall of 2019, Mr. Pearson accepted the assistant director of bands position at Dripping Springs High School. In his 3 years at DSHS Mr. Pearson led the Symphonic Band to sweepstakes at UIL and doubled the Jazz Orchestra creating a second full jazz ensemble for the first time in school history.
Mr. Pearson lives in Buda with his wife, Leigh Anne, and their two children, Brayden and Kensley, and their dog Stella.
BEN ARMENI
Assistant Director of Bands
barmeni@eanesisd.net
Ben Armeni is a percussion performer, arranger, and educator hailing from Flowery Branch, Georgia. Ben received his undergraduate degree in Music Education from the University of North Texas, and recently earned a master's degree in Percussion Performance at University of Nebraska-Lincoln. His primary musical instructors include Dave Hall, Christopher Deane, Paul Rennick, Mark Ford, Ed Smith, Jose Aponte, and Poovalur Sriji. Ben has years of experience teaching percussionists of all ages and backgrounds, from elementary school to college music majors.
Ben was a part of the front ensembles at Troopers Drum and Bugle Corps (2014) and the Santa Clara Vanguard (2015-2017) where he earned the Fred Sanford award for High Percussion in 2016 and 2017. He has since taught at the Guardians Drum and Bugle Corps (2019-2021) and is now on the percussion staff at the Bluecoats, where he won the Fred Sanford award in 2022.
AUSTIN BYERS
Assistant Director of Bands
dbyers@eanesisd.net
Austin Byers is currently in his first year as Assistant Director of Bands at Westlake High School in Austin, Texas. At Westlake, he leads the visual program for the marching band, directs the Symphonic Band, and assists all ensembles.
Mr. Byers is a native to Austin, TX where he graduated from Westwood High School and the University of Texas at Austin. At UT, he received his Bachelor of Music in Music Studies and Certificate in Trombone Performance, and completed his degree student teaching at Westlake High School and Hill Country Middle School. After graduating from UT, he began his teaching career in the Fall of 2020 at Cypress Woods High School in Cypress, Texas where he served as the Associate Director of Bands until his return to Westlake. During his time at Cypress Woods the marching band was a consistent BOA Regional finalist and 6A State Marching Contest participant, and received multiple UIL Concert and Sightreading Sweepstakes.
Mr. Byers has an extensive background in the performing arts including experiences with drum corps, winter guard, and a professional dance company. He began his drum corps career marching baritone with the Blue Knights Drum and Bugle Corps, and continued to perform and age-out with Santa Clara Vanguard Drum and Bugle Corps. From his marching experience, Mr. Byers developed a passion for movement which he continued to pursue performing with ORIGINS Open and World, an independent winter guard based out of Austin, TX. While in college, he spent a season training and dancing with Chaddick Dance Theater, a professional modern dance company also based out of Austin, TX.
Aside from band directing, Mr. Byers also choreographs for various band and winter guard programs throughout Texas. During the past few years he has worked on the visual staff for both Crossmen and Santa Clara Vanguard, and has served as a choreographer for the Colts Drum and Bugle Corps and the Breakdown Camp.
KAYSEY THOMPSON
Director of Color Guards, Elite Visual Ensemble
kthompson2@eanesisd.net
Kaysey Leigh Thompson is an active choreographer and color guard instructor hailing originally from from Boston, MA. Clients have included Carolina Crown, The Crossmen, The Madison Scouts, The Blue Knights, McNeil High School, Claudia Taylor Johnson High School, Origins Winterguard, Eklipse Winterguard, Paramount Winterguard, and Cedar Ridge High School, among others.
Kaysey began her dance and color guard training at 5 years old, performing with a local winterguard directed by her parents. In the years since, she has performed with several WGI and DCI groups including St. Ann’s World, SCV Winterguard, The Cadets and The Crossmen. Along with color guard, Kaysey has an extensive background in stage and film. Kaysey spent 15 years touring and performing with Blast!, Shockwave, and Blast: MIX, Blast: The Music of Disney and has appeared in projects with Walt Disney Studios, NBC, and Fox Television. Following a record breaking 2021-2022 season for the EVE programs, Ms Thompson is currently representing Westlake HS on the Advisory Board for Winter Guard International
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Kaysey currently resides in Austin, TX. Since transitioning from a stage performer role, she holds a position on the choreographic and instructional team for Blast: The Music of Disney, in addition to acting as the Visual Ensemble supervisor.