Joseph Benjamin Earp

Joseph Benjamin Earp is the Director of Athletic Bands at Limestone University in Gaffney, South Carolina. He received his undergraduate degree in Music Education from the University of North Carolina at Charlotte, Master of Music in Music Education from Anderson University (Anderson, South Carolina), and Doctor of Music Education degree from Liberty University (Lynchburg, Virginia). In 2019, Dr. Earp was inducted into the Omega Nu Lambda National College Honor Society based on his academic achievement at Liberty University. Recently, he was named as a Distinguished Alumni Award recipient by the College of Arts and Architecture at University of North Carolina at Charlotte.

His professional teaching career began in 2006 as Director of Bands at Seneca High School in South Carolina. After two years, he then taught band at Robbinsville Middle and High Schools for a year before becoming the founding Director of Bands at Cox Mill High School in Concord, North Carolina. Major accomplishments teaching at the secondary level include one of his symphonic bands auditioning and being selected to perform at the 2013 North Carolina Music Educators State Conference, multiple superior ratings, grand championships, awards, and recognitions from his instrumental ensembles. After eight years of numerous achievements at Cox Mill High School, he moved into his current role at Limestone University, elevating many elements of Limestone’s athletic band program. A major accomplishment of the Limestone University Marching Saints was auditioning and being selected to lead one of the afternoon parades at Walt Disney World’s Magic Kingdom in January of 2019.

In addition to teaching, Dr. Earp is an active published composer and arranger with his music being performed internationally. His works are made available by BKJ Publications, CTS Publications, and RWS Music Company. Both CTS Publications and RWS Music Company are distributed worldwide by C. L. Barnhouse. A couple of his recent concert band works, Ghillie Dhu (2020) and Where the Wild Things Dance (2019), were selected by J. W. Pepper to be part of their Editors’ Choice catalog. Other major compositional accomplishments include being winner of the 2010 Claude T. Smith Composition Contest in Missouri and winner of the 2018 Thornton Community Band Composition Contest in Colorado. He currently resides in Concord, North Carolina with his wife Mary Beth and sons Jackson and Jasper. More about Dr. Earp can be found at www.joeemusic.com. Follow Dr. Earp on Twitter @earpcomposer. Find him on Instagram as earpcomposer.