The Prestige Performance Series provides experienced student string players elevated performance opportunities through TYS's resources! This series is open to TYS members and other interested young musicians not currently enrolled in TYS.
TICKETS HERE!
GUEST CONDUCTOR: PETER MARKES
Peter Markes (pronounced Marcus) served as director of orchestras at Edmond North High School from 2002 to 2017, and in 2014 he was selected from over 45,000 educators as the Oklahoma Teacher of the Year. In 2020, he joined the faculty of his alma mater as head of music education in the Wanda L. Bass School of Music at Oklahoma City University.
Peter writes music and performs guitar and vocals with the band, Kyle Dillingham & Horseshoe Road. Together they have performed in over thirty countries, completing two separate American Music Abroad tours to Taiwan, Korea, Myanmar, and Russia (2013) and Kuwait and Kosovo (2019). In 2014 they traveled to Liberia, Africa as part of the Arts Envoy program, where they performed for Nobel Peace Prize recipient, President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf. They have performed as the opening act for the Oakridge Boys, the Charlie Daniels Band, Asleep at the Wheel, and Lee Greenwood, and in July 2019, the band had their debut performance at the Grand Ole Opry in Nashville. As a solo educator and performer, Peter most recently taught and performed for the YES (Youth Excellence on Stage) Academy in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. In addition to several band recordings, Peter released his first solo album in 2018 titled, “I Have a Dream,” available to stream worldwide.
Peter is the founder and owner of his own small business, Peter Markes, LLC and publishing company, Songs To ReJoyce Publishing. He maintains an active solo performing schedule, focusing on live-looping violin and singer-songwriter guitar styles. He continues to serve as Artistic Director for the Oklahoma Youth Orchestras Summer Symphony Strings Camp, and also maintains a small private lesson studio. He is a member of the National Association for Music Education, American String Teachers Association, National Network of State Teachers of the Year, Parent-Teacher Association, the Oklahoma Music Adjudicators Association, and the Americana Music Association.
When not creating music, Peter enjoys time at home in Oklahoma City with his wife, Kris, the executive director of the Oklahoma Youth Orchestras, and also building LEGO and rearranging the dishwasher after their two boys, Patrick and Vincent. Read, hear, and see more at www.PeterMarkes.com and YouTube and social media @PeterMarkesMusic.