AMIS Executive Council 2011 - 2012

Top: James Libbey. Bonnie Reinitzer, Tim Gerrmann, Pete Lutkoski

Bottom: Rick Hein, Lou Davey. Richard Bassett, Keith Montgomery, Darlen Elkins

Qualifications & Responsibilties of an Exectuve Council Member

Richard Bassett is the founder of AMIS. He serves on the AMIS Executive Council.

In 1976 he hosted the first Honor Band and Choir Festival at the American School in London. It is the seed sowed in that festival which eventually grew into The Association for Music in International Schools. He currently serves as AMIS Board Representative at most festivals. When he is not busy with AMIS, he runs Church Farm House as an upmarket guesthouse b&b along with his wife, Georgia.

Richard Bassett is a music education graduate of Oberlin Conservatory and spent most of his teaching career teaching instrumental music and conducting bands. His own principal instrument is clarinet. The final 21 years of his teaching career were spent as Music Department Head and instrumental music teacher at The American School in London. Prior to coming to London he taught briefly in the US, in Athens, and in Tehran.

Lou Davey, a kiwi living in China, is a new member of the AMIS Executive Council this year. Middle school band director at Shanghai American School, Pudong Campus for 5 years, prior to SAS she was at the International School of Kuala Lumpur for 10 years. Before her teaching career she worked for Boosey and Hawkes (Australia) in their music education department. Lou is responsible for AMIS financial aid, some handbook re-writes, helping gather workshop resources for festivals and is hosting the second AMIS music conference in Shanghai 2012. Lou has a M.Ed (music) from New England University, Australia. When not in the classroom she can be found walking her three beagles on the streets of Shanghai.

Darlene Elkins is head of vocal studies at the Saudi Aramco Schools-Dhahran, Saudi Arabia. In her 35 years of teaching K-12 vocal, Darlene has taught in Italy, Abu Dhabi, Zaire, Kuwait and Saudi Arabia. Darlene is currently in her 11th year at the Dhahran School and is Fine Arts Dept. Chair and Team Leader. She has conducted the AMIS MSMHC Festival numerous times and provides rehearsal files for the MSMHC regularly. She has been a member of the AMIS organization since 1997 and as a new AMIS Executive Council member will work on Middle School Festival Vocal Audition suggestions, Co-Write updates and revisions to the AMIS Hosting Handbooks, Co-Organize Festival Mini-Workshops and Idea Exchanges throughout the year and work with Dick and Georgia Bassett to secure Festival Hosts and Locations. Her new favorite pastime is discovering good viola jokes to share with Bonnie!

Tim Germann is a current AMIS Executive Board member. He has been part of AMIS for almost 15 years having hosted two Honor Band and Choir Festivals and serving a term as the Executive Board President. He was Head of the Music Department at the American Community Schools in Athens, Greece and is currently Head of Performing and Fine Arts at the John F. Kennedy School in Berlin, Germany. Tim received his undergraduate degree in Music Education from Southern Methodist University and his graduate degree in International Comparative Education from Stanford University.

Tim is currently responsible for database management and development for AMIS.

Rick Hein is currently a member of the AMIS Executive Council and an AMIS individual member. He has served the Executive Board President and hosted three International Jazz Band Festivals and was honored to be the Honor Jazz Vocal Ensemble conductor. He holds a Bachelors in Music Education from Valparaiso University and studied composition and choral music education at the University of Minnesota and at the Institute of Education. Rick is a Life Member of ACDA, a member of the Musicians Union in the UK and a member of the International Society of Technology Educators.

Rick is the AMIS web master and maintains the AMIS web site.

James Libbey is the Music Performance Coordinator at the International School of Luxembourg, where he has worked for the past 6 years. He teaches vocal music in the Middle School, and is the director of both the Concert Choir and High School Choir. James also teaches drama and musical theater at ISL. Born and educated in Canada, he received a B.Mus and B.Ed degree from Queen's University and an M.Mus degree from the University of Toronto. As an educator he has taught in both Canada and Graz, Austria. Between teaching gigs, he toured and recorded extensively in a band as a professional musician in both North America and Europe. James is a new member of the AMIS Executive Board and will be working closely with Georgia with all aspects of AMIS publications. James lives in Luxembourg City with his wife, 3 children, and his cat, Kello.

Peter Lutkoski is the Middle School Assistant Principal at The American School in London, and maintains an active schedule as a workshop presenter and author on topics related to arts and learning. He was previously the Head of Performing Arts at The American School in London and has served as a guest conductor and clinician for student music ensembles and festivals around the world. Peter is a founder and teacher at the Global Learning Studio, a professional development symposium for classroom teachers, curriculum leaders, and museum educators, and is founder of the SHINE-ASL educational enrichment program for academically borderline students in London. He is a lead author of the International Music Performance Curriculum, and has served as faculty at numerous Harvard Project Zero symposia.

Peter serves as President of the Executive Council for The Association for Music in International Schools and is currently on the Board of Directors of the Conductors Retreat at Medomak. He received his master's degree in music education from the Oberlin Conservatory.

Keith Montgomery is in his eleventh year teaching choral music at The American School in London. Prior to ASL, he was at Cairo American College in Egypt for 13 years. When not in the classroom, Keith sings bass in the London Symphony Chorus.

Keith serves as Vice President of the Executive Council, and heads development efforts for AMIS.

Bonnie Reinitzer, born in Toronto Canada, received her degree in viola performance and music pedagogy at Queen's University in Ontario. She studied at the Hochschule für Musik in Vienna and played viola in the Graz Philharmonic for 5 years. In Canada she founded and taught at the Suzuki Niagara School of Music and performed in orchestras in Canada and Austria regularly. Bonnie started the AIS Vienna strings program in 1994, and since 2009 is acting department chair of the AISV related arts department. On the AMIS Executive Council, Bonnie is responsible for coordinating the auditions process, fielding the inquiries and overseeing the updating of materials. As well, she is updating the AMIS handbooks, keeping an open communication forum between International School string players and trying to ignore the viola jokes.