Jeffrey has been studying at Northwestern University working on his Doctorate Degree and has taken the position of Assistant Conductor with our ensemble while he is away. He continues working with the Board of Directors for musical and future planning and may return in the future as the conductor again. In the meantime we are happy to announce that Dr. Stephen Rochford has accepted the position of Conductor for the 2021/2022 Season.

   Dr. Stephen Rochford is honored to serve as Conductor of the Symphonic Winds of the Pacific for the 2021-2022 Season.  Since its founding as the Claremont Winds and the later SWOTP he has served four times as a Guest Conductor.

He served as Professor of Music and Director of the Irvine Valley College Instrumental Music Area from 1990-2017.  In this position he conducted the Wind Symphony and Symphony Orchestra and managed all aspects of the program. He served extensively in faculty governance as Music Department Chair, School of Arts Chair and for 25 years the Academic Senate amongst many other Committees and Task Forces.  Currently, he serves as Professor Emeritus on the Board of Governors and Planned Giving Committee, of the IVC Foundation.

From 1990 – 2017, IVC Instrumental Music grew from 18 players to include the Wind Symphony, Symphony Orchestra and the Ill–Tempered Chamber Players, Jazz Ensemble, Guitar Ensemble and Guitar Courses, Chamber Music and Applied Music.  Instrumental Ensembles performed over 50 new compositions and provided close to one hundred opportunities for both music major and non-major music students to have their works and excerpts read in rehearsals.

Currently, Dr. Rochford serves on the Board of the Music Association of California Community Colleges as Southern Section Instrumental Music Representative and, from 2012 – 2016 was Southern Selection President.  He also serves on the Board of the Irvine Music Festival, and, as a College of Arts Alumni Representative for the CSU Fullerton It Takes a Titan Capital Campaign.

Dr. Rochford received his Bachelor of Music degree in Clarinet Performance, where he was a student of Kalman Bloch, then Principal Clarinet, Los Angles Philharmonic Orchestra, and his Masters of Music degree in Instrumental Conducting from California State University, Fullerton, and, his Doctor of Musical Arts Degree in Conducting from The Claremont Graduate University. He likes cats, dogs, reading history, walking, movies, museums, art galleries and the Angels and Lakers.  He loves to travel and has been to all 50 US States and Washington DC as well as 20 foreign countries.

Our Assistant Conductor

   Jeffrey de Seriere was born and raised in Southern California, where he is an active conductor, music educator, and saxophonist. Jeffrey earned his B.M. in Music Education and M.M. in Instrumental Conducting from the Bob Cole Conservatory of Music at California State University, Long Beach. He is currently working on his Doctorate Degree in Music from Northwestern University. 

As a saxophonist, Jeffrey has studied privately with James Barrera, performed in numerous ensembles including the Orange County Wind Symphony and the Dana Point Symphony, and has participated in master classes with Dr. Timothy McAllister, Dr. Kenneth Tse, and Leo Potts. As an undergraduate student, Jeffrey performed with the CSULB Wind Symphony, CSULB Symphony Orchestra, and the University Saxophone Quartet. In 2013, the University Saxophone Quartet won the MTNA Southwest Regional Chamber Music Competition and was a finalist at the MTNA National Competition in Anaheim, CA.

As a conductor, Jeffrey has studied privately with John Carnahan and Dr. Anthony Mazzaferro. He has also participated in conducting workshops with Dr. Frank Battisti, Dr. Mallory Thompson, Dr. Jack Stamp, Eugene Corporon, and Jerry Junkin. In 2012, he won the Inaugural Undergraduate Conducting Competition at the Bob Cole Conservatory of Music.  In 2014, he was named one of seven finalists in the National Band Association’s Young Conductors Mentor Project. In that same year, he made his international conducting debut with the CSULB Wind Symphony in Seoul, South Korea. In the summer of 2015, Jeffrey was chosen as one of six young conductors to conduct The United States Army Band “Pershing’s Own”. In 2016, Mr. de Seriere, and his professional brass ensemble, True Brass Choir, performed as a featured ensemble at the California All-State Music Education Conference in San Jose, CA. A strong advocate for new wind band repertoire, Jeffrey has commissioned/co-commissioned over 10 new works for winds. In 2018, Jeffrey began his tenure as the Music Director of the Symphonic Winds of the Pacific, and adult wind ensemble in Southern California.