WHS BAND Staff

Mike Malek – Director of Bands Mike Malek currently serves as director of bands at Wheeling High School in Wheeling, Illinois. He previously served as band director at MacArthur Middle School in Prospect Heights. During his six-year tenure at MacArthur, the concert band consistently earned superior ratings at IGSMA organizational contest – a tradition still held by the program since 1973. In 2016, both the jazz band and concert band received perfect score ratings. The concert band has also been selected to the Illinois Superstate Band Festival five years in a row and was named honor band in 2012. With the help of his students, he has four citations of excellence from the National Band Association. Mr. Malek has been a clinician at summer band camps at Lake Geneva Youth Center and at the University of Illinois Summer Youth Music camp.

Mr. Malek now directs the "Wildcat" Marching Band, Wind Symphony, Symphony Band and Jazz Band I at Wheeling.

Mr. Malek holds a degree of Bachelor’s in Music Education with honors from Indiana University, Bloomington. In summer of 2014 he received his Master’s in Music Education with honors from Vandercook College of Music in Chicago, Illinois. His professional affiliations are with the Illinois Music Educator’s Association, the Illinois Grade School Music Association, the National Association for Music Education, and the National Band Association. His primary conducting teachers were Dr. Barron Breland, Dr. Paul Popiel, Dr. Allan McMurray, and Dr. Charles Menghini. Other influential teachers include David J. Thomas, Scott Casagrande, and his trombone professor Peter Ellefson.

Morgan Martin - Drum Line Instructor

Morgan Martin is currently a student at Elmhurst College, where she studies Music Education and Music Performance. In addition to her position as the Frontline Instructor with the “Wildcat” Marching Band, Morgan has worked with Wheeling High School’s percussion ensemble, assisted with the Fenton High School drumline, and spent a month in Montego Bay, Jamaica performing and teaching lessons. She was selected to perform in the Elmhurst College Honors Recital in 2017 and 2018. Her front ensemble experience includes marching with Pioneer Indoor for the 2018 WGI season.

Matt Browne - Drum Line Instructor

Matt Browne is a graduate of Wheeling High School and is continuing his education at Elmhurst College. Matt is studying Music Education, Music Performance and Music Production. He has been involved in marching band for six years, marching with the Wheeling High School marching band for four and being the Frontline Technician for two. Along with Wheeling High School, Matt assisted two other marching bands last summer, one frontline and one drum line. He is very grateful for the opportunity to work with the Wildcat marching band once again and hopes to continue working with marching bands in the future. Matt also continues his outside teachings as a private instructor for piano and percussion.

Peter Weber - Drill Writer

Visual Consultant/Drill Writer Peter Weber is a graduate of Illinois Wesleyan University, where he received his Bachelors of Music Education in May of 2000. He taught as an assistant band at Lopez High School in Brownsville, Texas, served as interim director at Prospect High School in Mount Prospect, Illinois, and has a graduate degree in conducting from the University of Houston Moores School of Music. Pete is now the orchestra and jazz band director at Prospect High School.Peter’s drum corps experience includes six years with the Cavaliers Drum and Bugle Corps of Rosemont, Illinois: four years in the brass line and two years as the drum major. After graduating from the corps in 1998, he returned as a brass instructor for portions of the 2000 and 2004 seasons. Since then he has designed drill for the 2002 Colts Drum and Bugle Corps, and the 2005 Madison Scouts Drum and Bugle Corps. He has been designing drill and coordinating visual programs for nationally recognized programs since 1995. Currently, he is the visual designer and drill writer for the Santa Clara Vanguard Drum and Bugle Corps from Santa Clara, CA. When not teaching or performing, Peter is active as a designer, consultant, and adjudicator for high school and university bands throughout the United States.