Edward Messerschmidt

Originally from the Washington DC area, Edward “Ted” Messerschmidt is a versatile musician who has been recognized in national contests in composition, conducting, and trombone performance. His original compositions, published by Cimarron Music Press and Warwick Music Publishing, have been performed in the United States, Europe, and South America by musicians and ensembles including Andy Akiho, Joseph Bello, Charley Brighton, Ruthanne Schempf, Patrick Smith, Harry Watters, the Luftwaffenmusikkorps Erfurt (forthcoming), and the United States Army Orchestra. His 2021 work for trombone and actors Solitary was featured in the digital gallery of Boston University’s project Race, Prison, Justice: Illuminating Stories through the Arts. In 2022, he was one of 50 composers whose music was selected for performance at the International Composers Festival in Bexhill-on-Sea, England. He has written for a wide variety of ensembles and has even earned honorable mention in pop songwriting competitions. 

As a performer, Messerschmidt has subbed with professional orchestras and ensembles and has also done session recording for SubFamily Records and sideline work on trombone for the HBO series The Gilded Age. As a conductor, he has guest conducted ensembles in the Washington DC area and in New York. He has also worked as an adjunct lecturer at Marist College, where he served as the Associate Director of Bands (2007-2013) and Orchestra Director (2012-2018). While at Marist, he was recognized as the Adjunct Faculty Member of the Year in 2010. 

An advocate for criminal-legal reform, Messerschmidt has explored the topic of music education in prisons in scholarly articles and has presented his research at conferences in Austria, The Republic of Georgia, Germany, and the United States. He has also volunteered with Rising Hope, Inc., teaching college-level courses to incarcerated men. 

In 2017, Messerschmidt earned his Doctor of Musical Arts degree in Music Education from Boston University, examining attitudes toward incarcerated people following experiences with a prison choir. He also holds degrees from The College of William and Mary, where he studied composition with Edgar Warren Williams, and George Mason University, where he studied with Mark Camphouse and Glenn Smith. Messerschmidt is currently the Director of Music and the Arts Department Chair at Oakwood Friends School, and he is also on the part-time faculty of the SUNY Dutchess Academy of Music. Messerschmidt lives in Poughkeepsie NY with his wife and two sons.