Dr. Stephen P. Bolstad served as the Director of Bands and Professor of Wind Conducting at James Madison University from 2007 to 2024 and is now Professor Emeritus. In addition to overseeing the University’s comprehensive band program, his specific duties included conducting the JMU Wind Symphony and Symphonic Band, teaching courses in wind literature/conducting, and leading the Masters and Doctoral program in Wind Conducting. Under Dr. Bolstad’s direction the JMU band program hosted annual guest composer residencies and received accolades from composers such as David Maslanka, John Mackey, Omar Thomas, Frank Ticheli, Michael Daugherty, James Stephenson, Joel Puckett, Steven Bryant, Donald Grantham, Paul Dooley, Bright Sheng, Don Freund, Brian Balmages, and Michael Markowski. The JMU Wind Symphony was a featured ensemble at the 2011, 2015 and 2022 Virginia Music Educators Association Conference and the 2015 National Conference of the College Band Directors National Association in Nashville, TN.

From 1994-2007 Dr. Bolstad was the Director of Bands at The University of Montana. Under his direction the Symphonic Wind Ensemble was selected to perform at the College Band Directors National Association’s Northwest/Western Divisional Conference in 1996 and 2006, and the MENC Northwest Conference in 2001 (Spokane, WA) and 2005 (Bellevue, WA). In 2004 Dr. Bolstad received the University of Montana School of Fine Arts Distinguished Faculty Award. Prior to Montana, Dr. Bolstad held similar positions in Alabama at both The University of Montevallo and Livingston University, and he was the Director of Bands at St. Marys Area High School in St. Marys, Pennsylvania.

Steve Bolstad holds the Doctor of Musical Arts degree in Conducting from The University of Texas at Austin, the Master of Music degree from Ithaca College in Ithaca, New York, and a Bachelor of Science in Music Education from Clarion University of Pennsylvania. His conducting teachers include Jerry F. Junkin (Texas), Rodney Winther (Ithaca) and Stanley F. Michalski (Clarion).

Dr. Bolstad is an active guest conductor having conducted district, regional and all-state festivals throughout the United States and Canada. He also maintains an active schedule as an adjudicator and clinician. He has served as President of the Montana Bandmasters Association, President-Elect of the Northwest Division of CBDNA, and in 2013 Dr. Bolstad was elected into the American Bandmasters Association.