Director Insights

A CONVERSATION WITH DR. ERIK LEUNG

DANIEL SULLIVAN | LAMBDA

In the 2019-2020 school year, the OSU band program welcomed Dr. Erik Leung as the new Director of Bands (DOB). Prior to accepting the position at OSU, Dr. Leung served as the DOB at Fresno Pacific University. When asked why he chose to pursue his current position, Dr. Leung says he was drawn to both the location and size of OSU. “The prospect of living in Oregon is having access to the ocean and to a bigger school, a PAC-12 school,” Dr. Leung says. Additionally, Dr. Leung says “one of the things that really kinda cemented whether I came to OSU or not was the fact that they’ve had this huge history of quality band programs throughout the years; but on top of that, I was really excited to be the first person of color to be in the position of DOB.” Dr. Leung also emphasized the importance of having representation: “I think it’s really important ... to have people in leadership positions that are Asian or Black or Latino or Latinx or ... LGBTQ or women...”

Now that he has almost finished his second year in the position, Dr. Leung reflects on one of the enjoyable aspects of his job. “I love the students … in my capacity I get to see so many students. I get to see the wind ensemble students, but I also get to see the campus band students, and the marching band students. …[s]o for me, the students are just amazing. They’re friendly, … kind, ... hardworking, and they genuinely inspire me everyday to be better.”

Looking forward, Dr. Leung has a clear vision for what he would like to see from the OSU band program in the next few years. “[I]t’s been interesting with the whole black lives matter movement and this push towards more equitable spaces and having more access for people of color and women and people in the LGBTQ community. It’s really helped to refocus my thinking … and planning for what I feel like OSU bands should look like in the next 10, 20, 30 years.” Dr. Leung says that he along with the other OSU band faculty discussed the need to include “at least one piece by a woman composer, person of color composer [or] LGBTQ composer” on each concert program. Additionally, Dr. Leung would like to continue “educating them [band students] through experiences.” He mentions experiences such as traveling, touring, and inviting great teachers and guest conductors onto campus.