Charles Watford

Music Director & Symphonic Orchestra Conductor

(He/Him)

Mr. Charles Watford is the Music Director and Symphonic Orchestra Conductor of Florida Symphony Youth Orchestras. He is also a clarinetist in Southern Winds and serves as a clinician across Florida. Mr. Watford believes that we are all lifelong learners of music.

Watford earned a Bachelor of Music in Clarinet Performance and Music Education from Stetson University and continued his studies at Florida State University where he received a Master’s Degree in Music Education. At Stetson, he participated in the band, orchestra, and pit orchestra, and during his senior year, he performed the Mozart Clarinet Concerto with the Stetson Orchestra as a finalist in their Annual Concerto Competition. At Florida State University, he performed with the Symphonic Band, Wind Ensemble, and Symphonic Orchestra. His conducting mentors include Bobby Adams, Tom Sleeper, James Croft, and Kenneth Williams. He further honed his skills at conducting workshops at the University of Colorado Boulder and the University of Texas at Austin, working with notable conductors such as Craig Kirchhoff, Alan McMurray, Richard Floyd, Kevin Sedatole, and Jerry Junkin.

Over the past 31 years, Watford has taught at both the high school and collegiate levels. He began his career in 1994 as the Director of Bands at Lake Howell High School where he received the Otto J. Kraushaar Award twice and was named Teacher of the Year for the 1999-2000 school year. From 2000 to 2005, he continued his teaching at Winter Springs High School, overseeing the band program and guitar classes. Under his leadership, the Winter Springs band performed at the Peach Bowl in Atlanta, the Cherry Blossom Parade in Washington, D.C., and consistently received straight superiors at the Florida Bandmasters Association State MPA, earning the Otto J. Kraushaar Award. Additionally, Watford was an adjunct clarinet professor at Seminole State College from 2003 to 2005.

Watford recently retired from Dr. Phillips High School’s Visual Performing Arts Magnet where he served as Director of Bands for 19 years and was named Teacher of the Year in 2008. In addition to band, he taught piano, Jazz Band, AP Music Theory, and Orchestra from 2009 to 2011. During his tenure, the Symphonic Orchestra received superior ratings at the 2011 Florida Orchestra Association State Concert Music Performance Assessment. The Dr. Phillips bands performed nationally and internationally, including at the Music for All National Concert Festival in Indianapolis in 2011. The bands consistently received superior ratings at district and state performances, and Watford earned the Jack Crew Award twice for five consecutive years of state superiors. In 2020, he received the Oliver Hobbs Outstanding Band Director Award making him a Florida Bandmasters Association Legacy Member.

Watford has conducted numerous All-County bands throughout Florida and conducted the High School All-State Honors Band in 2014. He currently serves as an adjudicator for the Florida Bandmasters Association and has participated in several committees including the Concert Music and MPA committees. Many of his former students are now teachers and performers in the music field. He is a Life Member of the Florida Bandmasters Association, holds memberships in the Florida Orchestra Association, National Band Association, and Florida Music Educators Association. Watford is an elected member of the National Bandmasters fraternity Phi Beta Mu. He resides in Oviedo with his wife, Susan, their daughters, Lauren and Emily, and their French Bulldog, Sarafina.