Dr. Ben Cantrell has been an educator, adjudicator, clinician, and performer for nearly 20 years. As a performer, he has played and traveled with numerous ensembles across the U.S. as well as multi-city tours in Europe and Asia. Ben is currently a performing member for the Johnson City Orchestra in Tennessee, the Sacred Winds Ensemble of Kentucky, and the Winds of the Mountain Empire of Virginia. Previously, he has played for the Greensboro Symphony Orchestra Percussion Ensemble, the Roanoke Orchestra, the Winston-Salem Orchestra, the Piedmont Triad Jazz Ensemble, Jenny Wiley Theatre, and Barter Theatre.

Ben earned a DMA from the University of North Carolina-Greensboro under Dr. Eric Willie, a Master of Music degree from Radford University under Dr. Robert Sanderl, and a Bachelor of Music Education degree from Morehead State University under Dr. Brian Mason. He is proud to be an educational artist for Mapex/Majestic Percussion & Innovative Percussion. Ben is also a member of Black Swamp Percussion’s Educator Network and Percussive Arts Society’s Health & Wellness Committee.

Currently, Ben serves as Visiting Assistant Professor of Percussion at Morehead State University where he, along with his fellow percussion faculty, teaches private applied lessons, percussion ensemble, steel band, and the marching percussion ensemble.