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Michael Stone joined the music faculty of Bourbon County High School in December of 2017. He attended Harrison County High School in Cynthiana, KY and went on to study music education at Eastern Kentucky University where he received both his Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees in Music Education, in 2014 and 2017, respectively.
While at EKU, Stone served as Vice-President of the Eastern Trumpet Studio, President and Drum Major of the Marching Colonels, and played principal trumpet in each of the university’s top-level ensembles. In the summer of 2011, he toured and performed with the Glassmen Drum and Bugle Corps as a lead trumpet in the corps’ 50th Anniversary season. Upon graduation in 2014, he joined the Department of Fine Arts at Harrison County High School, as a Choral Music Teacher, and soon assumed the role of Assistant Director of Bands. During his short time spent at his alma mater, Stone helped lead the marching program to the Kentucky Music Educators Association State Marching Band Championship semifinals and receive their highest rankings since their 2009 season (Stone’s senior year). In 2014 the band placed 13th and then 7th in 2015.
In December of 2015, Stone accepted a job at Bourbon County as the Middle School Director of Bands and Assistant High School Director alongside Eric Hale. He co-founded the Bluegrass Regional Honor Band and hosts it each year to provide more performance opportunities for the students of central Kentucky. In the two years Stone and Hale worked together, the Marching Band only lost 2 competitions and was awarded the Class AAA KMEA State Champion in 2016 and 2017. The middle school bands received consistent distinguished ratings at the KMEA District 7 Concert Band Assessment and many of his students were selected to participate in local, district, and regional honor bands. Upon Hale’s retirement in December of 2017, Stone took the role of the Director of Bands and Choirs. Since then, the high school concert band received a proficient rating at the KMEA District 7 Concert Band Assessment, the band’s drumline was selected to perform with the internationally-known group All That! Clogging, numerous students have been selected for honor band clinics, and the Marching Band won the 2018 KMEA Class AAA State Championship as well as the 2018 and 2019 Bands of America Class A National Championship – making Stone the first head band director in Kentucky to win those titles in their first year.
He has served on committees within his school district, the KMEA Marching Band Committee, the BOA Marching Band Advisory board, and the 2021 BOA Tournament of Roses Honor Band Faculty. Stone also arranges his own marching band music, and writes drill and choreography professionally. Stone aims higher for each chance he has to better himself and his band program. In 2020, Michael was named the Phi Beta Mu Young Bandmaster of the Year in Kentucky. Outside of band, Michael enjoys home renovation, hiking, and traveling. He resides in Lexington, KY with his partner, Josh, their dog, Jackson, and two cats, Bella and Cheyenne.