Rob Cothran is excited for the opportunity to lead the students of the CFCArts Youth Orchestra! Rob completed a Bachelor of Music Education and graduate assistantship at Auburn University with trumpet as his principal instrument. He spent 12 years as a high school band director, teaching AP Music Theory and IB Music in Alabama. Rob’s concert, marching, and jazz ensembles consistently earned superior ratings in assessment and competition. Rob had multiple ensembles selected to perform at the Alabama Music Educators Association Professional Development Conference, The Chicago Thanksgiving Parade (Chicago, Illinois), The National Cherry Blossom Festival Parade (Washington, D.C.), and numerous other honor bands and festivals. Rob is currently active as a wind and marching band clinician, adjudicator, and guest conductor. Rob’s professional playing experience includes cruise ship bands throughout Europe and the Caribbean, freelancing in the San Francisco Bay Area and the southeastern United States, and numerous pit orchestras. Rob was a founding member of the Alabama Winds, an all-adult wind band whose mission is “to foster and promote the appreciation of high-quality wind band music through performances of artistic merit for our audience, the residents of the state of Alabama and the members of the ensemble.” Rob has performed with the Alabama Winds at the Midwest Clinic International Band, Orchestra, and Music Conference in Chicago, Illinois, as well as on tour throughout Europe. Rob performed for over a decade with the Auburn Knights Orchestra, a jazz and swing big band performing continuously since its founding in Auburn, Alabama, in 1929. In addition to serving as a conductor for the CFCArts Youth Orchestra, Rob also performs with the CFCArts Big Band and Symphony Orchestra. Rob currently works in the student travel industry where he coordinates worldwide travel opportunities for student performing ensembles of all sizes and ages. He lives in Minneola, Florida, with Allison (his wife), Rhett (his dog), and Gibbs (his cat).

Nikki Oxley is the CFCArts Youth Orchestra Administrator. She plays flute with the adult orchestra and has enjoyed volunteering with the Youth Orchestra in the past few years. She is thankful for the opportunity to play in the CFCArts Orchestra and recently performed in Classic(al) Rock and Winter Wonderland. Nikki has been playing with the adult orchestra since 2017. She began learning the flute in 5th grade, grew up in Rhode Island, and participated in all the band activities that she could throughout her high school career. Nikki was in the Wind Ensemble, Jazz Band, Honors Band, pit orchestra (Bye Bye Birdie), and Southern New England Honors Band. Her band would always get to march at the Big E (New England’s version of the state fair). A fun fact about Nikki is that she enjoys going SCUBA diving. She hopes to be able to dive the Vandenburg shipwreck in Key West soon. Nikki is so excited to be part of the Youth Orchestra team! She first helped out with the Youth Orchestra as an adult orchestra mentor when her daughters were members. What she enjoys most about this group is seeing the musical progress and growth that the young musicians make in such a short time. Nikki can’t wait to see all that they’ll accomplish together in the future!