Leslie W. Hicken, Professor Emeritus and the Charles E. Daniel Professor of Music, taught on the faculty of Furman University from the fall of 1993 until his retirement in 2019. Within the music department, his responsibilities included the directorship of the Symphonic Band and Wind Ensemble, professor of music education and instrumental conducting, and Assistant Director of the Marching Band. He was also the Director of the Furman Music by the Lake Concert Series and the Lakeside Concert Band. Dr. Hicken is the Artistic Director of the Carolina Youth Symphony and Co-Director of the Poinsett Wind Symphony. During the 2021-2022 academic year, he was the Visiting Professor at Clemson University as conductor of their Symphony Orchestra. This year, he is the interim Director of the Wind Ensemble at the South Carolina Governor’s School for the Arts and Humanities.
Prior to his appointment at Furman, Hicken was Director of Bands at Youngstown State University in Youngstown, Ohio. In addition to his duties at Youngstown State, he was the director of the Youngstown Symphony Youth Orchestra and a clarinetist in the Youngstown Symphony Orchestra. Earlier in his career, Hicken was employed for five years as an instrumental music teacher in the Durham (NC) County School system. He began his musical career as a clarinetist in the United States Military Academy Band at West Point, NY.
In the fall of 2000, Hicken completed a residency with the public schools of Volta Redonda, Rio de Janeiro State in Brazil preparing a concert with their String Orchestra. Hicken received the Outstanding Bandmaster of the Year Award in 2000, the Outstanding Contributor Award in 2002, and was inducted into the Hall of Fame from the South Carolina Chapter of Phi Beta Mu in 2023. In 2002, he was elected into the American Bandmasters Association. In the spring of 2010, he was inducted into the South Carolina Band Directors Association Hall of Fame. In 2015, he received the Excellence in Teaching Award from the South Carolina Independent Colleges & Universities organization. He is the Past President of the College Band Directors National Association Southern Division and the South Carolina Band Directors Association.
Dr. Hicken received his Bachelor of Music degree from the Eastman School of Music, a Master of Arts in Teaching from Teachers College, Columbia University, and a Doctorate in Music Education from Indiana University. He studied clarinet with D. Stanley Hasty, Leon Russianoff, and Bernard Portnoy; and conducting with J. Marion Magill, Robert Klotman, and Ray Cramer.