Dr. Douglas Bakenhus is the music director and conductor of the Natchitoches-Northwestern Symphony where he also teaches bassoon, music theory, aural skills, and conducting. His music degrees are from the University of Texas at Austin (DMA 2006, B.Music Ed.1983), Texas A&M University-Commerce (M.M. conducting 1985) and he has completed additional graduate courses in conducting at the University of Michigan. In addition, Dr. Bakenhus has been the music director of the Northeast Texas Symphony since 2002, and he served as the music director of the Austin Philharmonic from 2001-2004. Other teaching positions include Texas Lutheran University, the University of Mississippi, and public school teaching experiences at Crockett High School in Austin and at Langham Creek High School in Houston. Throughout his teaching career, Dr. Bakenhus has remained active as a guest conductor, clinician, and bassoonist. He recently conducted the San Pedro Sula Chamber Orchestra in Honduras and has toured Canada, Slovakia, and the Czech Republic with the NSU Faculty Woodwind Trio. Other recent ensemble performances include, on the baroque bassoon with Ars Lyrica in Houston, Texas, The Texas Bach Collegium in San Antonio, Texas, and on the modern bassoon with the Shreveport Symphony, the Longview Symphony, the Austin Symphony, and the San Antonio Symphony. Dr. Bakenhus is frequently called upon to adjudicate and clinic orchestra festivals, band festivals and solo/ensemble festivals throughout the United States and abroad.

 

 

Douglas Bakenhus
Director of Orchestral Studies
School of Creative and Performing Arts
Northwestern State University
Natchitoches, LA
71497 USA
(318) 357-5792
fax (318) 357-5906
Email: bakenhusd@nsula.edu