Performer • Educator • Musical Leader
About Troy Bashor
A nationally touring drummer, percussionist, music director, orchestrator, vocalist, educator, and Certified Piano Technician whose career reflects a lifelong commitment to musical excellence and collaboration.
Western Montana
From Montana to the National Stage
Troy Bashor first became widely recognized throughout Montana for his work as a music educator, but his professional career has also given him the opportunity to perform and collaborate with respected artists from across the worlds of Broadway, jazz, percussion, and musical theatre.
Troy recently completed a national tour performing drums and percussion for Chicago. He previously played drums for the North American tour of Hairspray the Musical.
Across his career, Troy has played drum set and percussion for more than 80 musical productions and served as music director for more than 30 shows. Away from the drum kit, his work includes tuning pianos, writing orchestrations, music directing, conducting, composing, and designing and building theatrical sets.
Education and International Experience
Born and raised in northern Montana, Troy attended the University of Montana, where he earned both a Master of Music Education and a Bachelor of Music Education with an emphasis in percussion.
Troy also lived in Vienna, Austria, for a semester while completing university coursework. During that time, he performed concerts in Austria, Slovakia, Italy, and Hungary. The experience deepened his appreciation for the arts and strengthened his respect for different cultures and musical traditions.
Developing Young Performers
During the summers, Troy taught music theory and choral music at Next Step Prep: The Academy for Musical Theatre. He helped prepare students to work with Broadway performers and creative professionals, including Jason Robert Brown, Georgia Stitt, Kate Baldwin, Kevin Chamberlin, Susan Egan, Bill Bowers, Alex Gemignani, Leigh Zimmerman, Joan Hess, Marni Nixon, Greg White, Andy Taylor, Suzanne Carey, and Ryan Scott Oliver.
Troy also served as music director of the MCT Summer Performing Arts Camp for 11 years. His responsibilities went well beyond teaching the music. He wrote the orchestrations for each two-hour production, taught the material by rote, played drums, and conducted the performances. During this time, he worked with emerging performers such as Solea Pfeiffer.
Clinician, Adjudicator and Presenter
Troy has worked extensively with students and fellow educators throughout Montana and the Northwest. He has conducted 16 honor choir and percussion festivals at the junior-high and high-school levels.
He has also served as a clinician and adjudicator for choirs, choral sight-reading, solo percussion, and percussion ensembles. Respected among his peers, Troy has presented professional sessions for the Montana Music Educators Association, the Montana Choral Directors Association Summer Institute, and the Northwest American Choral Directors Association.
As a former Repertoire and Resources Chair for Ethnic and Multicultural Perspectives with the Montana Choral Directors Association, Troy presented sessions focused on multicultural choral repertoire for high-school and collegiate ensembles.
Touring Chicago The Musical
Hairspray The Musical
Selected Professional Collaborations
Artists & Musicians
Troy’s career has included performances and professional experiences alongside accomplished Broadway artists, world-class percussionists, and respected jazz musicians.
Broadway Artists
Eden Espinosa, Andy Taylor, Mike Eldred, Dan Sharkey, Curt Olds, and Suzanne Carey.
Percussion Artists
Horacio “El Negro” Hernandez, Lalo Davila, Chris Wabich, Julie Spencer, Mark Ford, Liam Teague, and Arthur Lipner.
Jazz Artists
Buddy DeFranco, Bob Berg, Allen Vizzutti, Eddie Daniels, Buddy Greco, and Byron Stripling.
Creative Professionals
Jason Robert Brown, Georgia Stitt, Kate Baldwin, Kevin Chamberlin, Susan Egan, Alex Gemignani, and Ryan Scott Oliver.
Education and Leadership
Sharing the Music
Troy’s approach to education combines professional performance experience with thoughtful preparation, practical musicianship, cultural awareness, and a genuine investment in developing artists.
Music Education
Bachelor’s and master’s degrees in Music Education, combined with extensive classroom, rehearsal, festival, and production experience.
Festival Conducting
Sixteen honor choir and percussion festivals conducted across Montana for junior-high and high-school musicians.
Musical Theatre
Eleven years directing young performers while writing orchestrations, teaching complete productions, playing drums, and conducting.
Professional Presentations
Teaching Through Experience
Troy has presented practical, classroom-tested strategies to music educators and directors throughout Montana and the Northwest.
- Sight-Reading Strategies for Developing Ensembles
- Percussion Techniques for Choir Teachers
- Selecting Age-Appropriate Music for Festivals
- Multicultural Choral Music for High-School Ensembles
- Multicultural Choral Music for Collegiate Ensembles
Home in Western Montana
Music Is More Than A Profession
Troy lives in western Montana with his wife, Anne—an accomplished pianist, teacher, and accompanist—and their chihuahuas, Mindy and Taquito. Whether touring, performing, teaching, orchestrating, tuning a piano, or building a theatrical set, creativity and music remain central to his life.