U.S. Army Band member Troy McKay is Homecoming Luncheon speaker

Troy McKay

U.S. Army Band member Troy McKay will be the Homecoming Luncheon speaker on Friday, Oct. 17, at noon in the Bone Student Center Brown Ballroom. Reserve your seat by Wednesday, Oct. 1, by clicking on Homecoming Luncheon.

SSG McKay has been a member of The United States Army Band, “Pershing’s Own” since 2001. A native of Kansas City, Mo., McKay earned his bachelor’s degree in music education at Illinois State University, studying with Amy Gilreath. While at Illinois State, he was a charter member of the Nu Omicron chapter of Phi Mu Alpha Sinfonia. McKay later earned his master of music degree in trumpet performance.

McKay performed in Red Square with the Russian Army Band and Herald Trumpets as a member of the Orchestra of the World and performed with The Old Guard Fife and Drum Corps for two years before joining Pershing’s Own. He also has performed with the Kennedy Center Concert Opera Orchestra and the Christian Performing Artists’ Fellowship. He has been a featured soloist in the Fischoff National Chamber Music Competition and the World’s Fair in Seville, Spain.

During his time at Illinois State, McKay spent five years in the Big Red Marching Machine, five years in the Wind Symphony and five years in the ISU Symphony Orchestra. He earned a 3rd place in the National Trumpet Competition in Washington, D.C. and was a semi-finalist in the Fischoff National Chamber Music Competition.

McKay and his wife Lucile and sons John, Gabriel and Elliot live in Maryland. He has performed for Presidents George W. Bush, Bill Clinton and George Bush and for the funeral for Ronald Reagan. He served as a Special Bugler for the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier and plays for funerals in Arlington National Cemetery.