Captain Michael P. Flynn is the Flight Commander and Associate Conductor of the United States Air Force Academy Band located at Peterson Space Force Base, Colorado Springs, Colorado. Capt. Flynn earned his commission and was a distinguished graduate from Officer Training School in 2019 at Maxwell Air Force Base, Alabama.
Captain Flynn’s previous assignment was as Flight Commander and Associate Conductor of the United States Air Force Band of the West, San Antonio, TX. Prior to his commission as an officer in the USAF, Capt. Flynn was a university professor in academia as the Director of Bands and Brass Instruction at Western State Colorado University in Gunnison, CO, Director of Bands at Sheridan College, Sheridan Wyoming, and Director of Bands and Western Music Specialist at the Edward Said and Daniel Barenboim National Conservatory of Music located in Jerusalem and Bethlehem, Israel.
Capt. Flynn holds a Doctorate in Trumpet Performance with a conducting cognate from the University of Miami, FL. Conducting mentors include Catherine Rand, Gary Green, Jerry Junkin, and Thomas Sleeper. An advocate for new music for winds and percussion, Flynn recently conducted World Premiers of Craig Fitzpatrick's Leap of Faith, and Steve Danyew’s Into the Silent Land. Future consortium participation includes works by Omar Thomas and Björn Hallman.
Capt. Flynn maintains an active schedule as a guest conductor and clinician, and has led regional Honor and Select Bands across the country. He also conducted the first ever performance of both the First Suite and Second Suite for Military Band by Gustav Holst in Bethlehem and Ramallah, Israel, and in Damascus, Syria during a concert tour in 2011. As an orchestral trumpet player, Capt. Flynn has performed with symphonies and bands across the globe under conductors such as Michael Tilson Thomas, Daniel Barenboim, Marin Alsop, Eduardo Marturet, Jeff Tyzik, Jerry Junkin, Frank Batisti, Eugene Corporon, and Garry Green. In addition to his Doctorate in Trumpet Performance, Capt. Flynn is currently on track to complete his second doctorate in Wind Conducting at the University of Southern Mississippi.
EDUCATION:
2004 Bachelor of Music Education, Mansfield University, Mansfield, PA
2007 Master of Music, Trumpet Performance, University of Miami, Coral Gables, FL
2010 Doctor of Musical Arts, Trumpet Performance and Conducting, University of Miami, Coral Galbes, FL
2019 Officer Training School, Maxwell AFB, AL
2022 Anticipated Doctor of Musical Arts, Wind Conducting, The University of Southern Mississippi, Hattiesburg, MS
2021 Public Affairs and Communication Strategy Qualification Course, Defense Information School, Ft. Meade, Md.
ASSIGNMENTS:
December 2019 – July 2022, USAF Band of the West, Lackland AFB, TX
July 2022 – Present, USAF Academy Band, Peterson AFB, CO
MAJOR AWARDS AND DECORATIONS:
Air and Space Commendation Medal with one oak leaf cluster
Air and Space Outstanding Unit Award
National Defense Service Medal
Inherent Resolve Campaign Medal
Global War On Terrorism Expeditionary Medal
Global War on Terrorism Service Medal
Humanitarian Service Medal
Air and Space Expeditionary Service Ribbon with Gold Border
Air and Space Training Ribbon
EFFECTIVE DATES OF PROMOTION:
Second Lieutenant – December 2019
First Lieutenant – December 2021
Captain – December 2023