Music Staff

John Priddy, Director of Music and Arts

A native of West Texas, John Priddy received a Bachelor of Music, in Vocal Performance from Texas Tech University and a Master of Music degree, in orchestral conducting from Indiana University, Bloomington. At IU, he served on the musical staff of the IU Opera Theater as coach-accompanist and assistant conductor where he conducted several productions, including Boris Godunov,Don Giovanni, L’elisir d’amore & The Tempest. He also established the Chamber Opera Ensemble at Indiana University, garnering support from the National Endowment for the Arts and Indiana Arts Council to fund its state-wide touring performances. He was the recipient of several fellowships and teaching assistantships at IU.

In 1984 he received a fellowship from the German Academic Exchange Service which funded conducting study in Berlin. He was also the recipient of a private study seminar in Vienna, Austria with Leonard Bernstein and the Vienna Philharmonic.

In addition to a conducting fellowship, he was twice awarded the $10,000 Elsie Sweeney Scholarship, the largest scholarship given by the School of Music.

He made his European conducting debut with the New York Harlem Opera Ensemble in Switzerland, subsequently conducting over 5O performances throughout Europe, including appearances in Paris, Geneva, Zurich, Brussels, Monte Carlo and Lyons.

In August 1988 he was appointed principal associate conductor of the Stadttheater in Lüneburg, West Germany. This was followed by his appointment as principal associate conductor and stage director of Theater Stralsund shortly after the German Reunification. During this time he also served as the music director for the German National Tour Production of Blood Brothers.

Returning to the United States shortly after the birth of his daughter, John served two years as arranger, music director, producer and musician in several theaters in Branson, Missouri, including work with Bobby Vinton and Japanese violinist Shoji Tabuchi. He has appointed Director of Music and Arts at First United Methodist Church in Beaumont in February, 1998. He continued directing and conducting theatre pieces, including an acclaimed city-wide production of Jesus Christ Superstar in April, 2000. He was also guest conductor of the Symphony of Southeast Texas as well as tenor soloist with the orchestra in presentations of Beethoven’s 9th Symphony.

John moved to Denton, Texas in July, 2001. He is active in Denton’s arts community and serves on the production board of Music Theatre of Denton. He is married to Jean Priddy and is the father of an 11-year old daughter, Gillian.

Dale H. Peters, Organist

As a church pianist from age 12 and a church organist from age 16 in his native Fort Worth, Dale Peters followed his musical interests to study at the University of North Texas (then North Texas State College), where he gained degrees in organ and in English. During his undergraduate years in Denton, he served as First United Methodist Church's organist. In 1954 he was first-place winner in the American Guild of Organists National Young Artists Competition.

While at Columbia University in New York for a graduate degree in musicology, he continued his career as church organist and recitalist. Further graduate study took him to the University of Copenhagen, Denmark, and later to the University of Illinois. His organ study was with Helen Hewitt, Searle Wright, Finn Videre, and Jerald Hamilton.

Since 1959 he has been a faculty member in the College of Music, University of North Texas, teaching organ and harpsichord. Other teaching areas have included theory, music history, and church music. He served for a number of years as Associate Dean of the College of Music. His students are found in prominent church and university positions throughout the nation.

He received the Associate, Fellow, and Choirmaster certificates by examination from the American Guild of Organists. Active in the Fort Worth and Dallas Chapters of the AGO, he completed three terms as a member of the AGO National Council and Councilor for the Southwest Region. He has been a frequent presenter of workshops and recitals for AGO chapters and conventions.

As a concert organist, he has performed throughout the United States and in England, France, Denmark, Germany, and the Czech Republic. His series of harpsichord concerts in Dallas and Fort Worth in the 1960's, as soloist and with his wife, contralto Juanita Teal, were among the first in the area to popularize the music of the harpsichord.

Since 1963 he has been Director-Organist at the First United Methodist Church, Denton. He has served with nine senior pastors during his tenure.

Jean Wilkinson Priddy, Director of Director of Children’s Choirs

A graduate of the School of Music at Indiana University, Jean Wilkinson garnered major awards from the Seattle Opera, the Eleanor Lieber Competition and the Metropolitan Opera Auditions. She has sung a vast repertoire of dramatic roles, ranging from all three heroines in Offenbach’s “The Tales of Hoffmann” to Mrs. Lovett in Sondheim’s “Sweeney Todd”. Concert appearances have included Richard Strauss’ “Four Last Songs”, Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony and Britten’s “Les Illumination”. She has appeared as principal soloist in Europe with Theater Vorpommern, Theater Stralsund, the New York Harlem Opera Ensemble and Stadttheater Lüneburg as well as the Hamburg Symphony Orchestra. She made frequent appearances with the Berlin-based swing ensemble “The Steve Horn Band” as well as recorded numerous jingles in German commercial studios. More recently, she was a featured soloist in Branson, Missouri. She was soprano soloist for the Symphony of Southeast Texas’ performance of Vaughn Williams’ “Hodie”. She has served on the faculty at Lamar University in Beaumont.

She is currently working toward her teaching certification at the University of North Texas. She is a licensed Kindermusik teacher.

Carol Lynn Mizell, Director of Bells

Carol Lynn Mizell is the director for all bell programs at 1st United Methodist Church. She is associate director of bands at Strickland Middle School in Denton. She has also conducted the Denton Community Band for over 24 years. She holds B.M.E. & M.M.E. degrees from the University of North Texas and has done extensive post-graduate work at UNT.

Mrs. Mizell is a charter member of Concert Bells of Ft. Worth, an auditioned community handbell choir in the Metroplex. She currently serves as a ringer and as con-conductor of CBFW. Mrs. Mizell attended the Advanced Conducting Master Class of the American Guild of English Handbell Ringers (AGEHR) in 1996, and was awarded “Handbell Director, full status” by the AGEHR’s accreditation committee. She was a guest conductor at the 2nd annual Denton Area Bell Jam in 2003 where her composition “Oh, For Two Thousand Bells to Ring” had its premier. She recently chaired the 3rd annual Denton Area Bell Jam.

An active participant in community arts, Mrs. Mizell was a member of the Board of Directors of the Greater Denton Arts Council for 9 years, serving as Treasurer and President (1986-87). She was a recipient of the GDAC’s Community Arts Recognition Award (CARA) in 1980. She served as Associate Director of the Denton Festival of Carols for thirteen years.

Mrs. Mizell holds membership in Texas Music Educators Association, Texas Bandmasters Association, American Guild of English Handbell Ringers, and Sigma Alpha Iota. She is a published composer. She and her husband, Bob, have two daughters, Michelle and Jennifer.