Austin Hilla, M.Ed., D.M.A.
Director of Bands and Percussion
Austin Hilla is the current Director of Bands and Percussion at Hillcrest High School. As the Head Director, he conducts the Wind Ensemble, Percussion Ensemble, Hillcrest Jazz I, is the founder of and instructional lead for the Hillcrest Marching Band, and fulfills other various teaching responsibilities, including teaching AP and IB Music courses and IB Theory of Knowledge. He maintains an active schedule as a guest conductor, clinician, and adjudicator for high schools and middle schools along the Wasatch Front in Jazz and Concert Band idioms. Mr. Hilla has earned the Sandy City Outstanding Educator award and has been nominated for Teacher of the Year multiple times in his time at Hillcrest.
Prior to working at Hillcrest, he taught in the Houston Independent School District and in the Greater Houston Area, where he conducted concert bands and revived defunct jazz ensemble programs, and taught marching band. Bands and chamber groups under his direction have enjoyed artistic and personal success, with students earning superior ratings at district and state performance evaluations and earning historic area placements in marching band through Texas UIL.
Austin Hilla earned a Doctor of Musical Arts degree with a concentration in Wind Conducting at The University of Utah as a student of Scott Hagen, Dr. Jared Rawlings, Dr. Rebekah Daniel, and Dr. Jason Missal, Director of Bands at The University of Utah. He completed his Bachelor of Musical Arts and Master of Education in Secondary Music degrees at Vanderbilt University where he studied with Mr. Gilbert Long on Tuba and Dr. Thomas Verrier in Conducting. As a graduate assistant with The University of Utah Bands, Mr. Hilla has guest conducted the Wind Ensemble and Symphonic Band as well as coaching multiple chamber ensembles in classical and contemporary wind settings. Hilla was also the Director of Wind and Jazz Ensembles at Encore/Coda Music Camp in Sweden, Maine for the 2022 Summer Session and will return to Encore/Coda for the upcoming 2024 Summer Session. His professional affiliations include the National Association for Music Education, Utah Music Educators Association, Utah Bandmasters Association, Texas Music Educators Association, the Association of Texas Small School Bands, and Phi Mu Alpha Sinfonia Music Fraternity.
He is a proud father to his three year old son, Gregory, and husband to Sarah Crass Hilla, a Leadershape Facilitator and Associate Director of Recruitment at the Eccles School of Business at The University of Utah. He is an avid coffee nerd, practicer of Hatha Yoga, cooking enthusiast, and music programming dork, listening to wind band music in his FREE TIME!
Wyatt Gilles
Assistant Director of Bands
Wyatt Gilles is the Director of Bands, Orchestras, and Percussion at Midvale Middle School and the Assistant Director of Bands at Hillcrest High School where he assists in the education and design for The Big Green Band and conducts Jazz Band 2. Wyatt graduated from the University of Utah in 2019 with a Bachelor’s Degree in Music Education. While at the University of Utah, he studied Bass Trombone with Dr. Donn Schaefer and performed in the Wind Ensemble, directed by Scott Hagen, and the Philharmonic Orchestra, directed by Dr. Robert Baldwin. He was also a member of the Marching Utes, serving one year as a Section Leader and two years as a Drum Major. During college, he was a frequent recipient of the Christensen Student Leadership Scholarship and the Eccles Music Scholarship.
Prior to teaching at Midvale and Hillcrest, Wyatt served as part-time music education staff at American Fork High School, American Fork Junior High, Lone Peak High School, and Juan Diego Catholic High School. He has also performed at the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade in New York, New York, the Tournament of Roses parade in Anaheim, California, and the Bands of America Grand National Championships in Indianapolis, Indiana. In 2017, Wyatt spent a summer performing with Utah’s own Battalion Drum and Bugle Corps where he served as Assistant Conductor. In 2018, he volunteered as a Conducting/Leadership Instructional Staff Member at Music for All’s Summer Symposium in Muncie, Indiana.
Wyatt has been a member of the Utah Music Educators Association since 2015 and has presented research at the UMEA conference in St. George, Utah. He is also a frequent attendee of the Midwest Band and Orchestra conference in Chicago, Illinois.
Wyatt enjoys studying cinema, reading fiction novels, playing video games, listening to The Beatles, and spending lazy afternoons with his dog, Pippin, in his free time.
Ensembles
WInd Ensemble
The Varsity Concert Ensemble at Hillcrest.
Director: Austin Hilla, M.Ed.
Assistant Director: Wyatt Gilles
Concert band
The Non-Varsity Concert Ensemble at Hillcrest.
Director: Wyatt Gilles
Hillcrest MarchinG Band
Competitive Marching Ensemble at Hillcrest.
Director: Austin Hilla, M.Ed.
Assistant Director/Visual Head: Wyatt Gilles
Colorguard Director: Chelsea Luhan
Visual Technical Staff: Abdallah Elhaddi
Colorguard Technical Staff: Emery Gilles
Percussion Technical Staff: Aidan Smith
Big Green Band (pep Band)
Pep Group for all members of Wind Ensemble, Concert Band, and Percussion Ensemble.
Director: Austin Hilla, M.Ed.
Assistant Director: Wyatt Gilles
percussion ensemble
The Varsity Percussion Group at Hillcrest.
Director: Austin Hilla, M.Ed.
intermediate percussion (Percussion Class)
An intro to high school Percussion for young musicians and interested students at Hillcrest.
Instructor: Austin Hilla, M.Ed.
Hillcrest Jazz I
The Varsity Jazz Ensemble at Hillcrest.
Director: Austin Hilla, M.Ed.
Hillcrest jazz II
The Non-Varsity Jazz Ensemble at Hillcrest.
Director: Wyatt Gilles