Dan joined the WCU faculty and the Smoky Mountain Brass Quintet in August 2002. He received his Bachelor of Music degree in Trombone and Voice Performance from Capital University in Columbus, Ohio, where he studied trombone with Joel Pugh and Scott Moore and voice with William Florescu. He went on to receive his Master of Music degree in Trombone from the University of Cincinnati’s College-Conservatory of Music, and is near completion of the Doctor of Musical Arts, also from Cincinnati. While at CCM, he studied trombone with Tony Chipurn and David Vining and conducting with Terrence Milligan.
Before coming to Western, Mr. Cherry served on the faculty of Morehead State University in Morehead, KY, where he was a Lecturer of Music in 2001-2002. He was the Graduate Assistant in Trombone at CCM from 1999-2001 and served as Assistant Conductor for both the Trombone Choir and the Brass Choir. He is a member of the International Trombone Association and the College Music Society.
Dan was the Principal Trombonist of the Huntington Symphony Orchestra (WV) from 2001-2003 and the Brevard Chamber Orchestra (NC) for the 2002 season. He has also performed with the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra (OH), the Dayton Philharmonic (OH), the Lexington Philharmonic (KY), the West Virginia Symphony, The Hendersonville Symphony Orchestra (NC) and the Greater Spartanburg Philharmonic (SC). Dan was a member of the Royal Brass, the quartet in residence at the Ohio Renaissance Festival from 1998 to 2000; it was there that he met his wife, trumpeter Amy Cherry.