Born in 1977 on the south side of Atlanta, Joel Puckett is the son of a dixie-land jazz musician and a classical 
tubist. He spent his childhood improvising with his father and learning the fundamentals of both concert and popular music. He has recently completed his D.M.A. in composition from the University of Michigan. His composition teachers have included William Bolcom, Michael Daugherty, Bright Sheng, Will Averitt, and Thomas Albert. Formerly a cantor at St. John's Episcopal Church in Detroit, he has also been an active performer of both contemporary and cabaret works.
tubist. He spent his childhood improvising with his father and learning the fundamentals of both concert and popular music. He has recently completed his D.M.A. in composition from the University of Michigan. His composition teachers have included William Bolcom, Michael Daugherty, Bright Sheng, Will Averitt, and Thomas Albert. Formerly a cantor at St. John's Episcopal Church in Detroit, he has also been an active performer of both contemporary and cabaret works. Joel has recently been hailed in the Washington Post as both "a visionary" and "gifted". His music has been heard and recognized throughout the US and in Europe. The recent past has brought the premiere of two song cycles and several awards including a BMI Award, a grant from the department of humanities at the University of Michigan and a Rackham Dissertation Grant from the Rackham Graduate School at the University of Michigan.
The Washington Chorus—recipient of the 2000 Grammy Award for Best Choral Performance— commissioned and premiered Joel's new work This Mourning, for chorus, orchestra, 40 wine glasses and tenor soloist, to rave reviews at the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C.
Of the third movement Baltimore Sun critic Tim Page said, "The final movement reaches profound heights. As the chorus intones Dickinson's lines, 'There must be guests in Eden, All the rooms are full,' a cathartic, almost ecstatic rise of melody and emotion unfolds."
The live recording by the University of Michigan Symphony Band of his recent work for wind ensemble, Ping, Pang, Pong, will soon be released as part of the Media Showcase presented by the Internet Publication Project.
Dr. Puckett is also a member of the original skin percussion project, which serves to promote the creation and performances of new works for percussion.
Joel has served as an adjudicator for national competitions for young composers, such as the SCI/ASCAP competition. He also frequently gives guest lectures and masterclasses. He most recently lectured at City College in Harlem, NY; Indiana University in Bloomington and Abilene Christian University in Abilene, TX.
Since 2004, Joel has served on the faculty of Towson University and has previously served on the graduate faculty at Shenandoah University in Winchester, VA.
