Music Faculty

William Evans

William C. Evans has taught choral music and been Music Department Chair at Sherwood High School in Montgomery County, Maryland since 1979. He received a Bachelor of Science in Music Education from Clarion University in Pennsylvania and a Master of Music in Voice from The Peabody Institute of Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore. Bill directs three choral groups at Sherwood: Chamber Singers, Concert Choir, and Men's Chorus. He teaches the popular Electronic Music and Recording Studio Techniques class. Bill has been Musical Director, Technical Supervisor and Creative Writer for Sherwood High School's original musical production Rock and Roll Revival, now in its 38th year. Over 200,000 people have attended Rock and Roll Revival since 1979. Bill started the MCPS Show Choir Festival in 1982, which is held each year at Sherwood.

Bill has served as a choral clinician and adjudicator for the Annapolis music festival for fourteen years, as well as festivals in Delaware, Virginia, and Pennsylvania.

Bill is a Lecturer and Director of the Music Technology Lab at the School of Music, University of Maryland - College Park. During spring 2003 he was a part-time faculty member and guest conductor of the Towson University Vocal Jazz Ensemble. He has also been a guest lecturer for the Music Department at the Catholic University of America.

Bill has presented choral reading sessions and numerous interest sessions at state and local MENC conventions starting in 1981.

As a singer Bill has appeared in various roles in opera, musical comedy, and concert performances with the Trinity Players, Wolf Trap Summer Opera, Cedar Lane Stage, Pennsylvania Opera Festival, Prince George's Civic Opera, Laurel Oratorio Society and the Annapolis Chorale.

Mr. Evans has received numerous honors and awards over the years, including the University of Maryland Outstanding Teachers Award from the Center for Teaching Excellence (2004), Sherwood PTSA Educator of the Year (2006 and 2000), Maryland State Computer Educator of the Year from the Maryland Instructional Computer Coordinators Association (1991), Outstanding Contribution to the Community (1989) and the Outstanding Contribution to Youth Award (1987) from the Greater Olney Civic Association.

Mr. Evans is a member of the Maryland Music Education Association (MMEA), the Music Education National Conference (MENC), American Choral Directors Association (ACDA), The Technology Institute for Music Educators (TI:ME), and the International Federation of Choral Musicians (IFC).


Marsha Barnes

Marsha has taught in a number of Montgomery County Schools where she has worked with pre-school, elementary, middle, and high school students. She is currently teaching Music Theory, Piano, and Guitar at Sherwood High School. She has trained teachers to work with students in the MCPS Interrelated Arts Program which integrated the arts with other subject areas. She also provided training for teachers in the Tapestry program for gifted students in the arts. She wrote lessons for and edited the MCPS lesson guide for use with the music component of Tapestry and was a contributing writer of lessons for the Macmillan textbook set, "Music and You". With piano her major instrument, she has served as accompanist for choral groups and soloists at all educational levels. She has produced and directed musicals at the elementary and middle school levels. A product of Montgomery County Schools, Marsha received a B.S. in Music Education and a Master of Music in Music Theory from the University of Maryland. She completed all course work for a Ph.D. in Musicology with a Theory emphasis also at the University of Maryland.


Alex Silverbook

Alex Silverbook, Director of Instrumental Music, joined the Sherwood High School Music Department in 2000 after receiving his Batchelor of Science degree in Music Education from Penn State University. He received his Master of Music in Music Education from University of Maryland in 2007. He is a member of the International Association of Jazz Educators, Delta Omicron (the international music fraternity), and MENC. Alex has served as a clinician and adjudicator for music festivals in Maryland.


Kelly Butler

Kelly Butler is in her second year of the Masters of Choral Conducting program at the University of Maryland with Dr. Ed Maclary. She co-directed the opera chorus in last year’s world premiere of Shadowboxer by the Maryland Opera Studio and directed the opera chorus for this year’s performance of Florencia en el Amazonas. Mrs. Butler received her Bachelors in Music Education from St. Olaf College and sang in the choir under the direction of Dr. Anton Armstrong. After a semester teaching music in Guyana, South America, Mrs. Butler spent six years teaching middle school and high school strings in Colorado. Before coming to Sherwood she was the chorus director at Eastern Middle School for two years. Besides teaching women’s choir and vocal jazz here at Sherwood, she stays busy teaching a variety of choral and music classes at Highland Elementary and Rosa Parks Middle Schools, and coaching a summer swim team in Silver Spring.