Matt Harloff concluded a remarkable 30-year career at Avon High School (Avon, IN), serving 27 years as Assistant Band Director before becoming Director of Bands from 2023-2026. During his tenure, the Avon Band Program earned numerous state, national, and world honors. The Wind Symphony was named Indiana State School Music Association Concert Band State Champion three times, and the Avon HS Brass Choir was featured at the 2015 Midwest Band & Orchestra Clinic.
Matt had the honor of serving alongside a team of directors for The Avon Marching Black & Gold, which won 18 state titles and six Bands of America Grand National Championships. Between 2007 and 2025, the Avon Marching Band maintained an extraordinary 18-year streak of top-three finishes at the Bands of America Grand National Finals, an unprecedented record of sustained excellence. The ensemble also appeared in the 2012 Tournament of Roses Parade and the 2024 Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade, and received the John Philip Sousa Sudler Shield in 2007. As director of Avon Indoor Winds, Matt led the group to nine IPA State Championships and six WGI Scholastic World Class Championships.
In 2003, Matt became Brass Caption Head for the Carolina Crown Drum & Bugle Corps, helping build CrownBRASS into one of the nation’s elite programs. The brass section has earned eight Jim Ott Memorial Awards. Carolina Crown is a consistent Drum Corps International World Class Finalist and celebrated their first ever DCI World Class World Championship in 2013. Matt was inducted into the Carolina Crown Hall of Fame in 2017, the Drum Corps International Hall of Fame in 2025 and The Buglers Hall of Fame in 2026. He previously performed with the Star of Indiana Drum & Bugle Corps (1989–1995), serving as drum major in 1993.
Matt co-founded Inside the Circle, LLC with longtime friend and DCI Hall of Fame member Michael Klesch. The organization supports music educators through resources, materials, and publications. Matt and his brother Ben coauthored three books in the Inside the Circle series.
Matt is proud to be a Yamaha Artist and has performed with world renown artists including Travis Scott, Voctave and The Liberty Voices.
A native of Mt. Pleasant, Iowa, Matt comes from a musical family. His father, Bill, is a retired band director, and his brother Ben directs bands in Minnesota. Matt and his beautiful wife Susie continue to serve the pageantry arts together and they share enormous pride of their two children, Tyson and Shaelyn.