Jeremy Olisar Named Director of the Kiltie Band

(PITTSBURGH, Pa.) – Jeremy Olisar has been named the Director of the Carnegie Mellon University Kiltie Band. Olisar succeeds Paul Gerlach who announced his retirement last spring after leading the Kilties for 38 years.

Olisar, a 2007 graduate of Carnegie Mellon, played in the Kiltie Band as an undergraduate, earned his bachelor’s degree in clarinet performance with minors in music education and conducting from the College of Fine Arts. He received a master’s degree in band conducting from the American Band College of Sam Houston State University.

“The Kiltie Band is a Carnegie Mellon treasure, and has been led by the legendary Paul Gerlach for nearly four decades,” said Director of Athletics Josh Centor. “Like Paul, Jeremy is a Kiltie, and I know the experience of playing in the band was a formative one for him and an education he looks forward to sharing with our students.”

Since earning his degrees, Olisar has served as band director, choir director and music teacher at West Greene Middle-Senior High School for six years before becoming assistant band director in the Central Greene School District. Jeremy also has been a part-time lecturer at Waynesburg University since 2007, and has been the assistant marching band director at Jefferson-Morgan Middle School since 2019.