Prior to his appointment at the Eastman School, Scatterday served as Professor of Music and Chair of the Department of Music at Cornell University in Ithaca, NY from 1989–2002, where he conducted the University's Wind Ensemble, Chamber Orchestra, Wind Symphony, Chamber Winds, and Festival Orchestra. He also taught conducting, music theory, and low brass performance. While at Cornell, he was one of the principal conductors of the professional new music group Ensemble X, which performed in Carnegie Hall in 2003, and was also the conductor and music director of the Cayuga Winds, a professional chamber winds ensemble in Ithaca, New York. He also has taught conducting at Ithaca College.
On January 28, 2002, after an extensive national search, the Eastman School named Scatterday the fourth conductor of the world-renowned Eastman Wind Ensemble, succeeding his former teacher Donald Hunsberger, who had conducted the ensemble for 37 years. Since 2002, Scatterday has served as the conductor of the Eastman Wind Ensemble and the Eastman Wind Orchestra at the Eastman School of Music of the University of Rochester in Rochester, New York. At Eastman, Scatterday serves as Professor of Conducting and Chair of the Conducting and Ensembles Department. In 2004, he led the Eastman Wind Ensemble in their return tour to Japan, as well as to Taiwan and Macau. In 2005, he led the ensemble in a highly acclaimed performance at Carnegie Hall and also conducted a concert in Japan as part of the opening ceremonies of a new concert hall in Karuizawa, joined by members of the Tokyo Philharmonic Orchestra. In 2009, Scatterday and the EWE performed at the prestigious Midwest Clinic in Chicago, premiering Jeff Tyzik's Riffs written for Michael Burritt and the EWE.
Advocate of contemporary music
Scatterday is an advocate of contemporary music, especially the music of composers Karel Husa and Roberto Sierra. He has commissioned Roberto Sierra's Diferencias, Fanfarria and Octeto and transcribed his Fandangos and Sinfonia No. 3 and Alegria. His other commissions and premiers include works by composers such as Steven Stucky, David Maslanka, Jorge Liderman, Verne Reynolds, Christopher Theofanidis, John Fitz Rogers, David Liptak, Robert Morris, Jeff Tyzik, Joseph Turrin, Kyle Blaha, Jacob Bancks, James Matheson, Steven Burke, Sally Lamb, Sydney Hodkinson, and David Borden. Recently, Scatterday conducted the premiere recording of Roberto Sierra's Cancionero Sefardi with members of the Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra on Fleur De Son Classics, Judith Weir's Concerto for Piano and Musicians Wrestling Everywhere with Ensemble X on Albany Records and Danzante with James Thompson and the Eastman Wind Ensemble on Summit Records, Barcelonazo on Bridge Records and Manhattan Music with the EWE and the Canadian Brass on Opening Day Records.
