Music Ed Musings

Today’s episode of Music Ed Musings features Dr. Deb Confredo, President of NAfME (the National Association for Music Education). We met a few weeks ago at NAfME’s annual National Assembly, and I was struck by Dr. Confredo’s passion, candor, and optimism for the future of music education. She really made all the collegiates in the audience feel welcome and appreciated, and I was so honored when sh...

This episode is with Dr. Jamila McWhirter, Professor of Music Education at MTSU. She teaches all kinds of Music Ed and Choral classes in the School of Music, but she is probably best known for her infamous MUED 2000 course, which serves as an introduction to music education for all incoming music ed majors. She has had an incredible career both in education and as a conductor, and her story is bot...

This episode is with jazz vocalist extraordinaire, Julia Rich! Ms. Rich teaches Jazz Voice at MTSU, but her career goes far beyond that. She toured for 25 years with the world-famous Glenn Miller Orchestra, released multiple albums, and has taught in various capacities around the world. She has a very fresh take on music education as someone who started out down the public school teacher path but...

In this episode, I have the privilege of speaking with Dr. Jennifer Vanatta-Hall, affectionately known by her students as Dr. V. She is the Associate Director for the MTSU's School of Music and Professor of Music Education, with a concentration in vocal/general music ed. I have had the privilege of being in her Elementary Music Methods class this semester, and it was a joyous, enriching, and t...

In this episode, I speak with Dr. Michelle Folta, assistant professor of general/vocal music education at Columbus State University in Columbus, Georgia. She was kind enough to join me virtually for this interview after meeting at the Tennessee C-NAfME Kickoff at MTSU a few weeks ago. We discuss all things music education related, from solfége to the traits of her best students at CSU. She is a we...

Dr. Joshua Bedford is Assistant Professor of Musicology at Middle Tennessee State University in Murfreesboro, TN. He has a Bachelors Degree in Music Education (Indiana State, 2011), a Masters of Arts in Music Musicology (University of Georgia, 2013), and a Ph. D. in Musicology (University of Georgia, 2020). His dissertation was entitled "Soviet Opera: Styles and Aesthetics under Stalin, 1929–...

This week’s episode of the podcast is with Lauren Taylor Arnold, band director of Cascade Middle School in Bell Buckle, Tennessee. Mrs. Arnold is entering her 4th year of education and her 3rd with Cascade, my alma mater. She has a bachelor's degree in music education from Austin Peay State University and has been a major influence in my life and pursuit of music education. In this wide-rangin...

The first episode of this podcast is with David Lucich, longtime director of my alma mater, Cascade High School! In this episode, we discuss his beginnings in music, what makes a successful band program, and ways to start a music program from the ground up and build it into a state champion. He has been a wealth of wisdom for me throughout my musical journey, and you're sure to enjoy his insig...