After Hours: Conversations for Music Educators

In this episode Nick Averwater talks with Emily Kelley, Director of Bands at Sylvania Southview High School in Sylvania, OH , and author of the new book Inclusion in Band and Orchestra , which is part of the Maximizing Student Performance series by the Kjos Music Company. Our conversation was recorded July 20, 2022.

This week Joel Hurd, one of the producers on the podcast, talks with composer and educator Brady Massey, who spent more than 20 years as a band director in three different school districts in Arkansas ( Hoxie , Trumann , and Pocahontas ), and is currently Director of Bands at Williams Baptist University in Walnut Ridge, Arkansas.  Joel talked with Brady just after he had given a talk at Amro Unive...

This week Nick Averwater talks with Hunter Durham, Director of Bands in the Rivercrest School District in Wilson, Arkansas, a small town near the Mississippi River around 30 miles north of Memphis. He is originally from nearby Paragould, Arkansas. Hunter has written a guide to sound reinforcement for marching bands , and in this episode he'll be sharing his ideas on mic techniques, how to mak...

This week Joel Hurd, one of co-producers of the podcast, talks with Dr. Jennifer Hawkinson , Associate Professor of Music Education at the University of Central Arkansas . Before joining UCA, Dr. Hawkinson spent 18 years in South Dakota as a music educator in several school districts, including one of the largest schools in the state, Sioux Falls Washington High School . She joined us at Amro Musi...

In this episode of the After Hours Director Spotlight, Nick Averwater talks with Jason Deem , Director of Bands at Union City High School in Union City, Tennessee , a town of just over 10,000 people in the northwest corner of the state.  Jason joined the Union City schools in 2006, and has been Director of Bands for five years. In this conversation, we'll learn about his early influences, how...

This week Nick Averwater talks with Randy Dale, Assistant Professor of Music, Associate Director of Bands, and Director of Athletic Bands at the University of Mississippi , to get some ideas about recruiting new students for your band program. Our conversation was recorded April 8, 2022 in downtown Memphis, where Randy was giving a presentation for Amro University.

In this episode, Nick Averwater continues his with Dr. Matt Rowan, Director of Bands for the Pearl School District in Pearl, Mississippi, the 13th largest city in the state, located just east of Jackson.  In this conversation, Dr. Rowan shares more ideas about how to help students who want to pursue a career in music education. The conversation was recorded March 2, 2022, and is broken up in to tw...

In this episode, Nick Averwater talks with Dr. Matt Rowan , Director of Bands for the Pearl School District in Pearl, Mississippi, a city of around 27,000 just east of Jackson.  In this conversation, Dr. Rowan talks about how he knew early that he wanted to pursue a career in music education, in large part because of the many educators along the way who encouraged him. We'll also learn about...

This week Nick Averwater continues his conversation with Todd Shipley, Director of Arts Education for the Tennessee Department of Education .  In this episode, they'll discuss the importance developing a positive relationship with your local school board, proactive  vs. reactive advocacy, and more. Our conversation was recorded February 14, 2022, and is broken up in to two episodes, and this...

This week Nick Averwater talks with Todd Shipley, Director of Arts Education for the Tennessee Department of Education . Todd had eight years of experience as a school band director before moving into his current role with the state in 2018.  In this episode, we'll learn more about what it means to be the leading advocate for arts education in a state of nearly seven million people, and we&ap...

This week Nick Averwater talks with Dr. Angela Ammerman , author of the new book, The Music Teacher's Guide to Engaging English Language Learners , which is published by G-I-A Publications.  Since 2006, Dr. Ammerman has been a music educator for students of all ages...from Kindergarten to the University level. She has earned music education degrees from The University of Cincinatti, Boston Un...

In this episode of the After Hours Director Spotlight, Nick Averwater talks with Justin Harvison, Director of Bands at Germantown High School in Madison, Mississippi. Justin began his career in 2008 at Madison Central High School, where he was lead director of the 9th grade band at Rosa Scott 9th grade school . He then went on to become the founding director of the Germantown High School band prog...

This week Nick Averwater continues his conversation with Alexis Yatuzis-Derryberry, General Music Teacher at Stewarts Creek High School in Smyrna, Tennessee. Before moving to Stewarts Creek in 2021, Alexis spent nearly 20 years teaching general music and choir at the elementary and middle school levels. She is also President of the TMEA, The Tennessee Music Education Association , and an adjunct M...

This week Nick Averwater talks with Alexis Yatuzis-Derryberry , General Music Teacher at Stewarts Creek High School in Smyrna, Tennessee. Before moving to Stewarts Creek in 2021, Alexis spent nearly 20 years teaching general music and choir at the elementary and middle school levels. She is also President of the Tennessee Music Education Association , and an adjunct Music Education Instructor at M...

This week Nick Averwater talks with Shane Deuel, Regional Sales Director for Eastman Music Company , and host of the podcast Ed Rep Radio .  Shane gives us an insider's view of how supply chain issues are affecting instrument manufacturers. We'll also learn about the different brands in the Eastman family, and find out about some of the company's more popular instruments. Our conver...

In this episode of the After Hours Director Spotlight, Nick Averwater talks with Chuck Reynolds, Director of Bands at Madison Central High School in Madison, MS, a city of around 25,000 located just north of Jackson. Chuck talks about working in a program with seven band directors in what was once the largest high school in the state, and we'll learn more about the process that takes place wh...

Producer's Note: On Thursday, February 3, 2022 Memphis was hit with a pretty serious ice storm that caused power outages for nearly 140,000 homes and businesses. The studio where After Hours is produced was left without power for more than four days, so we were unable to upload an episode on Friday the 4th. We apologize for the missed week. In this episode, Nick Averwater continues his conver...

In this episode of the After Hours Director Spotlight, Nick Averwater talks with David Aydelott, Director of Bands at Siegel High School in Murfreesboro, Tennessee, the sixth largest city in the state with a population of just over 150,000, located 35 miles southeast of Nashville.  David talks about the lessons he learned as a school administrator that have made him a more effective band director,...

In this episode, Nick Averwater talks with Jeremy Tate from Gibson County High School in Dyer, Tennessee. We'll learn about the long journey to performing in the 2022 Tournament of Roses Parade for the Gibson County Mass Band, which is made up of musicians from five high schools in this rural part of northwest Tennessee. You can see the band performing at the Tournament of Roses Parade here.

This week Nick Averwater talks with Dr. Kristin Leitterman , Assistant Professor of Oboe at Arkansas State University in Jonesboro. They'll be talking about ways to allow a young oboist to get the most out of their instrument, advice for music educators who may have oboists in their program, and the importance of always playing with quality reeds. Dr. Leitterman mentions an oboe fingering cha...

This week Nick Averwater continues his conversation with John Easley , who has been an Educational Representative for Amro Music for the last five years, but was a band director in several school districts in northwest Tennessee, including over three decades in Union City , a town of around 11,000 people.  They'll be talking about creative ways of building support for a band program in a smal...

This week Nick Averwater talks with John Easley , who is now an Educational Representative for Amro Music, but for over three decades was a band director in several school districts in northwest Tennessee. Most of his time as a music educator was spent in Union City , a town of around 11,000 people.  They'll be talking about John's early days as a band director, the value of having patie...

This week Nick Averwater continues his conversation with Joe Lamond , President and CEO of NAMM, The National Association of Music Merchants .  They'll be talking about the technological advances that have happened as a result of the pandemic, the work NAMM does at the national level to strengthen music programs at the local level, and more. The conversation was recorded November 15, 2021 and...

This week Nick Averwater talks with Joe Lamond , President and CEO of NAMM .  They'll be talking about the history of the organization, how the approach of the music education system in the United States differs from other countries, and how the music products industry plays an important role in advocating for music education. The conversation was recorded November 15, 2021 and is broken up i...

This week Nick Averwater continues his conversation with John Mlynczak , Vice President of Music Education and Technology at Hal Leonard .  In this episode they'll be talking about advocating for music education, defining success for young musicians, and more. The conversation was recorded November 23, 2021 and is broken up in to two episodes. This is part two.