News & Announcements

See also: Archived News

School of Music News

• UT Band Performs for the Prestigious American Bandmasters Association (March 2013)
  On Monday, March 4th, UT’s top concert band, the Wind Ensemble, will depart for Tampa, Florida, where they will perform for the American Bandmasters Association. The American Bandmasters Association is the most prestigious band association in the world.
• UT Symphony Orchestra and Choirs Perform Beethoven Symphony No. 9  (February 24, 2013)
• Dr. Jeffrey Pappas joins UT as the Director of the School of Music (August 2012)
  Please help us welcome Dr. Jeffrey Pappas as the new Director of the School of Music!
  Dr. Pappas comes from Marshall University where he has been Chair of the Department of Music. He holds a Bachelor of Music degree in Vocal Performance from Northern Kentucky University, a Masters of Music degree in Choral Conducting from the University of Illinois, and the Doctorate of Musical Arts degree in Choral Conducting and Pedagogy from the University of Iowa. Prior to his appointment as the Department Chair at Marshall University, he was the Director of Choral Activities and Coordinator of Ensembles and Conducting at Ball State University. He has also served in positions at Mississippi State University, Clarke College, and Otterbein College.
• Chamber Singers go to Ireland (July 2012)
• Topping Ceremony for Natalie L. Haslam Music Center (April 2012)
  The final steel beam was placed on the University of Tennessee, Knox­ville's new Natalie L. Haslam Music Center on, April 25, 2012, in a ceremony marking the midway point for construction. Chancellor Jimmy G. Cheek joined philanthropist Natalie Haslam, for whom the center is named, students, faculty, and administrators in signing the twenty-foot steel beam before it was set over the building's north entrance.
  
  The new center (a $40 million project which began in 2010) is set to open to students in fall 2013. The four-floor, 123,000-square-foot facility will include the Sandra G. Powell Recital Hall, named for another donor. The orchestral library will be named for Roger Stephens, the late director of the School of Music, who was a driving force in the planning for the facility.
  
  For more on the new Natalie L. Haslam Music Center, click here.
• Trumpet Ensemble performs at 2012 International Trumpet Guild Conference (2012)
  The UT Trumpet Ensemble, conducted by Dr. Cathy Leach, was invited to perform at the 2012 International Trumpet Guild Conference. The trumpet ensemble performed Ars Postera, composed by UT trumpet alumnus Bobby L. Collins, and commissioned by Dr. Leach. While attending the ITG Conference, the UT trumpet studio will have the opportunity to hear the fin­est trumpet players in the world, attend clinics and masterclasses by renowned pedagogues, and meet and mingle with students, teachers, and performers from all corners of the globe. The UT Trumpet Ensemble, also provided music for the UT College of Arts and Sciences Com­mencement ceremony Friday May 11, 2012 at Thompson Boling Arena.

Faculty/Staff News

• New Faculty
  We would like to welcome the following faculty to UT!
  • Dr. Andy Bliss, Assistant Professor of Percussion
  • Dr. Jacqueline Avila, Assistant Professor of Musicology  
• Dr. Barbara Murphy (Associate Professor of Music Theory) and Dr.  Brendan McConville (Assistant Professor of Music Theory) have published a new e-book on the fundamentals of music theory. Foundations of Music Theory: An interactive e-book (Kendall Hunt Publishers, 2012) includes videos on the basic topics in music theory as well as quizzes and tests on these topics. The question banks include almost 4000 questions.
• Dr. Marvelene C. Moore (Professor of Music Education) has published a volume of essays referencing traditional and contemporary thought on theory and practice in music education for all age groups, from the very young to the elderly. Critical Essays in Music Education spans a broad range of subject areas from history and philosophy to art and music, and addresses issues such as curriculum, pedagogy, assessment and evaluation, as well as current issues in technology and performance standards. Written by leading researchers and educators from diverse countries and cultures, this selection of previously published articles, research studies, and book chapters is representative of the most frequently discussed and debated topics in the profession. This volume, published in January 2012 by Ashgate Publishing, documents the importance of lifelong learning. It is an indispensable reference work for specialists in the field of music education.
• Dr. David Royse (Associate Professor of Music Education) was presented the Faculty Distinguished Teaching Award at the Spring 2012 School of Music Honors Convocation. Tis award was established in 2004 by the School of Music Advisory Council and is presented annually to recognize outstanding teaching by a member of the faculty as recommended by the students of the School of Music.

Current Students

• On Saturday, Sept 29, 2012, six UT music education students and I attended The 7th Annual Tennessee Collegiate NAfME Fall Kick-Off at Cumberland University in Lebanon, Tennessee. Attending were (L-R) Dr. David Royse, Adam Ford, Holly Thomas, Jordyn Bidwell, Amanda Lovell, Tyler Dieterich, Billy Prosise (not pictured).
  
  

• Tyler Dieterich (M.M. Music Education 2013) presented his graduate research study, Tennessee High School Band Directors' Attitudes and Perceptions toward Marching Band Competitions, on the Student Research Poster Session at the 7th Annual Tennessee Collegiate NAfME Fall Kick-Off at Cumberland University in Lebanon, Tennessee (Sept 2012). 

• Jeremiah Welch (BM cello) was selected to perform at the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administra­tion's (SAMHSA) National Children's Mental Health Awareness Day program May 9, 2012, at the Lisner Audito­rium in Washington, D.C. He was featured as one of the youth performing in a tribute to the heroes of hope—family, friends and provid­ers—who have helped young people who have experienced trauma. His story was selected because it conveyed his strength and resilience in facing life's challenges.
• School of Music Honors 2012 Convocation Awards
  We would like to congratulate the following students who received awards at the 2012 School of Music Honors Convocation:

Alumni News

• Elizabeth Cole Fisher (B.M. Music 2004) received an End-of-Tour award after having served in the United States Navy for 7 and a half years (September 2004 - March 2012). She played flute/piccolo in the Navy Band Northeast in Newport, RI and most recently for Navy Band Great Lakes in Great Lakes, IL. Elizabeth's last duty station was in support for the Naval Service Training Command (boot camp). She is now living in Milwaukee, WI, working as a Development Assistant for the Ten Chimneys Foundation – a non-profit organization that preserves and shares the Ten Chimneys, a National Historic Landmark estate created by theatre legends Alfred Lunt and Lynn Fontanne to serve as a national resource for theatre, arts, and arts education. She is married to Erik Janners (September 2012).