Soprano and Professor Molly Fillmore, Chair of the Division of Vocal Studies, and Assistant Professor of Jazz Trumpet - Lead Emphasis, Philip Dizack, Division of Jazz Studies, have each been named a recipient of a 2024-2025 University of North Texas Initiative for Advancement of the Arts (IAA) Fellowship. John W. Richmond, Professor and Dean of the College of Music said, “Please join me in offering heartfelt congratulations to them for this important affirmation of their work and to Provost McPherson for his important investments in our research and creative activities!”

MOLLY FILLMORE’S work is a multi-media, interdisciplinary project culminating with a commercially released audio recording and music videos consisting of songs performed in England during the Regency era. Her collaborators Include Steven Harlos, Jaymee Haefner and Jeffrey Snider.

The Fellowship to PHILIP DIZACK will be utilized to support the composition of a large-scale work entitled "Brass Regalia." A multi-suite composition written for jazz quartet & nine-piece brass ensemble telling the story of resilience and healing from childhood trauma. The culmination of the work will include a European tour and performance including a concert at the Wiener Konzerthaus Wiener Konzerthaus as a part of their "Art of Brass" series in June 2025.

Assistant Professor of Jazz Violin, ScottTixier, recently wrote of his personal and professional path in The STRAD. Photo: Will Von Bolton

UNT welcomes Barbara Dietlinger to the faculty of the College of Music as Assistant Professor of Music History. She comes to us from the University of Southern Mississippi where she served as an Assistant Professor of Music.

The Music Business Association has named UNT College of Music Assistant Professor of Music Business, Jessica Muñiz-Collado, as finalist for its Bizzy Award “Music Business Educator of the Year." MBA says, “The award celebrates a music business educator who inspires students to enter the music business. The winner will lead by example and teach across the breadth and depth of the industry to open students’ awareness to the possibilities available in the music industry today. The winning candidate should expose students to the importance of connection and relationships in this industry while continuing to learn and be a part of the industry themselves.”

Assistant Professor of Music Theory, Andrew J. Chung, has been awarded a nine-month fellowship at the American Antiquarian Society, funded by the National Endowment for the Humanities, in Worcester, Massachusetts. Dr. Chung’s fellowship will assist him in the completion of his book, “Music’s Long Anthropocene: The Climate of Empire and the Sound of Ecological Disaster.”

The College of Music announces that Liudmila Georgievskaya will join the faculty as Assistant Professor of Piano.

UNT Associate Professor of Piano Pedagogy, Oscar Macchioni, presented at the 46th International European Piano Teachers Association (EPTA) Conference at Lucerne University of Applied Sciences and Arts in Switzerland. Pianists from 27 countries spent four days presenting and performing. Dr. Macchioni presented piano pedagogy curriculum for implementation in universities and conservatories.

UNT President Neal Smatresk (l) shown presenting Professor of Violin, Philip Lewis, with art glass recognizing his 45 years of service to the College of Music. Photo: Hubnik/UNT

With a by-line by Carly May Gravley, the Dallas Observer published an article highlighting the @UNT commercial music degree. It includes interviews with program coordinator Federico Llach, alumna Ashleigh Smith and Grammy-winning producer and engineer Tre Nagella.

The College of Music announced that Mark Tempesta will join the faculty as Assistant Professor of Voice and Vocal Pedagogy.