Tyler Austin (MM ’14) Artistic Director & Conductor of Maryland Chamber Winds announced the drop of their first album 'Preludes + Recitations'. The album includes playing by Brian Do, current UNT DMA student, Danielle Fisher (MM '18) and Matthew Hudgens (MM ’15)
Michelle Herring Folta (PhD ’15, MMED ’12) has been named one of ten finalists for the 2021 GRAMMY Music Educator Award. She is Associate Professor of choral/general music education at Columbus State University in Georgia (USA).
Denton Record-Chronicle features editor Lucinda Breeding interviewed Brian F. Wright, Assistant Professor of Music History in an article about the life and career of Eddie Van Halen. Photo: G.J. McCarthy/Dallas Morning News file photo
Nat Irvin, II (DMA ’87, Composition) and sons appear on Denton Black Film Festival SoulTalk with Frederick “Nick” Nichelson, DBFF Music Director, discussing Denton connections and their work on the American horror film Antebellum and other projects.
Hyeyoun Jang (DMA ’19) is Visiting Assistant Professor at the University of Minnesota Duluth Department of Music.
Shuo-Hui Sophie Hung, (DMA '18) has joined Southwestern Oklahoma State University as tenure-track Assistant Professor of Music in Piano.
Master’s degree student, Joy Elise Mote, has joined the faculty of Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary (Fort Worth, Texas) as an Adjunct Professor of Voice in the School of Church Music and Worship.
Even during a pandemic, Linda Strube, programs coordinator, safely produces performance programs with limited printing. Linda began producing performance program in 2001 and has produced 18,337 programs.
Ellen Bakulina, Assistant Professor of Music Theory, published "Tonal Pairing in Two of Rachmaninoff's Songs" in Analytical Approaches to Twentieth-Century Russian Music: Tonality, Modernism, Serialism. Edited by Inessa Bazayev and Christopher Segall.
Episode 24 with Dr. John Richmond, Dean of the UNT College of Music.
https://open.spotify.com/episode/43g25fF1YMlSbtEFu4jhTV?si=o5K2AoXVTLWH3...
Associate Professor of Horn, Stacie Mickens, has released "From the Great Lakes: Music for Horn" featuring Stacie Mickens & Friends. With partial funding from a University of North Texas Scholarly and Creative Activity Grant, the album features four pieces, three of which were composed for the performer. Composers include David Morgan ("When Penguins Fly"), Susan Mutter ("Ages"), and James Wilding ("Distill" and "Melencolia.")
Justin Benavidez (BM ’05) is now under agreement with Oxford University Press to publish Notes for Tubists: A Guide to the Repertoire with release date in 2023. The publication is designed to be the definitive guide to significant works for the tuba soloist repertoire. He is Assistant Professor of Tuba and Euphonium at Florida State University College of Music.
Assistant Professor of Music History, Brian Wright, published an article entitled "Jaco Pastorius, the Electric Bass, and the Struggle for Jazz Credibility" in the University of California Press. In addition, he co-authored a conference report in the same volume.
Jay Walls (MM ’95 Composition, PhD ’11 Composition) was named Chair for the Harding University Department of Music in Searcy, Arkansas. He is Associate Professor teaching composition, orchestration and counterpoint and is director of the Arts & Life Performance Series.
Kristina Caswell MacMullen, Associate Professor of Choral Studies and Director of University Singers and Kalandra, appeared on "With One Accord," a podcast of Houston Chamber Choir. April Harris spoke with Macmullen and Georgia State University’s Deanna Joseph.
The Foundation for Music Education competition has named Denton High School (TX) as the national winner of the High School Jazz Ensemble Division. Jesse Woolery (BM ’04) leads the winning ensemble and is Associate Director of Bands, Director of Jazz Studies and also “the voice” of the University of North Texas Green Brigade.
Paula Gudmundson (MM ’01) was featured in the Duluth News Tribune as she performed six flute performances in one afternoon. She is Associate Professor of Flute at the University of Minnesota Duluth.
The one act opera “No Ladies in the Ladies Book,” composed by Lisa DeSpain (BM ’91) with libretto by Rachel J. Peters and commissioned by Utah Opera has been released for publishing and licensing.
Ruben Balboa III (MM ‘16) serves as Instructional Assistant Professor of Viola and Assistant Director/Master Teacher for the Illinois State String Project at Wonsook Kim College of Fine Arts at Illinois State University.
Bryron Crenshaw (BM ’19) debut album, Bass Tone Paintings, "is a psychedelic jazz album of one minute-long songs with introspective sentiments on Black identity, love for the environment and social media anxieties. The album spans seventeen tracks spoken in four languages, recorded primarily with Byron’s bass guitar and vocoder.”
Haven Trio releases “Twinge” – retelling stories of survival from the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami. The CD features trio members, UNT Professor of Clarinet, Kimberly Cole Luevano, Lindsay Kesselman, soprano and Midori Koga, piano with music by Jon Magnussen and words and narration by Barry Bearak. Released on Blue Griffin Records.
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UNT Professor of Piano, Gustavo Romero, performed the Complete Beethoven Sonatas in seven live streamed performances from The UNT Murchison Performing Arts Center.
Associate Professor of Music Education and Director of Concert Choir, Jessica Nápoles, has been appointed as the Interim Chair of the Division of Music Education for the Fall 2020 semester. She also serves co-coordinating the American Choral Directors Association (ACDA) conference and sits on the board of the Texas Choral Directors Association.
Gunnery Sergeant Sara Sheffield (BM ’01), mezzo-soprano, becomes the first female vocalist and concert moderator for "The President's Own" United States Marine Band. The University of North Texas College of Music is the largest provider of military musicians in the United States.
Jeremy Blackwood, (MM ’06, DMA ’14) was named Dean of the Graduate School at Southeastern State University in Durant, Oklahoma. He previously served as chair of the department of music, vocal coordinator, music director for Opera Southeastern and for productions with Theatre at Southeastern. He is music director for the Oklahoma Shakespearean Festival.
