NC Music Educator Winter 2024

N O R T H C A R O L I N A
MUSIC EDUCATOR
Audiation Boosts
for Your Choral
Classroom
by Dr. Stuart Chapman Hill
Strengthening Your
Program through
Asset Mapping
by Tim Nowak
Let’s Work
Together!
by Jonathan Kladder
Building a
Vocal Skillset
in the Choral
Rehearsal
by Dr. Jami Rhodes-
Galloway
Homecoming:
Michael Haithcock
and the Inaugural
North Carolina
Intercollegiate
Band
by Doris Doyon
Volume 74 Number 3 Winter 2024
NORTH CAROLINA MUSIC EDUCATOR | 1

East Carolina University ®
School of Music Announces the
Chauncey Scholarship Endowment
Apply and Audition for
Scholarship Consideration
Email for more information:
musicadmissions@ecu.edu
Visit us online:
music.ecu.edu
• Saturday, Dec. 2, 2023
• Saturday, Jan. 20, 2024
• Saturday, Feb. 10, 2024
• Saturday, Feb. 17, 2024*
• Saturday, March 16, 2024
*Feb. 17, 2024: Last audition day for
scholarship consideration
ECU is located in Greenville, North Carolina
An equal opportunity/affirmative action university
C.S. 23-0941
2 | NORTH CAROLINA MUSIC EDUCATOR NORTH CAROLINA MUSIC EDUCATOR | 1

N O R T H C A R O L I N A
MUSIC EDUCATOR
NCMEA Board Directory
NCMEA Executive Director’s Message
Susan Heiserman
NCMEA President’s Message
Catherine Butler
Let’s Work Together!
Jonathan Kladder
Homecoming: Michael Haithcock and the
Inaugural North Carolina Intercollegiate Band
Doris Doyon
Across the Districts
Elementary Section
Middle School Choral Section
Building a Vocal Skillset in the Choral Rehearsal
Dr. Jami Rhodes-Galloway
High School Choral Section
Strengthening Your Program through Asset
Mapping
Tim Nowak
Audiation Boosts for Your Choral Classroom
Dr. Stuart Chapman Hill
Jazz Section
MIOSM
Orchestra Section
Band Section
Changed Schools? New Email Address?
New Mailing Address?
Stay in touch with NCMEA/NAfME
Log in to the NAfME Member Portal and make
your updates.
www.nafme.org LOGIN then MY ACCOUNT
If you need assistance, call NAfME Member
Services 800-336-3768
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A special thank you to all our advertisers who
support music educators and music education in
North Carolina.
East Carolina University
Hayes School of Music
Meredith College
NAfME
Sound Education System
UNC Charlotte
UNC Greensboro
UNC Pembroke
UNC Wilmington
Inside Front Cover
Postmaster: Send address changes to: NC Music Educator, c/o
NCMEA, 883-C Washington Street, Raleigh, NC 27605.
Non-Profit 501(c)(3) Organization U.S. Postage Paid at Lubbock,
Texas. ISSN Number 0400-3332 EIN number
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Editorial: All editorial content should be sent to: Kimberly
Justen, Editor-in-Chief, at journal_editor@ncmea.net.
Advertising: Information requests and ad orders should
be directed to Kimberly Justen, Editor-in-Chief, at
journal_editor@ncmea.net.
North Carolina Music Educator is copyrighted. Reproduction
in any form is illegal without the express permission of the
editor.
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29, Back Cover
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Transforming a Passion for Music into a Profession for Life
Bachelor of Music in Music Education, Music Therapy and Performance
Bachelor of Science in Music Industry Studies
Master of Music Therapy
Master of Music in Performance: Performance, Collaborative
Piano, Conducting, Composition
Audition Required • Auditions in November, January and February
Save the Date for the 56th Cannon Music Camp!
June 22–July 13, 2024
music.appstate.edu
2 | NORTH CAROLINA MUSIC EDUCATOR NORTH CAROLINA MUSIC EDUCATOR | 3

Board of Directors
EXECUTIVE OFFICERS
SECTION CHAIRS
COMMISSION & COMMITTEE CHAIRS
President: Catherine Butler*
cbutler@ncmea.net
Immediate Past President:
Johnathan Hamiel*
jhamiel@ncmea.net
President-Elect: Carolina Perez*
cperez@ncmea.net
Recording Secretary:
Dr. Cynthia Wagoner*
secretary@ncmea.net
Member-at-Large:
Michael Henderson*
member-at-large1@ncmea.net
Member-at-Large:
Demeka Kimpson*
member-at-large2@ncmea.net
Band: Jim Kirkpatrick*
band_chair@ncmea.net
Band Section Delegate:
O’Shae Best*
band_delegate@ncmea.net
Collegiate NAfME: Isaac Reyes*
collegiate_president@ncmea.net
Elementary: Joseph Girgenti*
elementary_section@ncmea.net
High School Choral: Aleisa Baker*
hschoral_chair@ncmea.net
Higher Education: Jose Rivera*
higher_education@ncmea.net
Jazz Education: Tina Robinett*
jazz_chair@ncmea.net
Jazz Section Delegate: Luke Meade*
jazz_delegate@ncmea.net
Middle School Choral: Emily Turner*
mschoral_chair@ncmea.net
Orchestra: Joseph Walker*
orchestra_chair@ncmea.net
Orchestra Section Delegate:
Matthew Holt*
orchestra_delegate@ncmea.net
Exceptional Children & General
Music: Rue S. Lee-Holmes
exeptionalchildren_generalmusic@ncmea.net
Conference Chair: Barbara Geer
conference_chair@ncmea.net
Asst. Conference Chair: Adam Joiner
conference_assistant@ncmea.net
Guitar: Jonathan Todd
guitar@ncmea.net
Mentoring: Carol Earnhardt
mentoring_program@ncmea.net
Music In Our Schools Month:
Tonya Allison & Lindsay Williams
miosm_chair1@ncmea.net (Tonya)
miosm_chair2@ncmea.net (Lindsay)
Music Program Leaders:
Eugene Mabry
music_program_leader@ncmea.net
Piano: AmyBith Gardner Harlee
piano@ncmea.net
Popular Music: Jonathan Kladder
popular_music@ncmea.net
Research: Jonathan Poquette
research_chair@ncmea.net
Retired Membership: Heidi Sue
Ross
retired_membership@ncmea.net
Student Activities: Carolina Perez
cperez@ncmea.net
Teacher Education: Dr. Jose Rivera
teacher_education@ncmea.net
Technology Chair:
Howell “Howie” Ledford
technology_chair@ncmea.net
Tri-M: Riley Paulson
tri-m@ncmea.net
Young Professionals: LJ Martin
young_professionals@ncmea.net
Webmaster: Mark Healy
mhealy@ncmea.net
DISTRICT PRESIDENTS
AWARDS, GRANTS
& SCHOLARSHIP CHAIRS
STANDING COMMITTEE CHAIRS
EX-OFFICIO MEMBERS
District 1: Molly Griffin-Brown*
district1@ncmea.net
District 2: Michael Palmer*
district2@ncmea.net
District 4: Desiree Merriweather*
district4@ncmea.net
District 5: Tonya Smith*
district5@ncmea.net
District 7: Andrea Evans*
district7@ncmea.net
District 8: Anna Morris*
district8@ncmea.net
Awards: Michael Henderson
member-at-large1@ncmea.net
Grants: Michael Henderson &
Demeka Kimpson
member-at-large1@ncmea.net (Michael)
member-at-large2@ncmea.net (Demeka)
Scholarships: Demeka Kimpson
member-at-large2@ncmea.net
NCMEA OFFICE
883-C Washington Street
Raleigh, NC 27605
919-424-7008
www.ncmea.net
Executive Director: Susan Heiserman
sheiserman@ncmea.net
Advocacy: James Daugherty &
Jeremy Tucker
jdaugherty@ncmea.net
advocacy@ncmea.net (Jeremy)
Constitution: Maribeth Yoder-White
constitution_committee@ncmea.net
Finance: Johnathan Hamiel
jhamiel@ncmea.net
IVfME: Lillie Allmond Harris &
Tim Nowak
ivfme@ncmea.net (Lillie)
ivfme2@ncmea.net (Tim)
Membership: Carolina Perez
cperez@ncmea.net
Publications: Kim Justen
journal_editor@ncmea.net
Collegiate NAfME Advisor:
Lisa Runner
collegiate_advisor@ncmea.net
Editor: Kim Justen
journal_editor@ncmea.net
Executive Director: Susan Heiserman
sheiserman@ncmea.net
Historian: Dr. John Henry, Jr.
historian@ncmea.net
Music Industry Rep.: Adam Frank
music_industry_rep@ncmea.net
Parlimentarian: Dave Albert
parlimentarian@ncmea.net
NCDPI Rep.: Brandon Roeder
brandon.roeder@dpi.nc.gov
District 3: Shearon Miller*
district3@ncmea.net
District 6: Douglas Rowe*
district6@ncmea.net
Communications Manager:
Mark Healy
mhealy@ncmea.net
* Voting Member
advancing music education by promoting
the understanding and making of music by all
4 | NORTH CAROLINA MUSIC EDUCATOR NORTH CAROLINA MUSIC EDUCATOR | 5

Notes from the Executive Director
Susan Heiserman
President’s Message
Catherine Butler
Happy 2024! I hope you all were able to find time over
the holidays to relax, refresh, and spend time with loved
ones. I’ve had the pleasure over the past few months of
observing my 78-year-old mother join a community choir in
her Iowa town and prepare for her first official performance in
decades. The amount of energy, joy, and friendship she has found
in just a short time is a heartwarming testament to the power of
music and the power of being part of an ensemble. And that has
led me to consider and appreciate how NCMEA functions as an
ensemble.
For me, working in concert with a group of musical leaders
across the state is a pleasure and a privilege. Hosting events,
planning conferences, and advocating for music education are
things that no one person could do alone – it is essential to work
in harmony as a team. Of course, we all have moments when we
forget our parts, lose our place, or dip out of tune – but there is a
whole ensemble surrounding us, supporting us, and helping us get
back on track.
The NCMEA ensemble extends beyond leadership and
throughout the entire membership. We share common goals and
we all contribute something of value to music education in North
Carolina. We want to create meaning and inspire others. We care
deeply about our work and take our roles very seriously. We all
bring unique skills and attributes to the group and there is a place
for each and every one of us in this ensemble.
Whatever you’re facing in your day-to-day work, in NCMEA
there is always someone who can support you – someone who
has learned this song before or who has a practice tip to share. I
find great joy in being part of this group and hope you do, too;
please don’t hesitate to reach out to me or any NCMEA leaders
if you have questions, concerns, or need help connecting with
colleagues.
Elections
We extend a warm welcome to these newly elected board
members! They will each serve a two-year term from November
2023 – November 2025.
President-Elect: Carolina Perez, NC School of Science and
Mathematics, Durham
Recording Secretary: Dr. Cynthia Wagoner, East Carolina
University, Greenville
Member-At-Large 1: Michael Henderson, Chase Middle
School, Forest City
Member-At-Large 2: Demeka Kimpson, Sedgefield Middle
School, Charlotte
District 1 President: Molly Griffin, Creekside Elementary/
Ridgewood Elementary/W.H. Robinson Elementary,
Winterville
District 2 President: Michael Palmer, South Brunswick High
School, Southport
District 3 President: Shearon Miller, Cleveland High School,
Clayton
District 4 President: Desiree Merriweather, Westover
Middle School, Fayetteville
District 5 President: Tonya Smith, Elkin Middle/Elkin High
School, Elkin
District 6 President: Douglas Rowe, Union and Marshville
Elementary Schools, Wingate
District 7 President: Andrea Evans, Granite Falls Elementary,
Granite Falls
District 8 President: Anna Morris, Charles T. Koontz
Intermediate School, Asheville
Of note, 2023 was the first year we used an online platform for
elections, which offered all eligible members the chance to vote
whether or not they could attend the annual conference. The result
was that voter participation was FOUR TIMES that of our last
organization-wide election in 2021. Thanks to all who voted!
Conference Wrap-Up
It was wonderful to see so many of you at the Inspire Harmony
conference in November! Highlights included the first ever
Intercollegiate Honor Band, the first ever HBCU reception, a visit
from NAfME President Scott Sheehan, and an incredibly inspiring
keynote from Mickey Smith, Jr.
Many special thanks to conference co-chairs Barbara Geer and
Adam Joiner for their months of tireless organizational work, and
to the Section and Committee chairs who dedicated their time and
expertise to programming relevant and useful content.
2023 Conference in numbers:
• 260 sessions, performances, and meetings
• 174 presenters and clinicians
• 1,403 attendees
• 1,759 students in Honors and invited performing ensembles
• 99 exhibiting companies and schools
Mark your calendar now and plan to attend our next
conference on November 9 – 12, 2024!
I
grew up in a house where there was always music on. We
moved a lot, and one of my dad’s first projects in a new
home was to run the wiring for the speakers. It was quite a
production, as there were speakers in multiple rooms of the house
and outside. He would run the wires under the house, drill a hole
in the floor by the kitchen cabinet, pull the wire behind the cabinet,
and tuck the speaker in the corner on the top of the cabinet – like I
said, quite a production!
I’m part of what I’ve recently learned is termed a microgeneration
called xennials. We had an analog childhood and digital
adolescence. (I see you, 1977–1984 babies!) This transition was
evident in our house’s stereo components as well. The speaker wires
in our kitchen were threaded into a record player when I was in
preschool, a tape player in elementary school, and a six disc CD
disc changer in high school. I was fortunate to have parents who
loved all kinds of music that we all listened to together. It could be
anything: barbershop choruses, current Top 40, Broadway original
casts, Motown, the Beatles, James Taylor and Carole King, or a
movie soundtrack. The stereo was always on, and there was no
escaping the strategically placed speakers.
In college at UNC Greensboro, we had a discussion in one of
my methods classes about our personal “musical mother tongue.”
We were asked to reflect on the music that developed our ears, the
music that made us feel nostalgic, the music that felt like home. I
know mine is much different from my current students’, but I often
think about how different my experience with music growing up
was from theirs.
They don’t need speakers wired in their house to hear music
because they have had a personally curated playlist in their ears
at all times. There were no algorithms deciding what I’d listen to
next – that was all up to whoever loaded up the disc changer last. I
doubt they have musical singalongs while cooking dinner wherein
each family member picks a different character to sing. They don’t
know what a B-side is, and rarely do they listen to an entire album
because they have a very convenient skip button. Nearly every part
of their lives is personalized.
I try so hard in my classroom to help break students out of their
carefully curated musical silos. I know we all want a classroom
where every student feels like they belong, but to foster in such
an environment can be so hard. Personally, I want my students to
know that their music/mother tongue matters AND the music of
their classmates matter.
We talk about our experiences with music, both formal and
informal, as a way to get to know each other. We share our personal
theme songs anonymously and guess who each one belongs to.
We build class playlists to share with each other based on different
themes and events. I want my students to take pride in their
musical mother tongue, feel like they belong, and celebrate the
music of others.
As I start my term as president of NCMEA, I have this same
wish for all of our members. I want you to feel proud of your
musical mother tongue, feel excited about the music you and
your student make, feel like you have a place where you belong in
NCMEA, and feel motivated to learn about music outside of your
personally curated playlist.
Just as our students and classrooms have changed and
expanded, our organization is doing the same. We recently added
Popular Music and Piano/Guitar committees to our ever-evolving
list of places where members can find “their people.” My plan is
to split the Piano/Guitar committee so it can be led by experts in
each area and continue to grow. I want there to be a place for every
music educator in North Carolina in NCMEA.
So, as we start the second half of the school year, I challenge
you to step outside of your general music/chorus/band/orchestra/
popular music/piano/guitar/higher ed/technology personally
curated playlist and connect with someone in a different musical
silo. You never know: you just might like the music from someone
else’s kitchen speakers.
6 | NORTH CAROLINA MUSIC EDUCATOR NORTH CAROLINA MUSIC EDUCATOR | 7

y Jonathan Kladder
In the spring of 2023, members of the Inclusive Vision for
Music Education (IVfME) committee expressed a need to
represent a wider range of music making in North Carolina.
The committee was engaged in conversations about the growing
nature of music education in the 21 st century and how to expand
music making opportunities in formal educational spaces. Many
times, these conversations were at the center of larger topics
associated with diversity, equity, and inclusion in the field of music
education.
IVfME committee members believed a new committee could
connect music educators across the state who currently teach
ensembles and music classes beyond band, orchestra, choir, or
elementary general music: the Popular Music committee. The
committee, which was unanimously approved by the NCMEA
board, represents a form, culture, and intentional focus of
music making to provide support for a more diverse cultural
representation of music(s) in NCMEA.
For some students, performing in band, orchestra, or choir
is an honored and loved experience. It is important to recognize
the significance of these ensembles, what they represent, how
they have shaped and developed music education in the U.S.,
and how they have positively shaped so many musicians’ lives
for nearly 100 years. However, anyone who teaches music also
knows students often have interests in learning and creating music
using instruments like electric guitars, drums, keyboards, or even
computers. We simply cannot ignore this truth. Popular music
permeates students’ lives.
What do we mean by ‘popular’ music?
Popular music can mean a lot of things, so what does the
committee mean when the term ‘popular music’ is used? We
agreed popular music would ideally represent the music of
students from cultures that they know, listen, and experience
today. This understanding allows for flexibility, growth, and
change over time. Understanding, listening, evaluating, and
critically thinking about popular music and its evolution offers
exciting and new possibilities for music educators!
When we allow students opportunities to learn, study, create,
and perform popular music, it often represents the music they
Let’s Work Together!
Popular Music Education in North Carolina
know, understand, and relate to. From this grounding, we are able
to teach additional skill sets for performing and creating music,
develop their musical knowledge, including theory and aural
skills, while broadening their understanding of music.
What does the committee represent?
As a committee, we recognize and acknowledge musicians and
performance mediums that include popular music. We seek to
provide professional development opportunities for popular music
educators, and create inclusive and diverse music learning spaces,
where wider conceptions and understandings of music making
can exist that align with NCMEA’s goals for equity and inclusion.
We stand for expanding notions of pedagogy, providing place/
space for music educators to learn from innovative popular music
educators in supportive communities, and offer meaningful
popular music learning spaces within their school or workplace.
We believe all students should have access to a well-rounded
music education, including popular music education. We
recognize that systemic injustices continue across our society,
including in music teaching and learning. Our committee seeks to
counteract systemic injustices and promote a culture of belonging
for students and teachers interested in learning, and performing,
popular music.
What is the mission of the committee?
The Popular Music committee is committed to recognizing,
embracing, and advocating for popular music at the state music
education level in ways that contribute meaningful, relevant, and
innovative opportunities for all students and teachers who desire
to learn, perform, or teach popular music in their classrooms.
There are a variety of goals ahead of the committee. They
include:
• Offering a space for popular music educators to learn about
emerging pedagogies.
• Advocating and providing a place for popular music to exist at
the NCMEA Professional Development Conference.
• Advocating and providing support for emerging popular
music educators, or music educators interested in teaching
popular music.
• Advocating for equitable access to high quality,
comprehensive musical experiences for all N.C. students.
• Being more inclusive of musics beyond the Western-European
Art canon.
• Advocating for marginalized musicians and music educators,
who are often outliers in the profession of band, orchestra,
and choir.
• Offering affordable/free online resources for popular music
educators.
• Offering scholarships and funding opportunities so that
popular music educators and their students are able to
attend NCMEA professional development and performance
opportunities.
• Offering a community for popular music educators to come
together, share with one another, and learn from each other.
What activities are we involved in and
creating?
There are many special initiatives and activities we're currently
organizing, including:
• Proposing and presenting special sessions, round tables
and popular music educators meetings at the professional
development conference.
• Maintaining a website and a community page for networking
and promoting popular music ideas in Pre-K – 12 and higher.
• Supporting the development, implementation and
maintenance of a Popular Music Honors Band.
• Proposing and presenting webinars for popular music
educators around the state.
• Offering outreach to non-NCMEA popular music educators
needing community, professional development and support
for teaching in their school(s).
One area that may be of particular interest to music educators
is the resources page of our website. Here you will find resources
for teaching hip hop in elementary, middle, and high school
SoundForge: A Popular Music
Collective Registration
Popular Music
Committee Resource
classrooms and modern band resources for all levels. We also
share relevant books, journal articles, and videos that may
broaden your understanding of popular music pedagogy.
New Initiatives
One of the first events that will be sponsored and organized
by the Popular Music committee is, “SoundForge: A Popular
Music Collective”. The event will host popular music groups from
across North Carolina on February 3, 2024 at UNC Wilmington.
SoundForge is a youth-based popular music collective and a
unique opportunity for aspiring musicians to showcase their
original written/composed music and work alongside experienced
singer/songwriters.
Students will learn and shape their original sound with
clinicians and professionals from the popular music industry and
will not only get to hone and perform their music in front of an
enthusiastic audience, but also receive an opportunity to learn
technical and songwriting skills from singer/songwriters. The
festival provides an immersive experience for young musicians
to develop their talents and gain valuable insights into the music
industry. Any popular music groups are encouraged to apply.
Working Together!
Anyone who has started something new, understands the
amount of work it often requires. And we have much work
ahead of us! However, NCMEA is leading the path towards
a more equitable, diverse, and inclusive organization with
the establishment of both the IVfME and Popular Music
committees. It is our hope that we continue to come together as an
organization and offer new opportunities for students, and that we
will recognize our collective strengths.
Our strengths can bring us together and unify our goals
towards a music education experience that supports all students
in our schools. We hope you will continue to consider ways
to support students in popular music and consider getting
involved with the committee. You can follow the North Carolina
Popular Music Educators Facebook page to keep up with our
activities. Those who are interested in joining the committee
should contact Dr. Jonathan Kladder or Mr. Andrew Beach at
popular_music@ncmea.net.
Popular Music Committee
Facebook Group
8 | NORTH CAROLINA MUSIC EDUCATOR NORTH CAROLINA MUSIC EDUCATOR | 9

Homecoming:
Michael Haithcock
and the Inaugural
North Carolina
Intercollegiate Band
by Doris Doyon
What I want you to do, is trust me…
– Michael Haithcock
Michael Haithcock returned to his home state of
North Carolina on November 5, 2023 to serve as the
conductor of the North Carolina Intercollegiate Band,
his first event since his University of Michigan retirement concert
on March 31, 2023. His “cycle of trust” was on full display as he
prepared collegiate musicians from 23 universities in two days,
providing a model for in-service and pre-service music educators.
North Carolina Roots
The inaugural North Carolina Intercollegiate Band occurred
in part due to the vision of Jason Gardner, associate director of
bands at Appalachian State University. He had experienced the
intercollegiate model elsewhere, and was surprised there wasn't
one in North Carolina. He assembled a group of state directors
and organized the 2023 NCMEA-sponsored event. Gardner noted
the importance of the director having North Carolina ties, and
it was clear Haithcock was at the top of everyone’s list. “There’s
a lot of pride in this state over what he’s been able to accomplish
throughout his career,” said Gardner.
Born in Kannapolis, Haithcock started the saxophone in
Harold Matheny’s elementary band in the Kannapolis City Public
Schools, completing further summer study with Harvey Turner.
He attended A. L. Brown High School under director Louis V.
Bean. He cites the continued professional musical involvement of
all three teachers as having tremendous influence on him. It was
the Appalachian State Cannon Music Camp that solidified his
decision to major in music.
Haithcock attended East Carolina University (1976), where
he met his wife, Melinda, also an established music educator. He
cites four formative professors: wind conductor Herbert Carter,
conducting teacher Robert Hause, saxophonist James Houlik, and
theorist Jim Searl. “Houlik was the first to really teach me how to
understand music, rather than just execute it; analyzing phrases
and expressive possibilities,” said Haithcock. “Searl scared the
bejeebers out of me at first,” he said. But he also helped establish
a more logical understanding that paired well with Houlik’s
teachings.
After completing his undergraduate degree in music education,
he went on to an MM in conducting at Baylor University, where
he was offered the job of assistant director immediately following
completion of his degree. He soon became the director of bands at
Baylor, and in 2001 became director of bands at the University of
Michigan, from which he retired in 2023. When Gardner reached
out about conducting the intercollegiate band, he accepted
immediately, saying, “North Carolina is beautiful and I always
enjoy returning.”
Repertoire
I wanted to do something that was rooted in North
Carolina… – MH
The program opened with the final movement of Vittorio
Giannini’s, Third Symphony. Giannini was founder of the North
Carolina School of the Arts. Samuel Adler’s “Testament,” a work
written as a gift in honor of Haithcock’s retirement, received
its world premier. Lindsay Bronnenkant’s multi-movement
“Tarot” served as the centerpiece of the evening, and Kevin Day’s
“Havana,” with a reputation for being immediately enjoyable,
rounded out the event.
Haithcock took into careful consideration the constraints of
the two-day rehearsal cycle. The resulting repertoire representative
of programming philosophies can be modeled at any level.
Composers from varied backgrounds and styles were represented.
Each section had opportunities to be musically satisfied without
being overburdened, and sufficient repetition existed throughout
the works to save rehearsal time.
Rehearsal Philosophies
There was nothing radically different than what I’d
do with the Michigan Symphony Band or an All-State
band, these are the pillars in which I operate. – MH
Observing Professor Haithcock in rehearsal reveals
philosophies and techniques that public school directors can
implement in their classrooms. Three of his pillars: atmosphere of
the room, respect of time and talent, and musical sound, all weave
into an overarching concept of trust.
Atmosphere of the Room
Anytime I’m rehearsing, I want the atmosphere of
the room to be positive. I don’t believe human beings
work well under duress. – MH
Many can cite examples of fear and intimidation being used to
achieve results. Walking into these spaces, one can immediately
sense the stress and discomfort in the room. Haithcock proves
there is another way, that being kind does not mean quality will
suffer.
No time was wasted in setting the tone of the first rehearsal. A
short introduction, a request to “trust me,” and the music making
began. The atmosphere reflected his demeanor: calm, confident,
optimistic. Gardner noted, “He had a really even demeanor all the
way throughout. It was warm, it was inviting, and at a time where
maybe another band director would become frustrated, he never
showed that.”
Haithcock expounded, “Developing the atmosphere of the
room leads to a joint purpose of music making, not by dictating
or scolding, but by leading in a way that shows players they can
trust me. When I ask them to do something, they do it and make
a difference. They hear that they can respond to your gesture and
make it better. That builds trust.”
He emphasizes the importance of the quality of language,
being positive and polite, and avoiding “I” statements when
possible. All corrections were couched in encouragement and
gratitude: “Courage!” “You’re doing beautifully and I appreciate it
very much.” “Thank you.” While the tone of the room was serious,
it was also joyful, and Haithcock took advantage of humorous
situations, allowing everyone to feel at ease.
Time and Talent
Starting when it’s time to start, stopping when it’s
time to stop, being gracious…these are things that
build trust. – MH
Careful consideration of time is a student-centered issue.
Haithcock cites time and talent as being two of our greatest
assets, and takes care to protect them. We have all experienced
classrooms with teachers who seemingly have no concept of
time, starting late or continuing past the stop time. This signals
disrespect and abuses the power dynamic between director and
ensemble. Time can further be wasted with inefficiency, what
Haithcock describes as “burning chops and burning time.”
His consideration was not lost on the students. Savanna
Nelson, first-year music education and horn performance major
from UNC Greensboro commented, “We trusted him to not
destroy our chops throughout the day. He would have sections of
the band play and others rest.”
She observed, “...how little time he spent on himself. Usually
with honor bands, they take a lot of time to introduce themselves,
their backstory, and the backstory of the pieces. Haithcock got
straight into the music.”
While Haithcock had a clear plan, he mentally adjusted as
he learned the needs of the group, thinking ahead to the next
rehearsal. He said, “I want to make sure that when I leave these
rehearsals, I have a very clear idea of what needs to be done the
next day.”
Musical Sound
It’s always about the music. I want them to know I
have a deep sense of how the music needs to go, and
I’m going to help them get there. – MH
Haithcock started the rehearsal with a Bb round, urging the
musicians to “listen as much as you play.” While others may pull
out a tuner, Haithcock suggests this is unnecessary. “It is all earbased,
rather than eye-based," he said. “I’ve never felt the need to
use a tuner in these situations because the ear finds the spot.” He
10 | NORTH CAROLINA MUSIC EDUCATOR NORTH CAROLINA MUSIC EDUCATOR | 11

then went to the middle of the Bronnenkant, which he described
as the most resonant portion of the program. After cutting off
after the first climax, Haithcock pointed out, “We now have an ear
goal of arriving at that richness and resonance.”
The careful language Haithcock uses to create a positive
atmosphere extends to the specificity of sound. Efficient and
imaginative language sparks the creativity of the musicians. “Make
it sound distant.” “Can that be sassier?” “If you have that part
that sounds like indigestion…” Subjective language such as this
resulted in immediate change.
Implications for Music Educators
If you’re going to go out and teach, don’t just stop
and say, ‘lets do it again,’ offer a solution! – MH
Throughout the rehearsals, Haithcock addressed the future
music educators, pointing out techniques and suggesting
application in future classrooms. Chairs in the back were filled
with teachers observing his instruction. Gardner noted, “I think
there’s a real intentionality with how he approached his rehearsals
that every high school band director needs to take heed of.”
Nelson agreed. “As a future music educator, (it) helped me
think about the way I would explain music to my own students. I
will bring this to my future classroom.”
Creating a positive atmosphere, respecting student’s time and
talent, and creating a unified musical sound are aspects that will
contribute not just to the success of our ensembles, but to the joy
Auditions for Fall 2024 Entry
Saturday, November 18, 2023
Saturday, January 27, 2024
Friday, February 16, 2024
Saturday, March 2, 2024
Other dates by arrangement
of daily music making we hope to instill.
Yes, we’re going to play a concert, but I want
people to feel like the minute by minute, the hour by
hour, the day by day towards the concert, is where the
joy is. –MH
Doris Doyon has been an active music educator for twenty
years, teaching public school bands in Washington, Nevada, and
California. She most recently served as director of bands at Mt. San
Antonio College in Walnut, Calif., and previously served as director
of instrumental music at Norwalk High School, a Title I School in
southeast Los Angeles County. The Norwalk Band earned a six-year
designation as a Grammy Signature School Program, and hosted many
clinicians from around the nation. She completed a DMA in wind
conducting at UCLA in December of 2022, and is pursuing a PhD
in music education, wind conducting cognate, at the University of
Michigan. She earned a Master of Arts in conducting and percussion
performance from Truman State University and bachelor’s degrees
in music education and music performance from Pacific Lutheran
University.
WHAT CAN YOU DO WITH A
MUSIC DEGREE?
At Meredith, students have the opportunity to
experience a tailor-made degree program that allows
them to pursue careers in performance, education,
music therapy, music technology, composition, arts
administration, music business, and research.
Across the Districts
District 7
The past few months have been a whirlwind of musical events,
activities, and awards for music educators and students across
District 7. With calendars filled with concerts, marching band
competitions, honors ensemble events, and beyond, the musical
landscape has been vibrant and active since the beginning of the
school year.
Elementary music educators and their students have been
busy performing for their schools, community festivals, and
holiday celebrations. Amid these events, Dr. Erin Roper received
the November Employee of the Month award at Clyde Campbell
Elementary. Glenda Stephens received a $250 J. Don Coleman
Education Fund grant from the Hickory Choral Society for the
purchase of music at Viewmont Elementary School. Andrea Evans
had three Granite Falls Elementary School students selected for our
state’s Elementary Honors Chorus.
Preparations have begun for many events planned for the
winter months including All-County Chorus clinics, field trips to
hear the Western Piedmont Symphony, and Music In Our Schools
Month activities.
Heritage Middle School Chorus, directed by Mindy Cook,
performed at the NCMEA Professional Development Conference,
and will perform at the Biltmore House on April 22. Happy Valley
School has a middle school pep band for the first time ever! The
band and their director, Christopher Mayhew, bring excitement
and school spirit to their athletic events.
The Freedom High School chamber singers, directed by Robert
Summerel, performed at the Duke University Chapel on October
14, in conjunction with the NCACDA conference. Bernadette
Watts, chorus director at South Caldwell High School, had four
students selected for N.C. Honors Chorus, eight students selected
for Mars Hill Choral Festival, and three students selected for
ACDA Southern Division Honor Choir.
Burke County High School Band directors hosted the annual
All-County High School Honors Band on November 21 at
Patton High School. Caldwell County band directors hosted
their All-County Band Clinic for middle and high schools on
November 17 – 18 at the J.E. Broyhill Civic Center.
The Patton High School marching band was awarded Grand
Champion at the A C Reynolds Marching Band Competition on
October 14. Chad Higdon, band director at R. L. Patton High
school, received the North Carolina Bandmasters Association’s
Award of Excellence.
We congratulate these music educators and their students on
their successes. We are proud of the wonderful things happening
in music education in District 7. Here’s to the power of music in
shaping lives, fostering unity, and creating lasting memories for
our students and communities as we continue doing what we do
throughout the school year!
District 1
Andrea Evans
District 7 President
District7@ncmea.net
Currently in her 16 th year teaching,
Pam Day has spent the last three years at
Wintergreen Intermediate School in Pitt
County. Recently honored as Teacher of
the Year for her school, she earned her
undergraduate degree at East Carolina
University. While there, she spent many
semesters performing clarinet in the top
ensembles. She later went on to LSU where
she received her graduate degree. Before her appointment at
Wintergreen, Day spent 13 years teaching at Richlands Elementary
School in Onslow County. She made the move to Pitt County in
2021, and calls her move to Greenville as coming home.
If you know her, you know she brings an energy and passion
to the music classroom that is unmatched. She creates a fun,
engaging, and safe learning environment while teaching her
students the foundations of music making. She says while music
education creates future musicians, it also creates lifelong learners
who will “forever appreciate and use those skills learned in music.”
In addition to being awarded Teacher of the Year, she also
presented three different elementary sessions at the NCMEA
Professional Development Conference this past November.
Molly Griffin-Brown
District 1 President
District1@ncmea.net
12 | NORTH CAROLINA MUSIC EDUCATOR NORTH CAROLINA MUSIC EDUCATOR | 13

Elementary
Joseph Girgenti, Chair
Greetings everyone! I hope everyone is having a great start
to 2024. It is my pleasure to share the following updates
with you. As always, feel free to reach out if you have any
questions or recommendations.
Conference Highlights
Wow, what an amazing conference this year! We had so many
amazing sessions and performances. Thank you to everyone who
helped along the way to make the conference a success.
Congratulations to the 178 students (and their teachers) who
participated in the Elementary Honors Chorus. The concert was
exquisite, and I was impressed by the level of professionalism and
excitement.
Congratulations to our four school performing groups: Balls
Creek Elementary, Union & Marshville Elementary, Northern
Elementary, and Wesleyan Christian Academy. All four groups did
an amazing job and we are so thankful to you for performing for
us.
The Elementary Section had a survey posted during the
conference. If you missed the survey, please take a moment to
complete it here. This will help us keep in contact with you, as well
as plan for future events.
Finally, conference pictures from our board members can be
found here.
Teacher of the Year
The Elementary Board was so excited to receive twenty
nominations for Teacher of the Year. While the decision was tough,
the Elementary Section is pleased to announce our 2023 Teacher of
the Year is Laura Black.
Black is in her third year at Rocky Point Elementary School,
where she teaches K – 5 general music and leads after-school
strings and piano clubs. In her time at Rocky Point, she has been
awarded over $40,000 in grants for instrument and classroom
materials. She is a leader in our profession, as she is the Elementary
District 2 representative and co-facilitates the Virtual Professional
Learning Community for Rural Music Teachers. She has also
presented at multiple professional development conferences in and
out of North Carolina.
Rocky Point principal, April Perkins, writes, “Mrs. Black has
demonstrated a wealth of knowledge and experiences for children
during her teaching position at Rocky Point Elementary School.
Teaching is undoubtedly her calling as she does a phenomenal job
as an educator day in and day out.”
Click here to read more about Black’s impact on her students.
Changes to the Elementary Board
The following changes were made to our Elementary Board
following the conference:
Honors Chorus chair: Sarah Gray
Honors Chorus co-chair: Janae Copeland
Member at Large 2: Nancy Stover
District 1 Representative: Lisa Murray
District 5 Representative: Caroline Hazelman
Communications Manager: Ashley Cooper
Contact information for all of our board members can be found
on our website.
Mini-Conference 2024
As announced in November, our Elementary Mini-Conference
will be held on Saturday, April 27 at Wingate University. While this
event focuses on the needs of elementary music teachers, all music
educators are welcome to attend. Sessions will be announced soon,
as well as information on how to register. Like last year, we will
continue to provide lunch as part of the registration fee. Also, all
collegiate music education majors can attend free of charge.
(left - right) Assistant principal Stephen Harris, past Elementary chair Dawn
Wilson, principal April Perkins, TOY Laura Black, Pender County superintendent
Dr. Brad Breedlove, Elementary chair Joseph Girgenti
Music at Charlotte
UPTOWN PERFORMANCES EXCITING GUEST ARTISTS
Charlie Parker at The Jazz Room Composer/Performer Pamela Z
Backstage at the Eagles concert
@clt_coaa
BOLD IDEAS.
BIG CITY.
COMMUNITY COLLABORATIONS
Carlisle Floyd’s opera, Susannah
Holocaust Remembrance Day Concert
At UNC Charlotte, studies go beyond the
university and into Charlotte's creative community.
With bold ideas and broad connections, our talented
faculty, students, and alumni are shaping the civic
imagination of this fast-growing city.
Renowned saxophonist Branford Marsalis
music.charlotte.edu
14 | NORTH CAROLINA MUSIC EDUCATOR NORTH CAROLINA MUSIC EDUCATOR | 15

Middle School Choral
Emily Turner, Chair
UNCW DEPARTMENT OF MUSIC
SPRING 2024
What a wonderful conference we had! I loved watching
Dr. Stuart Chapman Hill work with the Honors Chorus,
and I know his time back in his old stomping grounds
was well-coordinated and stress-free due to the leadership of Ben
McKinnon. We had two fantastic performance choirs: Heritage
Middle School under the direction of Mindy Cook, and Hawfields
Middle School under the direction of Aria Westbrook.
Many thanks to all of you that joined us for conference!
Whether you prepared students for Honors Chorus, presented or
presided a session, or just enjoyed attending sessions and catching
up with old friends, your presence and enthusiasm was electric
and so encouraging! If you have any thoughts on how I can make
your conference experience even better next year, or you have
ideas for excellent presenters or topics, please reach out to me at
mschoral_chair@ncmea.net. I would love to hear from you!
Congratulations to our Richard P. Keasler Teacher of the Year,
Christina Lowder! Lowder is a 2006 graduate of Pennsylvania
State University earning a bachelor’s in music education. She
earned her master’s in percussion performance in 2008 from UNC
Greensboro. Her choruses have consistently received excellent and
superior ratings in performance and sight reading at MPA festivals.
Her students participate in district and state festivals. Additionally,
her chorus was accepted, and performed an inspiring concert at the
NCMEA Professional Development Conference in 2017.
Both of her parents were music teachers and had a significant
impact on her becoming a musician and teacher. She also
highlights her high school choral colleague and former MS choral
section chair, Catherine Butler, as a huge influence on her as a
choral director.
The new year always has me reflecting and musing about
how to continue the musical growth in my choirs, how to further
strengthen the relationships both between and with my students,
and the excitement of beginning new repertoire! I look forward to
the choral events for my students that I know will be core musical
memories for them, as they were for me. With the new year comes
two of these types of choral events: Large and Small Ensemble
MPA and All-State Chorus.
I strongly encourage you to take your students to MPA! If
taking your students for a rating feels overwhelming, you can
always take them for comments only. You and your students will
grow tremendously by going through the process of preparing for,
and participating in, MPA. The calendar of MPA dates for the state
can be found on the Student Events tab of Middle School Choral
Page on the NCMEA website. If you have any questions regarding
MPA, please contact our new Student Activities Coordinator,
Isaiah Cornelius, at mschoralactivities@ncmea.net, or reach out to
your site chair.
Please make sure you have marked your calendars for the
new March 1 deadline for All-State student registration. All-State
Chorus will be held at the Greensboro Coliseum on April 19 – 20,
2024. Our clinicians are Mary Biddlecombe, Dr. Andrew Minear,
and Dr. Tucker Biddlecombe. Their repertoire choices are already
listed on the website for your convenience.
Our general meeting will be held on Friday evening, when we
will also announce the Honors Chorus audition piece for 2024.
Any All-State questions should go to our coordinator, Angel Rudd,
at middleschoolallstate@gmail.com. Many thanks in advance
to our long time All-State Chorus Coordinator, Angel Rudd
Cuddeback, as she leads us through her final All-State event. She’ll
be stepping into the MS Choral chair position next fall. She is the
epitome of organization and always runs a seamless event. Thank
you for over ten years of dedication to this special event, Angel!
I’m hoping to see you all at our student events this spring! In
the meantime, please email me if I can help you in any way!
The right music
and lyrics can
infiltrate your soul.”
– Brownell Landrum
12 - 6 PM
910-962-3390
uncwmus@uncw.edu | uncw.edu/music
16 | NORTH CAROLINA MUSIC EDUCATOR NORTH CAROLINA MUSIC EDUCATOR | 17
JAN
06
JAN
27
10 AM - 5 PM
1:30 - 6:45 PM
JAN
20
9:30 AM - 4 PM
MAR
22
ALL DAY
FEB
02

uncp.edu/music • music@uncp.edu • 910.521.6230
Building a Vocal
Skillset in the Choral
Rehearsal
by Dr. Jami Rhodes-Galloway
You are not limited to the sound your singers make in
a first rehearsal. This was my final reminder to fellow
educators at the end of a presentation with Dr. Andrew
Crane at our most recent NCMEA Professional Development
Conference. Though we often process it as such, the initial sound
our students make does not represent how ‘talented’ they are or
how vocally strong the group is. It certainly does not represent
a limit for the ultimate product. The only thing that sound
represents is what those singers are physically doing to produce a
sound in that moment.
The ever-present idea of “talent” is real, particularly in the
realm of our individual abilities to coordinate musculature. We
see that demonstrated blatantly in the world of sports. Beyond
that natural coordination, however, just like any other physical
activity, singing is a skillset that can be built. It is a coordination
of musculature. I tell my singers, “If the person next to you sounds
‘better’ than you, it does not mean they are more talented. It may
just mean their ‘tube’ is more open.”
Where to Start
Simplify the act of singing, for yourself and your students.
Just like any other wind instrument, a sung sound is simply air
vibrating through a tube. Anatomically, the tube is represented by
the vocal tract (the space between the vibrating vocal folds and the
lips). What a singer does with that space (which is highly alterable
and under their control) has a direct effect on the vibrating air,
which is ultimately the sound we hear. You may choose to show
your students a diagram of the vocal tract to further establish this
reality. A profile version tends to work best, and there are many
available with a quick google search. Movement of any of the
anatomy inside the vocal tract changes the shape of the tube. Show
them the tongue and then have them move their own tongue to
see just how easily they can change their tube.
Expand the way you are processing what you hear. Everything
you hear is a result of what your singers are doing with their
tube, with the air going through that tube, or both. When things
are out of tune, for example, before you address it, remind yourself
that the intonation is not the problem. The singer’s actions are.
They are creating the intonation. Your job is not to fix the intonation;
your job is to fix what the singer is doing (with their tube,
their air, or both) that is causing the intonation issue. Fix that and
you have addressed the issue rather than addressing a symptom
of the issue. Pedagogically, you have also likely reminded your
singers of a fundamental part (or parts) of the skillset they are
building.
Give the singers ownership of the sound they are making
and hold them accountable. This is huge. You, as the conductor,
have no control over the sound your singers make. For better
or worse, they are making the sound and, if we want them to
do something differently, we must give them awareness and
responsibility. This is where you remind them that it is not about
talent. It is about what they are physically doing and choices they
are making. Their entire job is to keep the tube open and the air
going through the tube.
Building a vocal skillset is done over time and during the
rehearsal process. The vocal warmup is a great place to introduce
vocal skills but that is not where they are built. Skills are built
during the rehearsal process as they are put into practice over
time.
In Practice
“Tall Neck”
Alignment is a central element in
allowing the body to send air through
a tube that is free of constriction.
Head position and open torso are the
two primary aspects of alignment
that I address in ensemble rehearsals.
Both are easily accessible and have a
significant impact on the sound.
“Tall neck” is the cue for my
students to make certain their head
is over (rather than in front of) their
body and that the back of the neck
feels ‘tall.’ This will bring the chin
down slightly below what might
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at UNCP is $500 per semester for in-state students and
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18 | NORTH CAROLINA MUSIC EDUCATOR NORTH CAROLINA MUSIC EDUCATOR | 19

e parallel to the floor and opens the space in the “tube.” This
is also their cue to make sure the rib cage is over the hips and
not collapsed forward in a way that impedes movement in the
abdomen.
The “Marshmallows” and the “Real” Vowel
and “real” vowel.
Lifting the
palate to close off
the nasal passage
and simultaneously
creating a curve
in the “tube” that
encourages movement
of the vibrating air
is paramount in
producing a “tall”
vowel that is resonant
and in tune. As I work
toward that vowel, the
two things I address
most frequently are jaw
“release” (not “drop”)
Jaw “release” is the concept of releasing muscular activity
(typically felt in the cheeks and near the joint) that holds the
jaw in a more closed position. These muscles also contribute
a downward pull on the soft palate. Thus, releasing the jaw is
necessary if the goal is palatal lift. In general, singers tend to think
about opening the front part of the jaw. For my purposes, I have
singers imagine they have miniature “marshmallows” between
their back molars. This directive encourages release and creates
space. Their goal becomes keeping that space between their teeth,
regardless of range or vowel.
A word of caution: Avoid going directly to the idea of dropping
the front of the jaw downward to make a “tall” space. That
ultimately makes the tube shape less “friendly” for the moving air.
Instead, assign vertical space to the upward stretch of the
palate (keeping the mouth opening more “neutral”) and save jaw
“drop” for more extreme parts of the range.
“Real Vowel” is the idea of encouraging singers not to modify a
vowel by tensing the root of the tongue. “Ah” vs. “Aw,” for example.
It is not uncommon to “correct” an overly bright or shallow “a”
by asking students to sing “aw,” instead. In doing that, however,
singers will tense and push down on the root of the tongue, which
both constricts the space in the “tube” and simultaneously pulls
down on the palate. The result is dampening that we hear as
“foggy” timbre and a lowering in the pitch.
When addressing vowels, keep in mind that vowels have two
parts: The tongue position, which gives you vowel integrity, and
the shape of the space through which you are singing the vowel,
which gives you timbre. If you hear an overly bright “a”, your issue
is likely one of timbre, not integrity. Modify the shape of the space
rather than the tongue. If you hear the wrong vowel – something
akin to “uh” rather than “eh”, (as in the word “met”) – is a favorite
of my own students, then address the integrity of the tongue.
The “Prep”
Getting your ensemble to take a breath that serves the
vocal sound in a positive way does not have to be complicated.
The singer’s breath prepares the body to send a consistent and
energized air stream through the tube. Period.
In my ensemble, I call it “the prep.” I say “prep” because I’ve
learned that having singers think less about breathing and more
about preparing to make a sound tends to minimize sabotaging
and directly connects the activity happening before the singing to
the singing itself.
Prior to the “prep” and in addition to “tall neck” and
“marshmallows between the teeth,” I have students monitor
abdominal release, typically by placing a flat hand on the abdomen
below the navel to feel the muscles release downward. This must
happen before the inhale so that the muscles that control the air
can function effectively. On the prep, the air comes in quickly
and in an upward direction toward the hard palate, rather than
straight toward the back of the throat. The upward direction
of air encourages palatal lift and creates a sensation of forward
resonating space that students can identify. I typically reference
it as the “space above the teeth” and encourage students to let the
sound resonate there, rather than what they might feel as down in
the mouth or back in the throat.
When it comes to the vocal sound your singers are making,
you are far less limited than you might think. You can change
the sound… and I don’t mean by dressing it up in a wardrobe
of “unified vowels” and “musicality.” Though, by all means, do
that! Before you add any of the “tried and true,” however, you can
substantially change the fundamental sound of your ensemble
by addressing the quality of what they are doing to produce that
sound. When you embrace it, the reality that your singers – and
you – are not at the mercy of a predetermined vocal product is a
game-changer.
Dr. Jami Rhodes-Galloway is currently
professor of voice at East Carolina University
where she teaches applied voice, conducts the
ECU Concert Choir, and serves as coordinator of
the voice science and pedagogy program.
High School Choral
Teacher of the Year 2023
Richard Butler
Richard Butler has been teaching for 33
years and earned a BM in voice and BA in
French at Methodist University (1988), and
an MME in choral music at Florida State
University. He has been National Board
Certified since 2004. His experience and
contributions to the choral community can
be described with the adjectives: far, wide,
and busy! He has served as:
• Choral conductor and pianist
• County PLC leader and choral activities chair
• All-County coordinator and host
• MPA site host
• Curriculum writer
• Professional trip/tour planner
• AP/IB/AIG certified
• SIT team representative
Aleisa Baker, Chair
CONGRATULATIONS!
• Director of music ministries
• Community theater music director
• Professional committee member
Butler has also served passionately and fervently within the
High School Choral Section as the new teacher and mentor chair
and coordinator. He has been in this role – voluntarily – just shy
of 10 years.
He has succinctly stated his teaching philosophy as, “People
first, process second, product last.” Congratulations again, Mr.
Richard Butler!
Hall of Fame Inductee 2023
The NCMEA High School Choral Section Hall of Fame award
was created to honor exceptional deceased or retired choral
directors in North Carolina. This award celebrates and honors an
individual whose contributions have left an indelible mark on the
North Carolina choral community.
Bob Johnson
Bob Johnson has exemplified the very
essence of excellence and dedication
throughout his career. He has had a profound
impact on hundreds of lives of young people
during his 37 year career.
Johnson retired after 29 years from Clyde
A Erwin High School in western North
Carolina. Prior to this, he was an elementary
school teacher and high school teacher in
Georgia and holds a BS and MEd in music education, as well
as a EdS in school administration, all from Western Carolina
University.
Friend and colleague Aleisa Baker wrote in the nomination
statement, “I student taught with Bob and then subsequently
became a colleague of his. Early in my career, Bob continued to
provide mentorship and support. He was a fine representation of
what a good choral director was, and how to build relationships
with students. His choirs were always stellar, and his legacy is still
ongoing at Erwin High School. In 2011, the performing arts center
was named after him – The Bob Johnson Performing Arts Center.
I still consider him a dear friend, and this honor is past due.”
He is a former Teacher of the Year at Erwin, served as a MPA
site chair, and has served in various leadership positions within
the NCMEA choral section and ACDA. His choirs performed
twice at our annual conference.
Congratulations again to Mr. Bob Johnson!
20 | NORTH CAROLINA MUSIC EDUCATOR NORTH CAROLINA MUSIC EDUCATOR | 21

Strengthening Your
Program through
Asset Mapping
by Tim Nowak
This past conference, I had the distinct pleasure of cofacilitating
NCMEA’s Rural Music Educator symposium
with my colleague, Dr. Daniel Johnson. One of the recurring
themes in our discussions was a lack of resources. In underserved
places like rural communities, it can be difficult for music teachers
to gather enough resources to provide the same opportunities
children in more privileged areas might experience. To be sure,
this challenge is not unique to rural settings – urban areas are
also systematically under-resourced, and even music programs
in wealthier suburban areas can find themselves with limited
resources when they are placed at the bottom of the proverbial
food chain of educational priorities.
How might music teachers address this chronic scarcity? Of
course, we must continue to advocate for increased resources from
the various governing bodies that appropriate school funds, and
NAfME and NCMEA both have extensive collections of advocacy
resources that can help with that side of the equation. But, with
a little research, music teachers might be able to uncover latent
resources in their community to supplement and amplify what they
already have. In this article, I discuss asset mapping as an action
research process for how music teachers might build connections
and better leverage existing resources in their communities.
What is Asset Mapping?
Asset mapping is part of an urban development strategy called
Asset Based Community Development (ABCD). Kretzmann and
McKnight (1993) maintained that most community development
approaches focused on bringing in outside experts to identify
problems and remedy them with external interventions. This
deficit-oriented approach disenfranchised residents and fostered
a cycle of dependency on outside help. Instead, they proposed
an asset-oriented approach which empowered residents to
band together, identify talents and gifts already present in the
community, and direct those assets toward reaching their own
set of strategic goals in the hopes of building more sustainable
community change.
It can be easy for music educators to slip into similar deficitoriented
perspectives, focusing on their lack of resources, how
this limits their program, and how they are dependent on school
leadership for any supplemental funds they can find. Again, the
systematic under-funding of music programs must be addressed
by the appropriate school leaders and governance bodies. But
reframing this problem through an asset-oriented lens could help
music teachers find additional assets and resources within their
communities and simultaneously build a coalition of supporters to
strengthen their existing program and advocacy efforts.
Asset mapping is the initial stage of the ABCD process, and
“involves documenting the tangible and intangible resources of
a community, viewing it as a place with assets to be preserved
and enhanced, not deficits to be remedied” (Kerka, 2003, p. 1).
Shahid et al. (2019) identified six steps in the asset mapping
process: determine the purpose of the map, define the community
boundaries, identify collaborators, select assets to include, create an
inventory, and organize the assets. Below, I adapt the first four steps
to the music teaching setting.
Define Your Purpose
To find and enlist collaborators, you need to be able to clearly
articulate why you want what you want. This is the most difficult
step in the process because the value of what we do as music
teachers often seems self-evident to us. How might you explain the
value of what you do to someone who has no experience in your
classroom? What do you hope students will take away from your
class? How does being in your music class change students for
the better? Most music teachers can discuss this at length, but the
challenge is honing your purpose into a single, powerful statement.
Give yourself a limit of 150 characters to answer the question:
“What do you do for students?” Once you have this core statement
of purpose, list two to four supporting statements about how you
put this purpose into action – state what you and your students do
to pursue your goal every day. These supporting statements make
your purpose more concrete and can help you identify specific
resources you need to realize your goal more effectively.
Define the Community and Identify
Collaborators
Next, consider where the community you serve begins and
ends. What streets, natural features, and/or districting lines form
the boundaries of your community? In some places this task is
easier because the community is geographically well-defined, like
in remote or isolated rural areas. But in other places, such as urban
areas, the borders between neighborhoods can be ambiguous.
In either case, take time to draw the physical boundaries of your
community on a map to get a sense of the area and help focus your
efforts.
Once you’ve defined a distinct geographic community,
consider the social communities you might connect with in that
area. Shahid et al. (2019) listed four groups of people to find:
people with shared interests, people pursuing similar objectives,
people with expertise, and resourceful organizations. People with
shared interests might be parents, colleagues in your building,
music colleagues in other buildings, or music store owners and
employees. Think about anyone who might want the same things
you articulated in your purpose statement, and don’t limit yourself
to people directly related to music. If your purpose statement
is broad enough, you’ll likely find a variety of people who have
similar interests in the good work you do, as well as those who are
already doing work that might support what you’re doing in your
program.
You’re also likely to find people who are experts in areas in
which you have needs. Musical experts could include local studio
teachers, music store owners, or professional/semi-professional
performers. Again, don’t forget to consider areas outside of music.
People with expertise in construction might help build sets for
a musical or marching band; those who have expertise in travel
management might help plan trips; those with experience in
philanthropy might help with fundraising.
Finally, seek out established groups that have their own set of
resources and connections such as non-profit arts organizations,
business collectives like chambers of commerce, community
groups such as religious organizations, and educational nonprofits.
These groups can function as hubs that might connect you
to additional resources and contacts. Above all, make sure that
your collaborators are aligned with your purpose and are willing to
be genuine collaborators toward your goals.
Select Assets
Money is the obvious resource to seek. But there are many
resources a community could be willing to provide beyond
financial donations. People might be willing to donate their time
and talents to different aspects of your program. A local plumber
may be willing to create a set of boom-whackers from scrap
material; a church pianist may be willing to accompany a choral
rehearsal twice per week; a designer might be willing to create an
organization system for your costume room. People or institutions
also might offer to donate physical spaces for you to use for
activities. Rather than having a concert in your school’s cafetorium,
the local VFW hall or public library may be willing to host you.
Third, leverage your program’s ability to barter. In exchange for
students performing at an arts festival, the local arts council might
be willing to list your program as a potential beneficiary the next
time they reach out to their donor network. If your collaborators
are aligned to your purpose and willing to help, they will find a way
to contribute in a substantive and meaningful way.
Finding Resources, Building Networks
On the surface, asset mapping is a method of researching
your community to locate resources of which you may not have
been aware. But the greatest benefits of asset mapping are not the
material or financial resources you find. “Asset mapping is not
just another list of resources […] it’s a process for connecting and
engaging the community” (Duncan, 2016, p. 4).
By reaching out to community members and sharing your
vision and purpose for your program, you build a network of
supporters who see the value in the work that you do. That social
capital will pay dividends in future advocacy efforts. Thus, asset
mapping becomes a way of deepening the connections between
your community and your music program, generating both
tangible and intangible resources for the future.
References
Duncan, D. (2016). Asset mapping toolkit. Clear Impact. https://
resources.depaul.edu/abcd-institute/publications/publicationsand-learnings/Pages/default.aspx#_assetmapping
Kerka, S. (2003). Community asset mapping. Trends and Issues
Alert, 47. ERIC Clearinghouse on Adult, Career, and Vocational
Education, Columbus, OH. https://eric.ed.gov/?id=ED481324
Kretzmann, J. P., & McKnight, J. L. (1993). Building
communities from the inside out: A path toward finding and
mobilizing a community’s assets. Evanston, IL: Institute for Policy
Research. https://resources.depaul.edu/abcd-institute/publications/
Pages/basic-manual.aspx
Shahid, M., Vaska, M., & Turin, T. C. (2019). Asset mapping
as a tool for identifying resources in community health: A
methodological overview. Journal of Biomedical Analytics, 2(1), 13-
25. https://doi.org/10.30577/jba.2019.v2n1.22
22 | NORTH CAROLINA MUSIC EDUCATOR NORTH CAROLINA MUSIC EDUCATOR | 23

Audiation Boosts
for your Choral
Classroom
by Dr. Stuart Chapman Hill
Example 1
musicianship, not just your students’, and they may not go
swimmingly at first. Don’t let any hiccups dissuade you from trying.
That’s how learning works!
Help students develop awareness of macro and micro beat.
This suggestion seems simple, but it is crucial students develop an
awareness of macro beat and micro beat. By “macro beat,” I mean
the main steady pulse, and by “micro beat” I mean the divisions of
that pulse.
You can teach the chord roots to the class on a neutral syllable,
on solfege, or on numbers representing the chord functions (i.e.,
“one” for I, “four” for IV, “five” for V). Once students are familiar
enough with both the original tune and the chord roots, you can
divide the class in two parts, half on the melody and half on the
chord roots. Then you can invite students to switch.
This same approach works well with choral warm-ups, since
so many of them are simple melodies with simple harmonic
underpinnings. Example 3 is a familiar warmup, “Zingamama,”
with chord roots notated underneath. (Note that I’ve had a bit of
fun by making “Zingamama” minor instead of major – because it’s
important to mix it up!)
Example 3
When people ask you what you do for a living, what do you
say? I am a choral conductor-teacher and identify as such, but I’ve
also found the simple title “music teacher” often feels like it fits me
best. That’s partly because I have a lot of musical interests, but also
because I want to feel connected to the whole enterprise of music
education, not just the choral part of it. One thing I hope unites
us all as music educators, is our desire to help students become
better musicians. No matter what kind of music we teach – band,
choir, orchestra, general music, guitar, piano, music theory, music
technology – all of us teach musicianship.
Musicianship means different things to different people. The
musicianship of the conductor of the North Carolina Symphony
will be different from the musicianship of the artists who take the
stage at J. Cole’s Dreamville Festival. Musicianship can range from
technical proficiency on an instrument, to having a great ear, to
deep creative insight and imagination.
I want to focus on one important conception of musicianship,
audiation, and offer several tips for choral teachers (music teachers
who specialize in choral music) to help students (and teachers)
become better audiators.
Audiation is a term coined by Edwin Gordon in his Music
Learning Theory (MLT). Although many teachers use the verb to
describe “inner hearing,” the ability to play back musical sounds in
one’s mind, audiation goes deeper and broader than that. Another
definition is musical thinking that is “foundational to all forms of
music making and music learning.” Audiation involves perceiving
music with comprehension – especially that of tonal and rhythmic
context. To hear “Row, Row, Row Your Boat” is one thing; to play it
back in your mind is another. To understand it in the context of its
major tonality and triple meter, or recognize the implied harmonic
functions of the tune represents audiation in action.
Audiation is a complex concept, whose essential principle is
musical thinking that involves giving musical meaning to sounds by
understanding their context. Importantly, audiation is not imitation
or memorization. Many convincing musical performances rely on
imitation, memorization, and technical proficiency without dipping
into the well of audiation. If we really want our students to grow as
musicians, we must go deeper than imitation and memorization,
deeper than performances that sound good on the surface, and help
them grow as audiators.
Strengthening one’s audiation is a lifelong journey. So is
strengthening one’s knowledge about audiation and MLT. Here are
four ideas to help you think about giving an “audiation boost” to the
choral music teaching and learning happening in your classroom.
You don’t need to be an MLT expert to try some of these ideas in
right away, and I hope you will see a resulting difference in your
students’ musicianship and your own.
These activities are focused on building students’ aural
musicianship, rather than notational literacy or music theory
knowledge. Just as you learned to talk before you learned to read,
musicians need to build up their musical “speaking vocabulary”
before they’re ready for abstractions like notation and music theory.
Try these activities to help spur some audiational growth.
Explore various tonalities and meters. So much of what we
sing and hear in choral environments is in major tonality and 4/4
or duple meter. This major-and-duple “rut” can be a real hindrance
to strengthening audiation. Think about language literacy for a
moment. Part of becoming more literate is encountering language in
a variety of contexts, from conversation to written communication,
television, and theater. As we encounter varied media, we grow our
vocabularies and develop new ways of understanding and using
language. That learning wouldn’t be as rich if it were confined to just
one medium. Music literacy, or audiation, also thrives on variety:
variety of style, instrumentation, tonality and meter.
Students should experience a variety of tonalities and meters
through listening, singing, moving, chanting, and more. They
should experience songs in all modes – even Locrian! – and in
different meters: duple, triple, and uneven (i.e., asymmetric). This
may seem a tall order, especially if you don’t remember hearing
pieces in Locrian at that last choral reading session you attended.
But experiencing multiple tonalities and meters can happen in
warm-ups and in classroom activities outside concert repertoire.
Collections like Experimental Songs and Chants Without
Words contain short songs and chants that can be used as part of
your warm-up routines or as standalone activities interspersed
throughout rehearsal. Alternatively, just take a familiar song and
mix it up! How about singing “Ah, Poor Bird” in Phrygian? How
about performing “Dona Nobis Pacem” in asymmetric meter? (See
notation for these two ideas in Example 1.)
Fair warning: these activities are likely to challenge your
Awareness of different levels of beat is foundational for rhythmic
audiation. Students need frequent opportunities to chant and move
to the macro and micro beats in a variety of musical contexts.
As students enter the classroom, you might play a recording of a
school-appropriate popular song and lead students in movement on
the macro and micro beats.
You might play Kelly Clarkson’s “Breakaway” (a great example of
triple meter) and have students sway left and right to the macro beat
and then tap their shoulders on the micro beat. You could progress
to trying macro and micro simultaneously, or you could divide
the class in two groups, half micro and half macro, then switch the
groups. You also could have students chant the macro and micro
beats on a neutral syllable (like “bah”) or using your rhythm syllable
system of choice. (I prefer to use the takadimi system, so for Kelly
Clarkson’s “Breakaway,” half the class would chant macro beats on
“ta” while the other chanted micro beats on “ta-ki-da.”)
In addition to using recorded music for these macro and micro
beat activities, bring them into your warm-ups and repertoire
rehearsal as well. While rehearsing with one voice part, have the
sections who aren’t singing be your “class metronome” and chant
macro and/or micro beats. Or, while the whole ensemble sings
a passage, have them all march or tap the macro or micro beat.
Consistent use of these activities will boost your students’ rhythmic
audiation—and likely have the added benefit of helping ensembles
learn to avoid common rhythm problems like rushing.
Help students develop harmonic awareness by singing chord
roots. Students can develop an awareness and understanding of
harmonic function – in an experiential way, not a theoretical one –
by singing chord root melodies. The chord root melody is a simple
melody that outlines the basic implied harmonic functions of the
song. For example, here’s the first phrase of “Twinkle, Twinkle Little
Star” with chord roots notated underneath (Example 2):
Example 2
When students hear and sing chord roots, they start to develop
an awareness of the harmonic underpinnings of music, and in time,
this harmonic awareness helps with things like tuning, and prepares
students with the context they need to understand concepts like
key signatures and chord progressions. Why not sing your choral
warm-ups in two parts, with one part singing the melody and the
other singing chord roots? It’s a simple addition that could pay big
audiation benefits.
These ideas are just the beginning, but I hope they’re an easy way
to get started! If you are interested in learning more about MLT and
audiation, check out resources like Eric Bluestine’s book, The Ways
Children Learn Music, or the new book Q&A for MLT: Choral Music
Perspectives on Music Learning Theory, by Jill Reese, Krystal McCoy,
and me. You might also want to keep an eye on the Gordon Institute
for Music Learning website (giml.org) for workshops, including a
summer professional development course focused on applying MLT
to choral music.
In the meantime, I encourage you to just be brave and give this
stuff a try! In time, I hope you’ll find that you and your students are
thinking about music and musicianship in new ways. Go ahead and
give yourselves an audiation boost!
References
1
Jill Reese, Krystal McCoy, and Stuart Chapman Hill, Q&A for
MLT: Choral Music Perspectives on Music Learning Theory (Chicago:
GIA Publications, 2023), 18.
2
Here, “triple meter” just means that each beat (or macro beat)
of “Row Row…” is divided into three divisions (or micro beats).
This terminology may be different from what you learned in music
theory. For example, you may imagine this tune notated in 6/8 and
therefore call it “compound duple.”
3
Edwin E. Gordon, Beth M. Bolton, Wendy K. Hicks, and
Cynthia C. Taggart, Experimental Songs and Chants without Words:
Book 1 (Chicago: GIA Publications, 1993).
24 | NORTH CAROLINA MUSIC EDUCATOR NORTH CAROLINA MUSIC EDUCATOR | 25

Jazz
Happy New Year! I want to thank everyone who helped
out during the conference to make our Jazz Section
presentations and performances possible. Robert Johnston
loaned his equipment and set up and tore down before and after
the conference – and had both his wind and jazz ensembles from
Ronald Reagan High School perform! They were outstanding, and
I am humbled by his teaching and dedication to our profession.
We also had great jazz performances by the Hickory Ridge High
School jazz program under the direction of Steven Foster and the
JazzArts All Star Jazz Combo, led by Lovell Bradford. I hope you
heard these amazing groups and feel musically recharged.
I also had the opportunity to learn more about teaching jazz
in general, including improvisation, teaching the rhythm section
students (and instruments), and how to get my students to listen
and play with a balanced sound. If you have any feedback for the
jazz portion of our conference, or if there is anything you would
like to learn about next year, please send me an email.
Audition Dates for 2023–24
January 27, 2024
February 10, 2024
February 24, 2024*
*priority deadline for scholarship/assistantship consideration
Degree Programs
Bachelor of Arts
Bachelor of Music
Music Minor
Master of Music
Doctor of Musical Arts
Doctor of Philosophy
Post-Baccalaureate Certificate
Post-Masters Certificate
Tina Robinett, Chair
All-State Jazz Audition Material
This year’s jazz audition material is posted on the NCMEA Jazz
Website – Auditions. Thanks to the auditions committee, Margie
Harrison, Matt DiDonna, Matt Howard, and all who helped us
update this year’s rotation and get things ready for this year. I
am looking forward to hearing lots of great jazz music through
auditions and clinics this year.
We will have our annual spring meeting on the Saturday
morning of the All-State Jazz Band on April 13, 2024, and hope
all can attend. We plan to discuss potentially adding lead trumpet
and bass trombone etudes along with some other requests to the
audition process and elect clinicians.
As always, if there is anything I can do for you, please let me
know. I hope you had a restful break and enjoyed time doing what
fills your bucket to prepare for the new year.
For more than 30 years, the National Association for Music
Education (NAfME) has designated March for the observance of
Music In Our Schools Month® (MIOSM®), the time of year when
music education becomes the focus of schools across the nation. As
NAfME calls out on their website:
The purpose of MIOSM is to raise awareness of the importance
of music education for all children
– and to remind citizens that
school is where all children should
have access to music. MIOSM is
an opportunity for music teachers
to bring their music programs to
the attention of the school and
the community, and to display the
benefits that school music brings to
students of all ages.
When you first think about
what music education is, whom or
what do you think of? Most of us
will remember a former teacher
who was instrumental in guiding
us to this path. Or maybe we had
an “ah-ha” moment as a performer
that shaped our feelings towards
music and music education. No
matter how you got here, we are
thankful for you.
Last year, our Music in Our
Schools Month theme was “Music
is All Of Us.” North Carolina had
a very successful month with our
hashtag #MIOSM23, performances at the capitol partnered with
DPI, proclamations from our governor, and performances of a
choral piece written specifically for our state by an Onslow County
composing team, Liz and Chris Betsch.
Moving forward into this upcoming MIOSM season, our
MIOSM co-chair, Tonya Allison, was excited to hear NAfME
President, Scott Sheehan, speak at the 2023 NCMEA Professional
Development Conference about how the MIOSM theme is chosen.
In fact, the theme is decided by the president of NAfME, so it was
his pleasure to announce the 2024 MIOSM theme as “I See ME.”
YOU are Music Education. No matter how you got into this
wonderful path, or how long you have been here, YOU are what
makes music education important for your students, your school,
your community, your state, and so on. As we enter into our new
MIOSM theme of positive self-reflection as music educators,
and continue to take pride in what we do, we implore you to join
our state in celebrating! Here are some ideas we extend to you to
participate in during the month of March:
Danny Greene, conductor of the Salem Community Orchestra
and former director of Wachovia Winds, is thrilled to partner with
MIOSM in North Carolina as we promote seven North Carolina
composers. These compositions range from Grade 1 through Grade
6. As Danny said, “It is done! Seven new works for band. Seven
North Carolina composers. Every level of music education and
performance.” Though this music was first premiered in February
2023, the MIOSM committee hopes you will add these selections
into your winter or spring programs.
More information about each piece is in the inset, or you can
contact the composers from this link: https://drive.google.com/
file/d/1Qze5ZR7GhWyO6hR_4s0qmFN9h08HfT4d/view?usp=drivesdk
Alongside these new compositions, we are coordinating with
NCDPI on performances in Raleigh
again, as well as anticipating a
proclamation from our governor.
We urge our NCMEA members to
ask their leadership at the school or
district level to also issue a MIOSM
statement, and even reach out to
local school boards or government.
Information on how to do this can
be found on the NAfME website,
listed below.
On the NAfME website, you'll
also find MIOSM lessons, and daily
prompts teachers may use in their
classrooms. NAfME will also be
looking for teacher testimonials
prior to the month of March in
conjunction with the new theme, “I
See ME.”
We all have a story that reflects
why music education is “ME.”
Sharing our stories may somehow
spark the next generation of music
educators, and then the cycle
continues.
For more information about this year’s MIOSM activities,
follow our social media accounts, or check out the NAfME and
NCMEA websites as we come closer to the month of March!
NAfME MIOSM Website: https://nafme.org/studentopportunities/music-in-our-schools-month/
NCMEA MIOSM Website: https://www.ncmea.net/programs/
music-in-our-schools-month-miosm/
Please be in touch if you have any questions. We’re looking
forward to a great month ahead!
Tonya Allison | miosm_chair1@ncmea.net
Lindsay Williams | miosm_chair2@ncmea.net
MIOSM Co-Chairs
26 | NORTH CAROLINA MUSIC EDUCATOR NORTH CAROLINA MUSIC EDUCATOR | 27

O
rchestra
Joseph Walker, Chair
Jennifer Frisina
Jennifer Frisina is a long time music
educator. She retired from a full career in
Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools in 2012,
after 30 years of teaching strings at both the
elementary and middle school levels. She
frequently mentored new music teachers and
student teachers, taught the new arts teacher
orientation class for 10 years, ran the CMS
Honors Orchestra auditions for 15 years, and
served on numerous committees for curriculum development and
common core planning.
The Orchestra Section had an energizing conference in
November. It was wonderful to see so many of you, and to learn
and grow together in the many fantastic sessions. A big thank
you to Veronica Biscocho for so capably managing N.C. Honors
Orchestra. Her poise and organization were key to a great
experience for both students and teachers. Before the NCHO
performance on Sunday, the Orchestra Section recognized Emily
Braun and Amanda Colson as our Teachers of the Year, and
inducted our newest Hall of Fame recipients, James Dellinger and
Jennifer Frisina.
Best wishes to all of the teachers of the Orchestra Section as we
welcome 2024!
Teacher of the Year
Eastern Region – Emily Braun
Emily Braun received her Bachelor of
Music in education from UNC Greensboro
in 2005, graduating summa cum laude. Since
then, she has taught general and vocal music,
piano lab, and orchestra in Moore County
Schools. In 2009, she earned her National
Board Certification in early and middle music
from the National Board for Professional
Teaching Standards and was then recertified
in 2018. She has served as the Jr. Eastern Regional Orchestra clinic
chair since 2018 and has students consistently earn spots in the
orchestra. This is her 13 th year teaching middle grades strings at
West Pine Middle, where she was named the 2022 – 2023 Teacher
of the Year.
Western Region – Amanda Colson
Amanda Colson is a 2008 alumna of
Appalachian State University, having earned
her Bachelor of Music in music education.
Throughout her educational journey, she has
had the privilege of studying under esteemed
music educators; their invaluable guidance
has profoundly shaped her pedagogical
approach and expertise.
Colson’s professional growth has been
further enriched by her husband, Hoy Colson, who was her
colleague at Burns High School for seven years of her career.
She has taught 6 – 12 grade string orchestra for 15 years, and
currently serves as the string orchestra director at Burns Middle
School in Lawndale, a position she has held since 2019. Previously,
Colson taught in New Hanover County Schools, before moving
to Cleveland County Schools in 2011. Her ensembles have
consistently received superior and excellent ratings at both state
and local assessments.
Beyond her classroom instruction, she has taken on leadership
roles as a clinician for honors ensembles and summer camps
across North Carolina and Tennessee. With twelve years dedicated
to rural education, she is passionately committed to advocating
for and serving music students and educators from rural and
traditionally underserved regions.
Hall of Fame/Lifetime Achievement
James Dellinger
James Dellinger retired after 45 years as a
teacher in North Carolina public schools and
universities. He received both his bachelor’s
and master’s degrees in music education
from Appalachian State University. Prior to
retirement, he served as the orchestra director
at Hickory High School, where his ensembles
received 27 consecutive superior ratings at
adjudicated events.
Dellinger is proud to have initiated orchestra programs in
Shelby and Hickory, and also developed and directed music
ensembles at NC State University, as well as expanding string
education and orchestra programs at Appalachian State University.
A violinist and violist, he has performed with the Roanoke,
Charlotte, Greensboro, Winston-Salem, Salisbury and Western
Piedmont Symphony Orchestras, and the Tassini String Quartet.
Dellinger has served as a guest clinician and conductor across
North Carolina, as well as conducting a performance in Carnegie
Hall. He served NCMEA as an event chair and a past president of
the Orchestra Section, as well as serving as choir director for many
churches across North Carolina.
Her orchestras often received superior ratings at the MPAs. She
collaborated with both the Charlotte Symphony and the Arts and
Science Council over a five year period to have a local composer
work with her students. After leaving Charlotte-Mecklenburg
Schools, Frisina taught for nine years at Charlotte Country Day
Middle School, retiring in 2021. She continues to volunteer in
local schools directing cello sectionals.
it's time
TO START A
Tri-M MUSIC
honor
SOCIETY CHAPTER
Strengthen your school’s
Music. Honor. And Society.
Starting a Tri-M ® Music Honor
Society chapter will help show the
value of your music program to
the school. It will also benefit your
students by allowing them to:
• Build an impressive record for
college
• Grow as leaders in music
• Serve their community
Ready to start a chapter?
Visit MusicHonors.com
®
Tri-M@nafme.org | 1-800-336-3768
28 | NORTH CAROLINA MUSIC EDUCATOR NORTH CAROLINA MUSIC EDUCATOR | 29

Band
Welcome back from what I hope was a relaxing and
energizing winter break. As we ring in the New Year,
I want to celebrate and extend a hearty thank you to
the organizers within NCMEA, as well as the clinicians, sponsors,
performing groups and vendors who worked to give us a great
conference. The entire NCBA board is pleased to serve you. These
members work diligently throughout the year, but especially during
the conference to oversee clinics and
other logistical concerns.
Thank you, also, to past president,
Jamie Bream; president-elect, Chris
White; secretary, Karen Williams-
Lanning and band delegate, O’Shae
Best for their continued service. Let’s
also thank our District chairs for their
hard work: Kelly Saunders, Western
District; Matt Liner, Northwest District;
Kameron Radford, South Central
District; Michael Capps, Central
District; Page Newsome, East Central
District; Steve Kelly, Southeastern
District; and Karen Matthews,
Eastern District. Ruth Petersen is
also an invaluable member of our
team, updating changes on the NCBA website and promoting our
organization through the NCBA Facebook page. Please take time
to reach out and thank these leaders for the work they do.
We are already planning for the upcoming 2024 conference.
The application form for performance ensembles is due May 1,
and is on the NCBA website. Also, consider putting together a
proposal for presenting at conference. North Carolina is rich
with outstanding band directors with great ideas to offer; we love
learning from each other.
As you begin planning for your spring NCBA events, please
visit ncbandmasters.org, to become aware of updated procedures
for NCBA Honors Auditions and MPA events. Read over the
bylaws, policies, and procedures of our organization and adhere to
deadlines and your professional obligations. Our NCBA website is
full of information you can use every day. Please visit our website
regularly, as it will make your job much easier. If you ever have any
concerns or questions, please contact any NCBA board member.
We are here to help you and your students.
2024 NCBA
ALL-STATE BAND CLINICIANS
TRAVIS
SMITH
Middle School Band
ALEX
KAMINSKY
9/10 Band
Jim Kirkpatrick, Chair
As we turn the corner to the second half of the school year,
please work in opportunities for professional development. One of
the most valuable opportunities available coincides with All-State
Honors Band – the ASBDA-sponsored Band Director Symposium,
coordinated by Ruth Petersen. It is open to all directors,
regardless of whether or not you have a student participating,
and you don’t need to be a member of ASBDA to participate.
Consider the plethora of conducting
DR. KEVIN
GERALDI
11/12 Band
symposiums offered by university
bands throughout North Carolina.
Each opportunity to come together
and grow through our professional
network is an opportunity to reenergize
and help our students grow
too.
Thank you, colleagues, for all you
have done and continue to do for
band students across the state. I know
that each day brings new challenges
but remember this profession chose
you because you love it, you are great
at it, you are paid for it, and most
importantly…the world needs you!
Award of Excellence
The Award of Excellence is the most prestigious award we give
North Carolina Bandmasters who are active in the profession, and
is a recognition of exceptional teaching, service and contributions
to the profession. Being chosen by your peers as an excellent
teacher has to be one of the highest honors we can receive.
Western District – Jenny Lanier
Jenny Lanier holds BM degrees in music
education and saxophone performance from
Appalachian State University and an MM in
saxophone performance from the University of
Georgia. She’s been active in music education
for twenty years. She has been an instructor,
adjudicator and guest clinician of concert
bands and marching bands throughout North
Carolina and Georgia.
Lanier is currently the director of bands at T.C. Roberson High
School in Asheville. Prior to her current position, she was the
director of bands at McDowell High School in Marion, for eight
years. Under her direction, they performed in nationally televised
parades in Chicago and New York City. The bands earned multiple
superior ratings at state adjudications and was represented at
Western NC All-District Band, NC All-State Band, Western Region
Jazz Band and ASBDA National Honor Band.
Prior to her appointment at McDowell High School, she
spent ten years teaching at the middle school level. During the
2011 – 2012 school year, she was selected as West McDowell
Junior High Teacher of the Year. In 2013, she co-founded “Music
Across the Miles”, an international program in which she traveled
to Haiti to work with village bands. During the summer of 2015,
Lanier and seven other N.C. band directors traveled with the N.C.
Ambassadors Honor Band throughout seven European countries
and performed five concerts over fourteen days. She served eight
years on the board of directors of the Western North Carolina
Bandmasters Association. In 2020, Lanier was recognized as a
quarterfinalist for the Grammy Music Educator Award.
Central District – Jeremy Ray
Originally from Liberty, Jeremy Ray
attended Eastern Randolph High School,
where he developed his love for music and
passion for teaching. He studied music
education at Appalachian State University. He
did his student teaching at Page High School
with Ed Kimbrough, whom he believes was
the greatest influence on his teaching. In
December 1999, Ray received his bachelor's
in instrumental music education. In 2007, he
received his National Board Certification in early adolescence to
young adulthood and was recertified in November 2016. In May
2013, he earned a master's in executive leadership from Gardner-
Webb University.
Ray began teaching at West Montgomery Middle and High
Schools in Troy. Under his baton, the West Montgomery High
School concert band received one of two superior ratings at MPA
in the school’s history and he increased enrollment from 80 band
students to over 150 in grades 6 – 12. After that, he took over the
Southeast Guilford High School band program, where he taught
for 18 years. During his tenure at Southeast, his groups consistently
received superior ratings at MPA, and marching and jazz festivals.
In 2019, Ray became the band director at Grimsley Senior
High School. While there, he has increased the number of students
accepted into All-County and All-District Band. In 2022, over 30
students were selected into All-County Band. He took both the
Grimsley concert band and wind ensemble to MPA, where both
received a superior rating. These are the first superior ratings at
MPA for Grimsley High School since 2004.
East Central – Helen A. Bishop
Helen A. Bishop, a National Board Certified Teacher, has taught
in the Wake County Public School System since 1997. She has been
the band director at Apex Middle School since 2012, following a
15-year tenure at Ligon GT Magnet Middle School in Raleigh. A
native of Apex, she feels fortunate to teach at the middle school
where she first began playing in band under the direction of Ruth
Mock, who has been a mentor, inspiration, and friend. She received
a Bachelor of Music in music education from
UNC Chapel Hill, and the Master of Music
Performance from University of Texas Austin.
Bishop enjoyed six years in the
Philadelphia area as a freelance solo and
orchestral flutist and as a private teacher
before moving back to Apex. Since beginning
her middle school band teaching career in
1995, her bands have performed at MPAs
as well as at concert and jazz band festivals from New Orleans to
Chicago and along the Eastern U.S.
Her students have participated in All-County, All-District and
All-State Honors Bands, and some have grown to become her
colleagues as band directors in her district and across the U.S. She
has served her band community at the county, district, and state
levels, and was named Band Director of the Year by the Central
District Bandmasters’ Association in 2011.
Northwest – Donald Chad Higdon
Donald Chad Higdon is the director of
bands at Robert L. Patton High School in
Morganton. He earned his Bachelor of Music
from Appalachian State University and was
honored as Student Teacher of the Year from
the ASU educational department during his
student teaching at Freedom High School.
After a year of teaching in Greensboro, he
returned to Morganton as assistant band
director at Freedom High School.
While there, he earned superior ratings at concert band MPA
and was instrumental in building the jazz program. He returned
to his home county and was the band director at Andrews middle
and high schools from 2003 – 2009. During his tenure there, his
group earned superior ratings at concert, jazz, marching and solo
ensemble MPA events. He received the Teacher of the Year award
at both Andrews Middle School and Andrews High School in 2006.
Higdon returned to Burke County in the fall of 2009 to be
the band director at Robert L. Patton High School. His bands
at Patton have earned superior ratings at concert, jazz, and solo
and ensemble MPA’s. The Marching Band has been consistently
competitive and earned Grand Championship awards at several
local and regional competitions. He was a founding member of the
Morganton Jazz Festival, the Burke County Youth Band Camp, and
Burke County High School Honor Band.
Higdon is an advocate of MPA and is proud his bands have
participated in MPA every year of his teaching career. His groups
have earned superior ratings in grades I – VI and have varied
in size from 18 members to 94 members. He also has served his
district as High School Representative, All-District auditions cochair,
and Concert Band MPA chair for the Northwest District.
South Central – Steve Stevens
Steve Stevens is a director of bands at Union Academy. Born
and raised in Florida, he holds a Bachelor of Music Education from
Stetson University and a Master’s in conducting from Messiah
University. He has pursued music education as a band director
in the public school system and as a choral director in the private
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sector. He studied clarinet under Dr. Lynn
Musco, and conducting under Dr. Bobby
Adams and Dr. James Colonna.
His accolades include Hickory Ridge
Middle School Teacher of the year 2019 – 2020,
Cabarrus County Top Five Teacher of the Year
2019 – 2020, Music Educator of the Year 2016
Semi-Finalist, Union Academy Teacher of the
Year 2015 – 2016, Young Band Director Award of Excellence from
the South Central District Bandmasters Association 2015, and the
ASBDA Edgar Q. Rooker Encore Award 2015.
Southeastern – John H. Wright
John H. Wright is an ECU graduate with
a bachelor’s and master’s in music education.
He’s taught band for 35 years.
He started the band program at Northwood
Temple Academy in Fayetteville, in 1992
and has remained there ever since with,
currently, 136 middle school and high school
students. Much of his life has been focused
on church youth groups, playing guitar for
churches and school chapel services. He is currently the MS/HS
Sunday school teacher at Lebanon Baptist church in Eastover.
He has a YouTube channel: JohnWright1964 that has hundreds
of instrumental instructional videos. He has also written a band
method that is best suited for second year students available at
TheWrightBandMethod.com.
Eastern – Chris Whitehurst
Chris Whitehurst is director of bands
at Camden County High School, where he
was also a 1993 graduate. After high school,
he spent two years at Elizabeth City State
University majoring in music business
and engineering before transferring and
graduating from East Carolina University with
a degree in music education. He earned his
National Board Certification in 2003 and his
master’s in school administration from ECSU in 2013.
Whitehurst’s personal philosophy is to use the power of music
education to inspire young people and transform their lives.
His students have gone on to be professional performers, music
educators, graduates of the Julliard School of Music, and most
importantly, life-long lovers of music. He is most proud of the
legacy he has created by sending students into the world with a
strong understanding of work ethic, determination and high moral
character.
Hall of Fame Inductees
Founded in 2002, the NCBA Hall of Fame honors retired or
deceased NCBA members who made significant contributions
to the improvement of music education and betterment of the
teaching profession. Criteria includes active service in North
Carolina for a period of not less than ten years, demonstration
of excellence in the teaching of music, consistent maintenance
of a well-balanced band program with active participation in
various activities of the organization, and fulfillment of the
highest ideal and professional integrity during the time of service.
Congratulations to the 2022 – 23 inductees!
John Judson Enloe
John Enloe is a native of Salisbury. He
graduated from West Rowan High School
in 1975, where he played trumpet in the
marching, concert and jazz bands. He
graduated from Appalachian State University
with a music education degree, and performed
in the marching, concert, and jazz bands.
He also performed in the men’s glee club,
orchestra, and brass quintets.
He earned a master’s in music education from UNC
Greensboro. There he performed in the concert and jazz bands,
the Wind Ensemble and jazz and brass quintets. He was a graduate
assistant in charge of recording all the school groups in the music
department and also worked as librarian for the concert band. He
directed beginning band programs at seven private schools in the
Greensboro and High Point area.
In spring 1982, he taught beginning band and assisted at
Northeast Junior High in High Point. He then became the director
of bands at Fuquay-Varina High and Middle Schools. His bands
were the first in 20 years to receive a superior rating at then NC
Central District Concert Festival (MPA). His marching, jazz, and
concert bands performed up and down the East Coast. His concert
bands performed in Grades III to VI.
In 2002, Enloe became the first band director at Middle Creek
High School in Apex. These groups also received many superior
ratings. In 2014, he became the band director at Holly Ridge
Middle School for two years.
He was the state chairman for the ASBDA for seven years, and
was Central District president of the NCBA. He retired from in
June 2016 with 34 years of service. Enloe has performed in the
Triangle Brass Band, The Raleigh Symphony Orchestra, Leon
Jordan and the Continentals and various other groups in the
Raleigh/Durham area for over 30 years. He was the director of the
Old North State Brass Ensemble. Since the fall of 2015, he is on
staff with the University of North Carolina Marching Tar Heels,
helping to coordinate the brass with drill and music. He works in
the N.C. Senate as an Assistant Sergeant at Arms.
Elizabeth Weeks Hasty
Elizabeth Hasty, originally from
Chesapeake, Va., is a graduate of Great Bridge
High School and East Carolina University,
where she received a bachelor’s in music
education.
She was employed by Scotland County
Schools and retired after 30 years of service.
Her middle school bands participated in MPA
each of those years and consistently received
superior ratings including consecutive superior ratings from
1991 – 2008. Students were routinely selected to All-County and
All-District bands, and participated in All-State auditions and All-
State clinics.
She is a proud member of the ASBDA and served as president
of the North Carolina Chapter. During her leadership, the ASBDA
National Convention was hosted by the North Carolina Chapter
in Greensboro. She served for many years as the treasurer of the
Southeastern District and as district president on several occasions.
She has served as an All-County, All-District, and All-Regional
band clinician and has adjudicated bands in North Carolina, South
Carolina, and Virginia.
She is a National Board Certified Teacher and currently serves
as a mentor for first- and second-year teachers in the Scotland
County School system.
Phillip Riggs
Phillip Riggs, 2016 Grammy Music
Educator of the Year, retired after teaching
band and choir for more than 30 years. He
is a music instructor emeritus at the NC
School of Science and Math. He is a recipient
of the Outstanding Teacher Award and the
Exceptional Contribution in Outreach Award
from the UNC Board of Governors. In 2020,
he was inducted into the Appalachian State
University Reich College of Education’s
Rhododendron Society.
Prior to joining the NCSSM faculty, Riggs was the first band
director and fine arts chair at Ronald Reagan High School, in
Winston-Salem. He worked in partnership with the Winston-
Salem Arts Council to establish the City of the Arts Jazz Festival.
Riggs was the first faculty member selected to the Reagan High
School Hall of Fame. Before assuming that position, he taught in
Davidson County for 16 years; 12 of them were with the Ledford
Bands. During his tenure with the Ledford Bands, he was selected
as the Jaycees Young Educator of the Year and as the Ledford
Middle School Teacher of the Year. In 2003, the Ledford Wind
Ensemble was selected to perform for the NCMEA Professional
Development Conference with guest conductor/composer, Mark
Camphouse, guest conductors Dr. John Locke and Dr. William
Gora, and guest artists, The Lenoir Sax Ensemble.
Riggs currently serves as a conductor and administrator with
the World Adult Wind Orchestra Project, held in Austria each
summer. He also served on the jury for the Mid-Europe Music
Festival and the Summa Cum Laude Festival at the Musikverein in
Vienna. He is a co-founder and conductor of the North Carolina
Youth Wind Ensemble, and the Wachovia Winds Youth Wind
Ensemble.
Riggs is a past president of NCBDA. He served as chair of the
North Carolina High School All-State Band, chair of the NCMEA
Technology Committee and founding chair of the NCMEA New
Teacher/Mentor Committee. He was coordinator of the NAfME
National Wind Ensemble at the Kennedy Center in Washington,
D.C. He served as the Southern Division representative on the
NAfME Council for Band and the NC chair of the National Band
Association.
Tom Jenner
Tom Jenner is a recently retired North Carolina school band
director. Most of his career was spent at Millbrook and William G.
Enloe High Schools in Wake County. At those schools, he directed
the concert band, symphonic band, wind ensemble, jazz band, and
marching band. He began teaching in 1986
and is a National Board Certified Teacher with
extensive experience working with middle
and high school bands as well as serving
as director of the Duke University Wind
Symphony.
Throughout his career, Jenner’s bands
have received consistent superior ratings at
district and national festivals. They served as
the clinic band for the Carolina Conductor Conference, performed
at the first “Ensembles of Excellence” series at Appalachian State
University, and have been twice selected to perform at the NCMEA
Professional Development Conference.
Jenner is in demand as a clinician and adjudicator throughout
the southeastern United States. He was awarded the Central
District Bandmasters Award of Excellence in 2012, and was also
been named their Band Director of the Year. He served on the
board of directors of the Central District Bandmasters Association,
and has twice served as staff development coordinator for Wake
County Band Directors.
He is also a founding member and has served on the board of
the North Carolina Wind Orchestra. He is a member of the UNC
Greensboro Summer Music Camp Hall of Fame. Jenner holds
a master’s in music education from Florida State University. He
received his Bachelor of Music from the UNC Greensboro.
Band Directors Symposium
Fuller’s Music and ASBDA-NC are sponsoring the third annual
Band Directors Symposium, held in conjunction with the NCBA
All-State Honors Band Clinic at UNC Greensboro. The symposium
will be in the school of music, from 8:30 a.m. – 2 p.m. on Saturday,
April 27, 2024.
All band directors are welcome! You do not need to have
a student participating in All-State Band to participate in the
symposium. This is a great place to connect with other band
directors and earn professional development credit. You can attend
one session or observe an All-State Band rehearsal each hour (if a
rehearsal is being held at that time.) You can attend the All-State
Band rehearsals and/or the concert for credit hours on Sunday.
Sessions will include content relevant to new and veteran
teachers. A marching band track will be added this year with Wes
Pendergrass presenting. An option to order a box lunch will be
provided for Saturday. Registration will be open March 6 – 26.
https://banddirectorsymposium.rsvpify.com
3rd Annual Band Directors Symposium
UNCG - April 27, 2024: 8:30-2:00
Earn credit hours for PD!
Network with band directors in NC!
Held in conjunction with All-State Band!
32 | NORTH CAROLINA MUSIC EDUCATOR NORTH CAROLINA MUSIC EDUCATOR | 33

883-C Washington Street
Raleigh, NC 27605
NAfME
GRASSROOTS
ACTION CENTER
Add Your Voice to the Legislative Process
On the NAfME Grassroots Action Center page, you can:
• Support music education in federal education policy
• Get involved with the legislative process
• Engage your members of Congress
Go to bit.ly/NAfMEgrassroots (case-sensitive) and
take action today.
34 | NORTH CAROLINA MUSIC EDUCATOR