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Recent news
Dean Downbeat
Innovation as a collaborative act
Greetings 鈥渇rom the road鈥 where I鈥檝e been engaged in two accreditation site reviews for the National Association of Schools of Music (NASM) as well as a trio of October conferences: From hosting the National Association of Music Executives at State Universities (NAMESU) Annual Meeting right here on our campus and at the new Limelight hotel to the 61st Annual Conference of the International Council for Arts Deans (ICfAD) in Santa Fe, New Mexico to the College Music Society (CMS) National Conference in Spokane, Washington this week where I鈥檒l be interacting with other deans and senior arts administrators engaged in public service and mentoring. Everywhere I go, I enjoy representing the unique achievements, aspirations and opportunities of our College of Music; along the way, I鈥檝e been struck by the supportive camaraderie and timely shared learnings among my counterparts.
As noted by American theatre and opera director Anne Bogart, 鈥淲e have been discouraged to think that innovation can be a collaborative act鈥 and yet it exactly that鈥攁 collaborative act鈥攖hat at the heart of institutions like ours.听MORE
of the Dean Downbeat,
a regular communiqu茅听from Dean John Davis.
听听Noteworthy media mentions
(Dec. 6, 2025, That Eric Alper)
Mapping out a massive 50th anniversary tour that included dozens of stops in global cities like Seoul, London, Milan and Vancouver, the esteemed Tak谩cs Quartet honored the Tiny Desk with a special Washington, D.C. visit.
(Dec. 4, 2025, Daily Camera)
Our Assistant Professor of Music Technology Grace Leslie鈥攚ho directs the university Brain Music Lab鈥攔esearches how the brain responds to music and why musical memories often endure even as other forms of memory fade. 鈥淢usic can kind of provide scaffolding for memories to be built in the brain in a similar way that spatial navigation can do that,鈥 she says. 听
(Dec. 3, 2025, Gramophone)
