On Feb. 5-8, 2025, several Asbury students will be heading to Louisville to participate in the Kentucky Music Educators Association (KMEA) conference and Intercollegiate Band or All-Collegiate Choir. The event will take place at the Kentucky International Convention Center in downtown Louisville.
Each year KMEA hosts an event to bring together students from all levels of music education —from elementary school to college—to participate in the event and rehearse under the instruction of directors and conductors from across the country.
Students selected to participate in the collegiate ensembles practice challenging pieces to be performed on the first day of the KMEA conference.
“The collegiate ensembles provide excellent opportunities for our students to be involved in groups with excellent musicians from across the state, performing challenging repertoire under the leadership of well-known conductors,” said Dr. Flanigan, Concert Band and Jazz Ensemble Director at Asbury University.
Abigail Reed, a flute player who has been attending KMEA for the past two years, shared how the challenging nature of the experience has helped her grow as a player.
“To be able to participate in the intercollegiate band is a very exciting and rewarding experience. This will be my third year in the band, and it’s a lot of fun. The music we get to play is more challenging than the music we play in [the] concert band here on campus, and it’s fun to watch it come together in such a short time.”
Mikah Saub, a sophomore majoring in music performance and selected to sing soprano one at KMEA, emphasized the growth opportunities that are present at an opportunity such as this one.
“Having the opportunity to participate in KMEA’s All-Collegiate Choir is a true honor… There are many things to learn from each conductor/director, and I love choir so I will take every opportunity I can to learn more about the art.”
The All-Collegiate will be under the direction of conductor Dr. Hilary Apfelstad, who is the Professor Emerita of Choral Studies at the University of Toronto. Dr. Travis Cross, who is the Director of Bands at the University of California Los Angeles, will be conducting the Intercollegiate Band.
In addition to the concerts, the conference offers students, more specifically, music education students, the opportunity to learn from experienced music educators through conference clinics.
Clinics include how to incorporate students with special needs into a choral program, how to work with anxious music students, how to develop a classroom management plan as a teacher and even a crash course on how to repair wind instruments.
Parker Phillips, a music education major who hopes to become a school choral director, attends the KMEA conference each year to learn new ways of teaching music to the next generation.
“At the KMEA conference, music teachers of all ages, backgrounds and skill sets come together to collaborate with each other all for the same goal: learning the best ways to teach music to the next generation. I look forward to hearing from people who teach grades elementary through college, who teach all kinds of ensembles from choir to band to orchestra and who teach with all kinds of teaching philosophies.”
In addition to the clinics, several faculty members from Asbury’s music department will be attending the event to share information about Asbury’s music program. The department will set up an exhibit alongside several other Kentucky Universities to provide materials for prospective students and their teachers.
While learning about teaching techniques and playing alongside fellow students is a large part of the conference, students also get to represent Asbury’s music department at KMEA.
“To participate in KMEA for me means getting an opportunity to represent Asbury in a way that shows the quality of education and the care for students that the Asbury Music faculty provide,” said Phillips.
This year, eight students from Asbury have been selected for All-Collegiate Choir: Mikah Saub, Gentry Osbourn, Parker Phillips, William Hansen, Lindsey Melhorn, Chloee Adams, Abigail Tingle and Noah Winkelspecht. Three students have been chosen to participate in Intercollegiate Band: Abigail Reed, Nathan Smith and Mitchell Robertson.
Photo courtesy of KMEA.
