After Hours: Conversations for Music Educators
After Hours: Conversations for Music Educators is a music education podcast from Amro Music Stores, Inc. Our After Hours podcast host, Nick Averwater, facilitates engaging conversations each week with band directors, private music teachers, general music educators, orchestra directors, and other music industry professionals just like you. Each podcast guest shares practical advice on things like classroom management in your band program, placing beginners on instruments, band and orchestra recruitment strategies, band boosters, fundraising, and more. The goal of After Hours is to provide a podcast for band directors, orchestra directors, and music educators with strategies for both "on-podium" and “off-podium” skills that can help create a school music program that you can be proud of. If you can't find what you're looking for in our current episodes, we'd love to hear from you! Send us an email with questions or topics you'd like to see addressed in the podcast.
Episodes
156 episodes
Achieving Success When Your First Job Is In A Small School District
This week Nick Averwater continues his conversation with Faith Serna, Assistant Band Director and Color Guard Coordinator at Highland High School in Highland, Ar...
•
Season 6
•
Episode 16
•
27:00
Ideas For Starting (Or Improving) Your Band's Color Guard
This week Nick Averwater talks with Faith Serna, Assistant Band Director and Color Guard Coordinator at Highland High School in Highland, AR. The Highland School...
•
Season 6
•
Episode 15
•
31:17
Setting Schedules Early And Communicating With Everyone In The School Makes Recruiting Easier.
This week we wrap up our six-part series looking at recruiting students for your band program as Nick Averwater continues his conversation with Brent Hopper,
•
Season 6
•
Episode 14
•
37:08
Recruiting Begins On The First Day Of School And Goes All Year
This week we continue with episode five of our six-part series looking at recruiting students for your band program as Nick Averwater talks with Brent Hopper, Nathan Anderson, and Brandan Bakkala. Brent is Middle School Band Director at
•
Season 6
•
Episode 13
•
22:23
Strong Relationships With Colleagues and Administrators Can Improve Recruiting Efforts
This week we continue with episode four of our six-part series looking at recruiting students for your band program as Nick Averwater continues his conversation with
•
Season 6
•
Episode 12
•
34:09
Three Different Schools, Three Different Recruiting Strategies
This week we continue with episode three of our six-part series looking at recruiting students for your band program as Nick Averwater talks with Joe Quinnelly, Reggie Coleman, and Daniel Ritch. Joe Quinnelly is
•
Season 6
•
Episode 11
•
33:42
Effectively Communicating With Parents To Maximize Recruiting Efforts
This week we continue our series taking a closer look at recruiting students for your band program, and we'll hear the second part of a conversation Nick Averwater had with Brittany Jerrell and Emma Lang. Brittany is Co-Director of Bands at
•
Season 6
•
Episode 10
•
32:46
Welcoming New Students Into The Band Family
This week we're kicking off a series taking a closer look at recruiting students for your band program, a topic that seems to come up in nearly every episode of the podcast, and one that you have asked us to address even further. In the next si...
•
Season 6
•
Episode 9
•
39:33
More Ideas For Using Pop Music Groups To Recruit Students For All Music Ensembles
This week Nick Averwater continues his conversation with Michael Parsons, Director of Instrumental and Popular Music at Briarcrest Christian School in Memphis, TN. Michael is also...
•
Season 6
•
Episode 8
•
26:07
Using Pop/Commercial Music Studies To Strengthen Traditional Music Ensembles
This week Nick Averwater talks with Michael Parsons, Director of Instrumental and Popular Music at Briarcrest Christian School in Memphis, TN. Michael is also Director of
•
Season 6
•
Episode 7
•
30:59
Adapting To The Different Ways Students Learn Music
This week Nick Averwater continues his conversation with Gillian Desmarais, who teaches Music Production and Engineering at Harmony Learning Center in Maplewood, MN. Gillian is the founder of Sound Tech Ed<...
•
Season 6
•
Episode 6
•
26:51
More Ideas To Easily Bring Music Technology Into Your Classroom
This week Nick Averwater continues his conversation with Gillian Desmarais, who teaches Music Production and Engineering at Harmony Learning Center in Maplewood, MN. Gillian is the founder of Sound Tech Ed<...
•
Season 6
•
Episode 5
•
26:55
Using Digital Audio Workstations and Web Apps To Teach Music
This week we continue our look at using technology in music education, as Nick Averwater talks with Gillian Desmarais, who teaches Music Production and Engineering at Harmony Learning Center in Maplewood, MN. Gillian is the founder of
•
Season 6
•
Episode 4
•
23:38
More Practical AI Resources For Music Educators
This week Nick Averwater continues his conversation with Theresa Hoover, a music educator, clinician, author, and podcast host. In the last episode, we learned about how technology, particularly AI,...
•
Season 6
•
Episode 3
•
22:51
Making The Most Of AI In Music Education
This week Nick Averwater talks with Theresa Hoover, a music educator, clinician, author, and podcast host. In this episode, we'll be learning about how technology, particularly AI, can benefit music educators with things like writing lesson...
•
Season 6
•
Episode 2
•
27:26
Envisioning Success As The New School Year Begins
This week Nick Averwater talks with Dr. Matthew Arau, Chair of the Music Education department at Lawrence University in Appleton, Wisconsin and author of the book,
•
Season 6
•
Episode 1
•
41:10
The Importance Of Diversity In Repertoire, Ensembles, And Instrumentation
We've been away for a few weeks while we finished up a two-year renovation project here at Amro Music. We're thrilled with the results, and excited to serve our education partners more effectively than ever. We've posted
•
Season 5
•
Episode 14
•
28:46
"Everyone Is Musical And Music Education Is For Everyone"
This week Nick Averwater talks with David Davis, Music Teacher at Park Spanish Immersion Elementary School in St. Louis Park, MN, a city of around 50,000 people just west of Minneapolis. David was named ...
•
Season 5
•
Episode 13
•
31:15
Being Positive And Proactive When Advocating For Your Music Program
This week Nick Averwater continues his conversation with Dr. Emily Williams Burch, Professor of Music at Savannah College of Art and Design in Savannah, GA. Dr. Burch was also named to the
•
Season 5
•
Episode 12
•
27:50
Looking At The Business Of Choir To Build And Maintain A Successful Choral Program
This week Nick Averwater talks with Dr. Emily Williams Burch, Professor of Music at Savannah College of Art and Design in Savannah, GA. Dr. Burch was also named to the
•
Season 5
•
Episode 11
•
45:09
Focusing On Potential And Progress (Not Perfection) To Maintain A Successful Band Program
This week Nick Averwater talks with Dr. Timothy Sexton, Associate Director of Bands for Tarpon Springs Leadership Conservatory For The Arts in Tarpon Springs, Florida, a city of around 25,000 located ...
•
Season 5
•
Episode 10
•
37:37
Successfully Recruiting Students For Your Orchestra Program
This week Nick Averwater continues his conversation with Johanna Kitchell, Orchestra Director for Riverside Intermediate and Junior High Schools in Fishers, India...
•
Season 5
•
Episode 9
•
42:14
Effectively Coordinating Schedules For Students Who Participate In Both Athletics And Music
This week Nick Averwater talks with Johanna Kitchell, Orchestra Director for Riverside Intermediate and Junior High Schools in Fishers, IN, a northeastern suburb ...
•
Season 5
•
Episode 8
•
31:44