This week, Bailey talks with Nick Matherne. Nick offers a unique perspective on how student-led learning can improve the ensemble experience, while also giving students skills that allow them greater freedom in music making outside of school. Nick is an instrumental music teacher at Kaimuki High School and teaches the University Chorus and music education courses at the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa. He serves as president-elect
for the Hawai’i Music Educators Association and is the University Resources and Repertoire Chair for the Hawai'i Chapter of the American Choral Directors Association. Born and raised in Charlottesville, Virginia, he has taught high school music in Hawaiʻi, Maryland, and Virginia, teaching courses in instrumental, vocal, and popular music. Nick holds a B.M. in Music Education and a B.A. in Spanish from James Madison University and an M.A. in Music Education from University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa. His thesis examines older adults’ well-being and participation in community music and his research interests include popular music education, well-being, participation in school music, alternative music classroom formats, and distance learning pedagogy. He is a co-author for a chapter on school-university partnerships in popular music education in the upcoming book, Action-Based Pedagogies for Popular Music Education: A Practical Guide.
Website: https://mathernemusic.weebly.com/