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Time:

Thursday
December, 19, 2019
08:30 AM - 09:30 AM

Location:

Meeting Room W187

Clinician(s)

Brian Alber

Brian Alber

Duane Bierman

Duane Bierman

Creating a Foundation for Small School Band Programs

Clinic Synopsis:

Band directors in rural areas face a variety of opportunities and challenges. Some are common to all programs, others are unique to smaller settings. Finding solutions to these challenges must go beyond a simple “band-aid” approach and provide foundational support for the development of a thriving small band program. This session will provide practical and realistic advice in the areas of funding, instrumentation, scheduling, instruction, and mental health support from a research-based approach.

Brian Alber - Biographical Information

Dr. Brian Alber is an Associate Professor of Music and Teacher Education and serves as the Graduate Chair for the Masters of Arts in Education program at UNK. Serving as the Assistant Director of Bands, he co-directs the "Pride of the Plains" Marching Band and directs the Symphonic Band. Along with his conducting responsibilities, Dr. Alber teaches undergraduate courses in Secondary Music Methods, Beginning Conducting, Teaching in a Democratic Society, and Classroom Management and Assessment. Within the graduate music program, Dr. Alber teaches Foundations in Music Education, Introduction to Music Research, and also serves on various capstone committees. An alumnus of UNK, where he completed his Bachelor of Arts degree in Music Education, Dr. Alber has also completed a Master of Music degree in Wind Conducting at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, and a Doctor of Arts degree in Wind Band Conducting at the University of Northern Colorado. His teaching experience includes serving as a Graduate Teaching Assistant at both UNL and UNC, and teaching high school band for seven years at York, Aurora, Holdrege, and Plattsmouth high schools. Aside from teaching and conducting, he has also contributed two entries to the widely successful Teaching Music Through Performance in Band series. Dr. Alber is a member of Phi Beta Mu, the Nebraska Music Education Association (where he serves as a member of the Research Committee), Nebraska State Bandmasters Associations, College Band Directors National Association, College Music Society and the International Society of the Promotion and Research of Wind Music. Dr. Alber is an honorary member of Kappa Kappa Psi and Tau Beta Sigma.

Duane Bierman - Biographical Information

Dr. Duane Bierman is Associate Professor of Music at UNK, where he was appointed Director of Bands in 2010. He conducts the Wind Ensemble, assists with the Pride of the Plains Marching Band, directs the UNK Drumline, teaches the percussion studio, and teaches courses in conducting and ensemble techniques as well as other music courses. Dr. Bierman holds the Doctor of Musical Arts degree in Instrumental Conducting from North Dakota State University, a Master of Music degree in Music Theory and Composition from the University of Northern Colorado, and a Bachelor of Arts degree in Music from Wartburg College (IA). He also taught instrumental music at Allen County Community College (KS) for five years. He regularly serves as a guest conductor and clinician, remaining active locally, regionally, and internationally. Dr. Bierman's compositions have been performed in many states and at international conferences, and several of his works have been published. He has performed as a percussionist and on drumset for a wide variety of wind bands, orchestras, and jazz ensembles throughout the Midwest, and has performed on several concerts of new music. He is an honorary member of Kappa Kappa Psi and Tau Beta Sigma, and serves as faculty sponsor of the chapters at UNK. He is also a member of the College Band Directors National Association, the Percussive Arts Society, NAfME, the Nebraska State Bandmasters Association, and Phi Kappa Phi.

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