Associate/Full Professor, Director of Bands

Responsibilities/Position Description: The University of Mississippi is seeking a 12-month tenure track Director of Bands at the rank of Associate or Full Professor. This faculty member will conduct the UM Wind Ensemble, teach courses in instrumental conducting, as well as other courses as appropriate. The Director of Bands will provide artistic, curricular, and administrative leadership for the band program, which includes supervising band graduate assistants and administrative staff. Other administrative duties include budget management, inventory, scheduling, and organizing and participating in recruitment activities. The successful candidate will demonstrate an innovative and energetic approach to recruitment, establish relationships with band directors and music teachers in the state and region, and will collaborate with studio faculty and music education faculty to promote the growth of the Music Department. The Director of Bands will maintain a regional, national, and international profile through scholarship and creative activities in the wind band field, will demonstrate a commitment to performing repertoire that is diverse and inclusive, and will stretch the cultural, artistic, and aesthetic range of performance experiences to which students are exposed.

Minimum qualifications: Emerging or established national reputation as a wind band conductor and pedagogue. Master in Music and significant experience as a university/college wind ensemble director. Significant record of scholarly/creative achievement commensurate with the rank of Associate or Full Professor. Sustained record of excellence in teaching at the secondary level and/or college level. Proven record of developing and maintaining recruitment activities, continued commitment to scholarship and future creative activity.

The University of Mississippi Band Program boasts a welcoming and student-centered environment. There are four concert bands at the University of Mississippi that perform multiple concerts throughout the spring semester, and the Wind Ensemble performs year-round. The UM Wind Ensemble has performed at the Mississippi Band Directors Association State Clinic on several occasions (2021, 2018, 2016, 2015, 2010), and hosted and performed at the CBDNA Southern Division Conference in 2010. The 300+ member marching band, The Pride of the South, has established itself as an accomplished SEC performing ensemble that is on the cutting edge of show design and fan engagement. Although many of the members are music majors, the marching band includes an even higher number of students that represent many other academic disciplines across campus.

The Department of Music is a vibrant community led by a distinguished and enthusiastic faculty dedicated to teaching, research, performance, and community engagement. Our students receive the rigorous individual attention necessary to develop their full potential. We offer undergraduate degrees (BA in music, BM in music education, BM in music performance) and graduate degrees (MM in choral conducting, collaborative piano, ethnomusicology, music education, music performance, music theory, or musicology and PhD in music with an emphasis in music education that includes an additional option to add an emphasis in gender studies). We serve a diverse and large representation of the campus by providing stimulating academic courses and performance opportunities with our many ensembles of varied genres. Annually, there are ca. 120 undergraduates and ca. 60 graduate students in our degree programs, and approximately 2,500 students enrolled in our classes and ensembles. The Department of Music is central to the musical art in the Lafayette/Oxford/University community and the region. The mission of the Department of Music is to provide the highest quality music education at the undergraduate and graduate levels for music majors embarking on careers as teachers, scholars, performers or in other major economic sectors (e.g., business, non-profit, military, etc.). It is also the mission of the department to teach non-majors and members of the community about music as a part of human culture and experience. 

The University of Mississippi, an R1 research university, has been recognized by The Chronicle of Higher Education for ten consecutive years as one of the best colleges in the nation to work for, and is located in Oxford, MS, ranked as one of the “Top 10 Best College Towns.”

Applications: Please visit careers.olemiss.edu to submit an online application with the University of Mississippi. On this site, please upload the following as a single document:

(1) letter of application that addresses listed qualifications

(2) detailed curriculum vitae including a list of courses taught

(3) repertoire list of works conducted

(4) three PDFs of printed programs of full concerts from the last 3 years

(5) statement on diversity, equity, inclusion that addresses recruiting and repertoire

(6) page with 2 unrestricted links to an online platform such as YouTube or Vimeo with

• a 20-30 minute video of applicant rehearsing
• a 20-30 minute video of applicant conducting a performance
• please include a brief contextual description of the two videos

(7) telephone and email contact information for 5 references

Any questions may be directed to Dr. Michael Worthy, Chair of the Search Committee (mworthy@olemiss.edu)

Only complete applications will be considered.

Review of applications will begin Jan. 6, 2023

The University of Mississippi provides equal opportunity in any employment practice, education program, or education activity to all qualified persons.  The University complies with all applicable laws regarding equal opportunity and affirmative action and does not unlawfully discriminate against any employee or applicant for employment based upon race, color, gender, sex, pregnancy, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, religion, citizenship, national origin, age, disability, veteran status, or genetic information. We recognize the importance of a diverse faculty and a supportive educational and professional environment that affirms the value of cultural diversity. We strongly encourage applications from candidates who are traditionally underrepresented in academia and from all candidates who are committed to fostering a diverse and inclusive academic community. 

UM’s institutional definitions of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion may be found here: https://chancellor.olemiss.edu/pathways-to-equity/