John Denis has sixteen years of experience working with Texas students at the public school and college levels. Dr. Denis creates and produces Program Notes: The Band Director Podcast, a program designed to help preservice and in-service directors find success in their own classrooms. He has been active as a clinician in Texas and his writing has been featured in publications such as Update: Applications of Research in Music Education; The Journal of Music, Technology, and Education; Contributions to Music Education; and The Southwestern Musician.

He has also presented at the Texas Music Educators Association Clinic and Convention, the Midwest Clinic, the California All-State Music Education Conference, the Maryland Music Educators February Conference, the NAfME Music Research and Teacher Education National Conference, ISME World Conference, the International Research in Music Education Conference, the AERA Annual Meeting, and the NAfME Teacher In-service Conference. Along with Jordan Stern, Dr. Denis co-authored Tuning with Technology: An Unofficial Guide to Tonal Energy and the Harmony Director and has had the opportunity to help several young band directors strengthen their teaching.

Dr. Denis has a B.M. in music education from Texas Tech University as well as M.M.Ed. and Ph.D degrees from the University of North Texas and is currently on the music faculty at Texas State University in San Marcos, Texas, where he teaches upper-level undergraduate and graduate music education courses, completes music education scholarly work, and presents at conferences. He lives in the Austin area with his amazing wife, Min Shien, where they love to explore the food scene and gather research for her food blog.

Workshops

Novice to Notorious: Successfully Navigating Your First Years as a Band Director - Music Education

Transitioning from a college music education program to public school teaching is a challenge, and many novice directors leave the profession after just a couple of years in the schools. This clinic provide practical advice about pedagogy, classroom management, administrative duties, and navigating the complex relationships that are keys to a successful teaching experience. Drawing upon a wealth of experience, Denis will shed light on topics like recruitment, parent/teacher conferences, rehearsal strategies, developing student independence, and more.

How It Began: A Young Band Director’s Guide to First-Year Success - Music Education

The start of a career is a difficult transition, and band directing is a complicated profession. Attendees will learn actionable strategies and approaches to support them in their career as well as have significant opportunities to ask questions. Denis provides real world examples, stories, and recordings from his teaching career to create context.