Response To The Assistant Professor Of Music History Position At Indiana University

I am writing in response to your advertisement for the Assistant Professor of Music History position at Indiana

University of Pennsylvania, as advertised on HigherEdJobs.com. I am currently a Ph.D. student in Musicology at the

University of Houston and will complete my degree in May 2011. I respectfully submit this letter of application, for I believe my experiences and commitment to teaching make me well qualified to meet the needs of IUP’s dynamic program. As a teaching assistant at the University of Houston, I have gained valuable experience leading undergraduate discussion sections for both music majors and non-majors. In addition to classroom instruction, I have advised students on appropriate research topics and edited and evaluated their

My course work has covered a wide range of topics in the various musical eras. My research, comparing Beethoven’s symphonies with the more modern compositions of late-twentieth century American composers, has provided me with the opportunity to draw connections between the different periods and to communicate difficult concepts clearly to students of all levels. I am committed to an interdisciplinary approach to scholarship and teaching, and all of my courses are structured with this in mind. Rather than simply lecturing to a class, I strive to cultivate an interactive environment in which students can express themselves freely while learning to engage with the past in meaningful ways. I emphasize critical thinking and the need to consider music within its larger social, historical, and intellectual contexts. IUP takes great pride in its training of young scholars, and I feel that it is my responsibility to uphold these standards and to encourage and challenge students to work up to their potential, in hopes that their experiences in my classes will teach them far more than the history of