WK2 Free Choice Blog Post: New Music Industry Concentration at DSU

(ProTools C24 automated mixer) 

Photo by Marty Denson

After three years of research and planning, our School Board and Faculty Senate committee has just approved the new Music Industry Concentration for the Music Department. This new concentration will add a new perspective to our department where we can now offer a degree program that directly relates to the technical and business aspects of the music industry. Thanks in part to Dr. Yvonne Johnson, department chair, and Dr. David Tolley, associate professor of Music Industry, we are able to add so much more to the music curriculum. 


When I joined the music department just over a year ago, I decided to start writing a proposal that would potentially support the new concentration once it was approved. My proposal consisted of several programs that included the possibilities of creating summer engineering programs, vocal recording workshops, music recording workshops, and music composition workshops. I also included ideas of developing new certificate programs as well. It was such perfect timing that the EMDT program required us to start the process of working on action research. A lot of the research conducted in the process of my AR Project was of significant help in putting together several sections of the proposal. I am looking forward to being able to implement the ideas within the proposal in the next school year.