Music (Reworked)

Music

The St. Olaf Music Department creates inspiring musical experiences grounded in an inclusive liberal arts environment, challenging students to excel artistically and engage globally for lives within and beyond the professional music world.

Faculty and Staff
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Music Department

Welcoming Our Newest Faculty Members!

Henry Dorn
Conductor, St. Olaf Band; Assistant Professor of Conducting and Composition

Prior to St. Olaf College, Dr. Dorn worked as an Assistant Director of the Memphis Area Youth Wind Ensemble and formerly served as Director to the Nu Chamber Collective. He has also worked with musicians of the United States Army Field Band, the United States Air Force Band, and has guest conducted the United States Army Band “Pershing’s Own.”  As a trombonist, Dorn has performed with Slide Hampton, Chris Vadala, Luis Bonilla, the Jimmy Dorsey Orchestra, the Memphis Jazz Orchestra, the Sanctuary Jazz Orchestra, as well as alongside members of the Memphis, Arkansas, Mississippi, and Jackson Symphony Orchestras.  Originally from Little Rock, AR, Dr. Dorn’s ardency toward composing sparked at an early age while he was surrounded by blues and the sounds of his father’s vinyl records collection. He earned a Bachelor of Music in Composition from The University of Memphis, a Master of Music in Composition and Wind Conducting from Peabody Institute of The Johns Hopkins University, a Doctor of Musical Arts (DMA) in Conducting and a DMA in Composition from Michigan State University.

Joseph Jefferson
Associate Professor of Music and Director of Jazz Ensembles/Applied Jazz Trombone

Prior to his arrival on the Hill, Dr. Jefferson performed regularly with the Rose City Trombones and the Portland Jazz Composers Ensemble, and served as the second trombonist for the Tidewater Winds. In the classical genre, Dr. Jefferson has performed with world-renowned artists and groups, such as Zoltan Kiss,  Paducah Symphony Orchestra, Colour of Music Orchestra, U.S. Army Continental Band, and with John Phillip Sousa IV. He has premiered compositions by Andrew Durkin, James Hosay, Robert Senay, and Stuart Dempster. As a soloist, he has performed with the Mt. Hood Symphonic Band, Southeast Missouri State University Wind Symphony, Treasure Valley Wind Symphony, and the Fruitland Wind Ensemble. Prior to arriving at St. Olaf, Dr. Jefferson held faculty positions at Southeast Missouri State University, the University of Portland, Treasure Valley CC, and Tidewater CC.  He earned degrees from West Virginia University (D.M.A.), Shenandoah Conservatory (M.M.), and Norfolk State University (B.M.) under the tutelage of esteemed faculty, including Dr. Keith Jackson, Dr. Wayne Wells, Dr. Mike Hall, and Mr. Paul Adams.

Marita Stryker
Assistant Professor of Voice

Marita Stryker is joining the St. Olaf voice faculty, with an emphasis on Musical Theater.  Prof. Stryker received both her Bachelors and Masters degrees from Oklahoma City University, studying with incredible teachers, the most influential being Florence Birdwell. She has continued to study voice technique and pedagogy, being heavily influenced by the Estill technique and her work with Tom Burke in his Holistic Vocology Teacher Training. She is an NCVS-trained vocologist, having studied with some of the most reputable voice scientists in the world.  ​She is also a certified yoga instructor, and has studied at The Breathing Project NY in Embodied Anatomy and Kinesiology with Amy Matthews and Leslie Kaminoff. Before coming to the Hill, Prof. Stryker served as an adjunct voice professor and vocal coach for the American Spirit Dance Company at Oklahoma City University, as Associate Professor of Music with the musical theatre school at Senzoku Gakuen College of Music in Japan, and most recently as an adjunct instructor of contemporary voice at Shenandoah University.

Music - Upcoming Events

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Academics

St Olaf Music has a robust academic department. Learn more about the variety of programs.

Academics in the Music Dept
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Ensembles at St Olaf

St Olaf is well known for their award-winning ensembles. With seven choirs, two orchestras, two concert bands, two jazz bands, and a variety of chamber ensembles, there is a place for everyone to find a musical home.

Ensembles at St Olaf
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Music Performance Studies

Our Music Performance Faculty are second to none. We offer a wide selection of voice and instrumental lessons for anyone to study.

Music Performance Studies
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Future Ole Musicians

Are you interested in being a Future Ole Musician? You will find all you need to know on how to begin the application process to music scholarships and deadlines.

Future Ole Musician Information
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Current Ole Musicians

Are you currently an Ole musician? Here’s where to find all things you need in the Music Department including calendars, forms, degree information, recital information and more.

Are you new to St. Olaf this year?  Here’s a page with information to get you started!

Current Ole Musicians

St. Olaf Music Department Response to Racial Injustice and Systemic Racism

We, the faculty and staff of the St. Olaf College Music Department, condemn the murder of George Floyd, just 40 miles from our campus, and the countless acts of violence against Black bodies across the United States that have continued over the centuries to this day. We recognize that these acts represent but a small portion of the physical and verbal racism our Black colleagues, students, alumni, and fellow musicians face daily. We join voices with people of all races and creeds around the world protesting injustice. With them, we call for the end of racist law enforcement practices and of systemic racism, prejudice, and violence in all forms.

While we acknowledge efforts of the past, we recognize that St. Olaf College and the St. Olaf Music Department have failed to provide an environment in which all students, staff, and faculty of color thrive. We are dealing with systemic failings, masked by the prevailing campus culture at St. Olaf, a culture defined by centering Whiteness. We live and work in a society permeated by racism, anti-Blackness, and the marginalization and erasure of the lives, work, and voices of Black, Brown, and Indigenous People. We must engage in anti-racist action to further the cause of equity for all. We are determined to do the individual and collective work necessary to create more equitable, more inclusive, and more culturally-relevant learning environments for our students.

  • We commit to investigating and interrogating the role of white supremacy in our departmental, collegiate, and national history.
  • We commit to examining our pedagogies, the cultural practices of our department, and those of the college, to recognize and end those that inflict violence against Black bodies and create an inequitable environment at St. Olaf.
  • We commit to developing and implementing anti-racist, culturally inclusive pedagogies and policies that foster the liberation and self-actualization of our students through music.
  • We commit to working with our students to help them understand their responsibility in being active participants in this work.

As musicians, we are trained to listen.
We will be listening intently for voices that have been silenced and muted.

Black Lives Matter.

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