The University of Arizona School of Music

Summer Music Camp is officially underway! 🎶☀️

Our faculty, counselors, and staff have been eagerly preparing for this week, and we are so excited to welcome this year's campers. From making new friends to exploring new musical skills, we hope each student has an inspiring, fun-filled experience.

Wishing all of our campers a wonderful week of learning, creativity, and music-making. Bear Down and have an amazing Summer Music Camp! 🎵🎻🎺🥁

Welcome, Dr. Elena Chernova-Davis!

The University of Arizona School of Music is thrilled to welcome Dr. Elena Chernova-Davis as Assistant Professor of Music-Violin.

A prize winner of the Aleksander Glazunov International Competition in Paris, Dr. Chernova-Davis brings a multifaceted career as a soloist, chamber musician, concertmaster, and dedicated pedagogue. She has performed as Concertmaster of National Concerts at Carnegie Hall and has appeared with ensembles and artists around the world, including performances at Lincoln Center, Madison Square Garden, Radio City Music Hall, and more.

Dr. Chernova-Davis is also deeply committed to chamber music, interdisciplinary collaboration, and music education, with teaching experience at Rutgers University, Montclair State University, and several prestigious summer festivals.

Please join us in congratulating Dr. Elena Chernova-Davis and welcoming her to the U of A School of Music!

For more information, visit music.arizona.edu.

The University of Arizona School of Music invites you to honor the legacy of Wiley Ross through the Wiley Ross Memorial Educational Recording Studio Endowment.

For more than four decades, Wiley was a treasured member of our community, serving as director of the Jeffrey Haskell Recording Studio, recording engineer, assistant professor of practice, mentor, and educator. Through his teaching, leadership, and dedication to students, Wiley helped shape generations of musicians, producers, and artists.

Created by Wiley’s family in his honor, this endowment supports the Jeffrey Haskell Recording Studio as an educational resource for students in the School of Music and the University of Arizona community.

Please consider making a gift to support Wiley’s legacy and help continue providing students with access to recording and music production resources.

For more information or to contribute, scan the QR code on the last picture in the post. You may also visit music.arizona.edu/donate/giving

Dr. Chad R. Nicholson, Director of Bands at the University of Arizona School of Music, is currently in Tokyo serving as resident wind ensemble conductor at Musashino Academia Musicae 🇯🇵

Since late April, he has been working closely with the ensemble through intensive rehearsals, artistic collaboration, and cross-cultural exchange. His residency includes leading a tour to Hokkaido, a recording project with the ensemble, and a featured performance this July at the Tokyo Metropolitan Theatre Concert Hall.

Along the way, Dr. Nicholson has embraced the challenges—and humor—of rehearsing in Japanese, creating memorable moments of connection with students in the process.

A meaningful season of music-making, collaboration, and global engagement in wind ensemble performance.

📍Tokyo, Japan
🎶 Musashino Academia Musicae
🏛 Tokyo Metropolitan Theatre Concert Hall

The University of Arizona School of Music is pleased to welcome Dr. Julie Desbordes as our new Director of Orchestras and Assistant Professor.

A multidimensional conductor and educator, Dr. Desbordes leads ensembles throughout the Americas, Asia and her native France. She joins the School of Music from Arizona State University, where she served as Music Director of the Philharmonia Orchestra. In addition, she serves as Music Director of the Symphony of the Southwest and Salt River Brass, and conducts the Philharmonic Orchestra of the Phoenix Youth Symphony Orchestras.

Prior to arriving in Arizona, Dr. Desbordes conducted community and youth orchestras in New York City and appeared as a guest conductor with ensembles in Hong Kong, Taiwan, Malaysia, Venezuela and Cuba. An active advocate for music education, she regularly works with youth ensembles internationally and leads workshops for educators through Carnegie Hall's Weill Music Institute.

"I am deeply honored to join the University of Arizona as Assistant Professor and Director of Orchestras. The School of Music has a longstanding reputation for artistic excellence and student success, and I am excited to work alongside its outstanding faculty, talented students and dedicated staff. I look forward to building on the program's strong foundation, fostering meaningful musical experiences and preparing the next generation of artists, educators and leaders through the transformative power of orchestral music. Together, we will continue to build an inclusive and dynamic orchestral culture that prepares students to make meaningful contributions both on and off the stage."

Please join us in welcoming Dr. Desbordes to the University of Arizona School of Music community.