<p> Jazz education within academia is still young, yet many educators have been recognized for successful leadership of high school jazz ensembles. Directors of finalist bands from the 2012 Essentially Ellington competition, a national opportunity hosted by Jazz at Lincoln Center, completed a questionnaire and interview regarding their pedagogical techniques and supplemental methods. All participants responded that listening to recordings and the fostering of peer mentoring are crucial elements. Other important techniques include singing, sight reading, rhythmic exercises, and the use of blues improvisation as a warm up activity. Important supplemental factors included personality traits such as intense, detail oriented, energetic, and fun, while participants noted the positive experiences and techniques learned from events with Jazz at Lincoln Center. In conclusion, leaders of successful high school jazz ensembles share several techniques, qualities, and behaviors, yet there is no single formula for a great high school jazz ensemble director. </p>

<p> Directors of school concert bands continue to program new and emergent works alongside pieces considered to be part of the core and traditional repertoire. The purpose of this dissertation was to discover what criteria directors consider important in their review of new and emergent concert band works for use in rehearsal and performance. A secondary objective examined if director experience and educational background influenced the evaluation of this music used in high school instrumental settings. </p><p> In order to evaluate this recent repertoire, the Concert Band Repertoire Evaluation Criteria (<i>CBREC</i>) was developed by the researcher, and reviewed by a panel of collegiate directors. The review of the <i> CBREC</i> revealed it to be a reliable tool for the purposes of the study. An independent panel of experts in concert band repertoire selected three works to be reviewed by participants. Invited participants comprised band directors who hold membership in an international band fraternity. The teaching responsibilities of these directors included conducting concert bands at American senior high schools. Participant directors rated each work using the <i> CBREC</i> after viewing an image of the music score and listening to an audio recording of the piece. The participant directors had the option of rating their familiarity with each piece used and answering three open-ended questions regarding repertoire selection. </p><p> Data collected from the participants indicated favorable mean ratings for the works used in the study. When the participant data were analyzed in sub-groups, several statistically significant findings were reported. Sub-groups including older directors, directors teaching only one ensemble, and directors who answered open-ended questions in the study demonstrated more stability in their ratings of the repertoire used in the study than did younger directors, directors teaching multiple ensembles, and directors who did not respond to open-ended questions. </p><p> Results suggested participant directors reached a consensus regarding several aspects of the pieces used in the study, indicated by the <i> CBREC</i> Ratings and open-ended comments. The correlational analysis of <i>CBREC</i> Items demonstrated that directors are considering multiple aspects of a work during the evaluation process. Data supported that melodic material, pedagogical use, as well as timbre and orchestration influence how this group of directors estimate the longevity of new concert band works. </p>

<p> Although many teachers use concurrent instructional strategies, little is known about how or when they function in rehearsal, or how frequently they are employed. The purpose of the present study was to examine pitched and unpitched concurrent instructional behaviors as they occurred naturally in secondary choral rehearsals over time. Three master teachers (two male, one female) with at least 10, 20, and 30 years of teaching experience, respectively, recorded their rehearsals over the course of approximately six weeks, from the introduction of a new piece of literature, through the point in time when it is deemed &ldquo;performance-ready&rdquo; by the director. Data were recorded, on average, twice per week, in the form 15&ndash;20 minutes of audio footage, and sent to the researcher for analysis. Results indicate that mean concurrent instruction was present for 25.88% of a given rehearsal. The most frequently used pitched behavior was singing and the most frequently used unpitched behavior was the academic hustle. Potential implications for music education practitioners and directions for future research are discussed. </p><p>