Lisa Casey

Once. . .from Music Ed to Music Performance

I knew that I wanted to major in music as early as high school. I adored my high school band directors so I declared music education when I started at KSU. After a few semesters, I decided that teaching at the collegiate level and playing professionally was a better fit. Thankfully, my horn professor, Dr. Craig B. Parker supported my decision!

• Marching Band
• Wind Ensemble
• Orchestra
• Basketball Band
• All-Collegiate Band
• Pi Kappa Lambda

I was fortunate to be invited back to KSU to fill a one-year position. I taught applied horn, two Music “Styles” classes, and I played in the faculty brass quintet.

Thanks to Dr. Gary Mortenson for this amazing opportunity!

I knew that I needed to have a DMA (or ABD DMA) to teach at the college level so I moved quickly through graduate school. I also had several opportunities to gain college teaching experience before I applied for a tenure-track position. Most of my searching was done through the College Music Society and through word-of-mouth.

I spent a full day of interviewing at Missouri State. This process included teaching a theory class, playing a short recital, giving a masterclass, interviewing with the search committee, department head, and dean.

Get to school, warm up, teach several applied lessons, have lunch with my colleagues, teach brass techniques class, practice, go home to “chill”, return back for symphony rehearsal from 7:30-10pm on certain days.

The students! Also, I love being able to play my horn in the Springfield Symphony.

Annual reviews and Evaluations (documenting EVERYTHING!), committee work (sometimes), and students who don’t graduate in a timely fashion.

Be prepared to go to graduate school and don’t be afraid to pick a school where you are the “small fish in the big pond”. Also, perform and audition as often as you can so that you can continue to grow and learn on your instrument/voice.

Graduate school, interim college teaching, various orchestra positions.

My current job! I love being able to teach and to play my horn every day with wonderful students and colleagues.

I actually wish that I would have been a bit more social. I went home almost every weekend to study and it paid off in terms of good grades and a timely graduation. . .but in hindsight, getting a B in a class is really not the end of the world!