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UWOinAlaskaUniversity of Wisconsin Oshkosh assistant music professor Dylan Chmura-Moore, trombone, and lecturer Sharon Tenhundfeld, viola, traveled in April to the Kodiak Island Borough School District (KIBSD) in Alaska for a weeklong music residency.

Chmura-Moore and Tenhundfeld judged the first round of solo and ensemble competition, hosted seminars for teachers, gave solo recitals and taught middle school and high school classes in band, jazz band and orchestra. Chmura-Moore said the goal was to help the students in the KIBSD become better musicians.

The KIBSD orchestras are led by M. Walter Muelling, a 2014 UW Oshkosh music education graduate. Muelling said it was important to him to host his professors at KIBSD because of the impact they had on his education.

headshot of m. walter muelling“They encompass the youthful energy, passion and excitement that I believe will be the savior of classical music in the modern era,” Muelling said. “Passing on a love of music needs to have some aspect of skill, but also an aspect of humanity. While working with Dylan and Sharon during my brief time at UWO, they both had an enormous impact not just on the way I perform music, but also the way I feel music. If they can make my students feel the way they made me feel, then I need to do everything I can to get them up to visit my students.”

Each year the KIBSD, the seventh largest school district in Alaska with 2,500 students, competes for a grant for artist residencies. This year is the first time they are bringing in artists from outside Alaska.

“Kodiak is not a place where students have the opportunity to study privately in studios,” said Marilyn Davidson, assistant superintendent at KIBSD. “This serves as a great learning opportunity for students, as well as for our teachers.”

For Muelling, inviting his professors to Alaska was an opportunity to bring his students perspectives on music that are extremely unique and important.

“They can give the students an experience that will extend knowledge and passion, spur motivation and answer questions my students could never even think to ask,” Muelling said.

Dylan Chmura-Moore's headshot, 2012.“Teaching is in my blood,” Chmura-Moore said. “Whether it be in Oshkosh or Alaska, building community through music-making and music education is vitally important to me and to the future of the art.”

In addition to working with the students in Alaska, Chmura-Moore and Tenhundfeld provided teachers in the KIBSD with professional development.

“This residency gave our music teachers much-needed time for professional development,” Muelling said. “Kodiak is an island well off the coast of Alaska and it is an expensive plane ride to visit anyplace off island. Alaska is also small and there are very few opportunities for professional growth.”

The residency  provided an opportunity for Chmura-Moore and Tenhundfeld to reinforce what Muelling’s students have been learning.

“It’s one thing if a middle school student hears instruction from the teacher who they see everyday yet it’s different when a guest artist or teacher repeats the same information,” said Sharon Tenhundfeld, lecturer of viola and music business. “The student then has a deeper understanding for the information and gains greater respect for their teacher and enthusiasm for music-making.”

In his role at KIBSD, Muelling leads a virtual orchestra for the Kodiak Emerging Small Schools, which is a collection of native villages around the island and surrounding islands.

“I was very excited to have Dylan and Sharon see this process and give me advice on how to make it more effective. Being the only one running a program like this, I need all the help I can get,” Muelling said. “I am thankful for the opportunity to hear their minds work around the problems and opportunities of a project like this.”

For Muelling, the dedication of his UWO professors extends beyond the classroom, which made all the difference in his time at UWO.

“The classroom is an essential place for growth, but I cannot comment enough on the growth that is shown when professors take time to meet you off the clock to share time and discuss the world of education,” Muelling said. “It really makes a student feel important, like an equal. That sense of confidence makes a student feel like they are not just practicing to be a part of education in this country, but that we actually are.”

The respect between Muelling and his professors is mutual—watching UWO alumni have success in their careers is rewarding, Tenhundfeld said.

“Walter is a wonderful teacher, and he is teaching his students not only how to be great musicians but also wonderful people. It is amazing to watch a former UWO student inspire his own students to love music and to play so well,” Tenhundfeld said. “In just two years Walter has greatly impacted his community of Kodiak, Alaska, and his program is thriving! Students catch him in the school hallway and say ‘I’m so excited to join your orchestra class next year!’ Students come early and stay late after school to work with him. He truly is making a difference in these students’ lives, and the entire community benefits from his hard work.”

“The work Walter is doing is what we hope for all of our graduates—sharing one’s passion, talents, joy, enthusiasm and training with others to make the world a more peaceful and enriching place in which to live,” Chmura-Moore said.

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