Aaron Vance, a senior Music Education major who will graduate this spring, spent this past summer working as a Muskie Fellow on campus. Aaron was approached by Dr. David Turrill, Professor of Music and Director of Bands, about filling a void in the wind band repertoire. Aaron explains more about his fellowship: “The fellowship itself was finding a piece appropriate for a wind band and transcribing it. This included obtaining rights, learning a music notation software, understanding instrument abilities and timbres, and reading with musicians to hear the final product.”
The work that Aaron did during his fellowship will prove beneficial to him as a music educator. “Arranging is incredibly important for any music education major, as one cannot know what instrumentation will be available or if something needs altered in a part,” Aaron said.
This fall, the Mount Gilead, Ohio native is director of the Marching Band. He has also been involved in several musical ensembles on campus: Wind Ensemble, Concert Choir and SEOSO (The Southeastern Ohio Symphony Orchestra).