Music, Department of

Story developed by University Communications. Photo Credit: Nicole Young. Caroline Miller from Suwanee, Georgia is completing her Master of Music Therapy this December. The double Bobcat worked in the Georgia College & State University (GCSU) Music Therapy Clinic as a graduate assistant since graduating with her Bachelor’s of Music Therapy in December 2020.  While there, she’s served about 80 children a week in eight special education classrooms, as well as individual clients. “I’ve...

Rafal remembers the feeling. In early 2020, Rafal, who goes by just his surname, was in the audience at an honors conference hearing his composition for saxophone quartet played by an ensemble of professional musicians. It was a turning point. “It felt like that was one of the first times that one of my pieces was actually performed,” he said. “I felt like a real composer—I felt like I had just done something in real life rather than just pretending.” But it might not have played out...

Georgia College & State University students are creating unique music and sharing it with the world. Student chamber ensemble, the Imposter Trio, and saxophonist Savannah McDowell represented Georgia College in performances at the American Single Reed Summit (ASRS) this month in Columbia, South Carolina. The American Single Reed Summit is a national conference focusing on clarinet and saxophone. The summit brings professional and student musicians together to develop connections between...

Paul McCartney once said: “I love to hear a choir. I love the humanity … to see the faces of real people devoting themselves to a piece of music. I like the teamwork. It makes me feel optimistic about the human race when I see them cooperating like that.” That about sums up what Georgia College & State University’s annual “High School Choral Day” is all about: fellowship, collaboration, good music—and a little recruitment too. “It started off as an effort to get high school singers...

Yalonda Wright of Milledgeville, Georgia lives for musical moments. The moments when musicians are in a group setting, playing well and harmonizing.  She thought performing was her future, but volunteering and leadership opportunities have spotlighted a new path to the young star.  “Having the chance to be that leader for somebody in music: helping them develop, seeing them grow and watching them amazed at the final product and themselves for doing it led me to this,” Wright said...

Michael Kobito, '22, received more than his Master's in Music Education in May. The Georgia College graduate was also named Georgia’s 2023 Teacher of the Year. “Being a student again has helped me be a better teacher, in the sense I'm taking ideas from my professors that I enjoy and sharing them with my students,” Kobito said. “I know the other teachers of the year for the state are incredible, so I'm just proud to stand next to them and be in this profession with them.” Currently,...

Torrianna Harris, a Forsyth, Georgia, native and music major discovered the Georgia College difference.  “What I like most about this university is the freedom to be creative and expressive,” she said. “There are no limitations on how you should act or what you should be like.” Having access to a variety of classes, workshops and discussions has allowed her to learn about different people, cultures and perspectives. She’s also learned to think independently. “Because of this experience,...