Parent Association

Interview with Dr. Colin Hill

 

Lillie Boydston: Can you tell us a little bit about your role at Tennessee Tech and within the School of Music?

Colin Hill: My primary role is the Director of the School Music where I oversee the curriculum and the faculty. But also, on a day-to-day basis, I spend a lot of my time with students. I help them with their course schedule or their degree map, but I’m also there to encourage them and help guide them through the college experience as a whole. Students often come to me if they're having troubles with a certain class, professor or their peers.

Teaching is my passion. In 2013 I came to Tech as the percussion professor and to this day I still teach private lessons on all percussion instruments. I also play with the University Faculty Jazz Ensemble and the Bryan Symphony Orchestra, the professional orchestra affiliated with the University. It is a unique ensemble in that it is a mixture of faculty and students. Part of the contract of all Tech music professors is to play the hardest part in the orchestra, and then we have our top students audition to play alongside. Their participation includes a hefty scholarship. We also have a faculty Brass Arts Quintet that, to our knowledge, is the oldest existing university faculty brass ensemble in the country. Both have been going strong for 61 years.

LB: What got you into music in the first place? Has this been a lifelong passion, or did you happen to stumble upon it?

CH: I started playing piano when I was five or six and I continued until high school. My interest in percussion started with my dad who was kind of an amateur drummer, always playing drums on his steering wheel. My sister’s boyfriend was also a drummer and I thought he was the coolest guy ever, I wanted to be just like him. So, when I was in 6th grade, I started playing percussion and fell in love with it. When it came to choosing a college and degree, music was a natural choice for me.

LB: You have had opportunities to perform outside of the United States. Could you tell us about those experiences and how were you able to receive those opportunities?

CH: The first time I traveled abroad to play was during my undergraduate years when a group of students had the opportunity to play in a percussion festival at the Paris Conservatory. Then, when I was working toward my doctorate, myself and some other doctoral students formed a one-time ensemble where we commissioned a bunch of composers to write our music and we performed at a festival in Taiwan. That was a really fun experience.

LB: The School of Music has seen a lot of growth this past year, including having the largest marching band in its history. How did the School of Music work to accomplish this?

CH: Our University Orchestra was also the largest it’s ever been last year, as well. It’s really a testament to our professors. I wouldn’t say it’s a trend nationwide, but we are seeing a lot of growth in our program. Our faculty and our Director of Bands, Jeff Miller, have had a huge focus on recruitment. They recruit in a similar way to athletics and seek certain students from certain schools, with about six to eight school visits per semester. We also have four large recruitment events on campus each year that attract two to three-hundred students each day.

LB: Tech recently brought back the tradition of having a color guard. What triggered the almost decade long hiatus, and how did you manage to bring the tradition back?

CH: Once again, that was the hard work of Jeff Miller with the support of upper administration. The main reason why we brought it back was because we wanted our marching band to be an elevated experience. If you look at most high school programs, they have a color guard, right? We need to serve those students as well. We want our marching band to resemble what they’re used to and have all the same opportunities, just at a higher level.

LB: How does being a music major compare to the other majors that Tech offers?

CH: One thing that we talk about in music is that it’s a different type of pressure that our students are under. If a student does poorly on a math exam, for example, the only people that know are the student and their professor. But when you get up on stage and perform poorly, everybody sees it. Because of that, there’s a different level of accountability. Also, it’s a very time-consuming degree. Their homework is practicing. In other classes, after the last equation, you’re done with your homework. But for music, it could always be better, it could always be more comfortable, more secure. It takes a lot of dedication and perseverance to be a music major, and that teaches them a lot of life lessons.

LB: What would you tell parents who have students that play an instrument and have musical experience but chose to pursue a different major? How can they keep their passion for music alive as a Tech student?

CH: I think the first thing is just knowing that all of our ensembles are open to anybody on campus. A lot of students left high school and left their instrument behind, but music should be a lifelong endeavor. Tech is a flat rate university, so adding ensemble courses doesn’t cost anything extra. We find that a lot of our non-music majors say it’s a great release from the normal stress of their major. They relish in getting to take a break from working on homework and studying at the library to come to the concert hall, play their instrument and be creative. It’s also a great way to make friends outside of their degree program.

LB: For those students who don’t have previous experience of music, how would taking elective courses within the School of Music benefit them?

CH: Students need nine humanities credits to graduate, and music appreciation is an option. This is a great course to get introduced to music. We also have some classes that teach the basics of some instruments, like guitar or piano. In addition, we have five music minors available. We also have concerts in our building almost every night which are free for your student. To learn about upcoming concerts, your student can subscribe to the School of Music newsletter on our website, or just look at the University Calendar.

LB: What other interests do you have outside of the realm of music?

CH: My family is very important to me. I have two kids who are both musically inclined, but they love other things, as well. I play adult recreational league soccer and I also play a lot of golf. We frequent the restaurants in town, and we just love the local waterfalls and parks.

LB: Do you have any other advice for parents of college students?

CH: You know, I think my biggest advice for parents is to support your students in what they love. We have a lot of students that come to us and say “I want to be a music major, but my parents won’t support that.” I think it is important as parents to support your children in whatever they are passionate about even if it’s not the path you saw them going down, or maybe there’s fear of financial stability. But I’m a firm believer in that if you love what you do, you’ll be successful. 

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