Author: Mary Rogelstad

Every spring, piles of new sheet music are stacked in nooks and crannies around J.W. Pepper’s corporate office. The works come from a thousand different publishers and represent the best…

Music teacher David Fernandes says he faced unexpected challenges when he had to set up his music room during his first year of teaching. His room at Reading Intermediate High…

Now that summer is in full swing, there’s time to kick back and enjoy some light reading. There are innumerable books that can inspire, entertain and inform both new and…

The idea for Memorial Day stemmed from one of the most trying times in the history of the United States. During the Civil War so many lives were lost that…

The grandeur of Carnegie Hall is a far cry from where composer Patrick Hawes began his musical education. In a small English coastal town, Hawes began learning piano as a…

British composer Patrick Hawes gives an unusual answer when asked if there’s anything career-wise he wishes he could do better. His response: “Nothing.” The reason is based on Hawes’ Christian…

The pressure to create visually spectacular marching band shows can be high in the age of short attention spans, reality TV competition shows, and social media.

Grammy-winning composer Eric Whitacre and the late “Mother of Hubble” Nancy Grace Roman had something in common when they were children: they both enjoyed watching the stars at night. For…

Aaron Dworkin says he did not know about many black classical composers before he went to college. Long before he was named a MacArthur Fellow or became a University of…

Updated February 17, 2023 Trombonist Amanda Stewart compares it to a slow-moving glacier – the gradual acceptance of talented women playing brass instruments in the United States’ most renowned orchestras….

July 2020 Update: Eric Whitacre’s latest project – Virtual Choir 6  – is now available online and you can view the sheet music for Sing Gently here. The article below…

Updated January 2020 The idea for Black History Month was developed during a difficult time for African Americans in the United States. In 1926, segregation and racial violence against the…

Dr. Alice Hammel remembers when Vinnie started school. He had frequent outbursts and struggled throughout most of his elementary school years; eventually, he was diagnosed as being on the autistic…

Composer Eric Whitacre delved into the visual world of film after he received an invitation he could not refuse. After conducting his Deep Field orchestra piece based on the Hubble…

November 2018 marked 100 years since the guns were silenced in Europe on “the 11th hour on the 11th day on the 11th month” in 1918, ending World War I….

The Fox Business Network selected J.W. Pepper® to be featured in a Manufacturing Marvels segment that aired on October 30 and 31. The piece was shot at one of Pepper’s…

Horror movies don’t just play on the minds of the audiences. They’re also a cerebral project for horror music composers like Joseph Bishara and Christopher Thomas. Bishara has composed music…

Alex Meixner’s hands fly across his accordion when he plays crowd favorites at Oktoberfest celebrations across the country. The talented musician, who is known for the Hormel pepperoni commercials and…

Composer Craig Hella Johnson calls it the “long sacred silence” – his way of describing a common audience reaction after choral performances of his recently published composition Considering Matthew Shepard. …

It was at a television station in San Francisco, California, where Deke Sharon realized how far his work in a cappella music had reached. He went to the station to…

Trying to keep track of all of your classes and ensembles is hard enough. Then concert planning time comes, and there is a sea of event planning details to remember…