2022 Colorado Music Educators Association Conference 2022 Colorado Music Educators Association Conference

Wellness and Self-Care for Artist’s: Tips for You and Your Students

- MST
Bartolin Hall E-213/214
College/University Council Sessions Day 2
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John McGuire
Colorado State University, Associate Professor of Horn

Dr. John McGuire has a vast array of performance and teaching experiences. He has performed with many orchestras around the world, most notably the Dallas Symphony Orchestra, the Dallas Opera, the Fort Worth Symphony, the New World Symphony in Miami, FL, and the Civic Orchestra of Chicago. John has also toured internationally with the acclaimed Fortress Brass Quintet, of which he is a founding member. As a soloist he was awarded the title “Yamaha Young Artist,” has been a finalist in the American Horn Competition, and has appeared as a guest artist at many workshops, festivals and schools across the world. With several world-premiere performances to his credit, John is a passionate proponent for the creation of new solo horn literature as well as a sought-after contemporary music performer. John currently serves as Associate Professor of Horn at Colorado State University in Ft. Collins, Colorado. His major professors were Charles “Skip” Snead, William Capps and Dale Clevenger.

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Andrew Knight
Colorado State University, Associate Professor of Music Therapy

Dr. Andrew Knight holds a bachelor's degree in Percussion Performance, Jazz emphasis from UW-La Crosse, a music therapy equivalency and master's degree from the University of Minnesota, and a Ph.D. in Educational Foundations and Research from the University of North Dakota (UND).

Dr. Knight has research interests in substance use disorders in adults and early childhood social/emotional developmental issues. He directs the Parkinson’s Disease vocal exercise group in collaboration with the Parkinson’s Support Group in Larimer County and is a Music Together Within TherapyTM provider. His research has been published in the Journal of Music Therapy and Music Therapy Perspectives, among other journals, and serves as Associate Editor for Book Reviews for JMT. He is the 2017-2019 president of the Midwestern Region (MWR) of the American Music Therapy Association (AMTA), on the AMTA Assembly of Delegates, and has won the MWR and AMTA Service Awards. Along with Drs. Blythe LaGasse and Alicia Clair, he is a co-editor of the 2018 Introduction to Music Therapy textbook published by AMTA.

Musician’s wellness is an under-researched topic, despite obvious impacts to overall wellbeing. Students, however, are at an age that they can start creating habits to grow an understanding of self-care practices that 1) are specific to musicians and 2) help them to keep making music in search of a career path that is healthy and sustainable.

In this session, presenters will:

  1. Explain the four dimensions of wellness as they relate to musicians: physical, social, emotional, and financial.
  2. Facilitate discussion around the principles of wellness for artists as taught at the university level.
  3. Share resources to apply with students; from a brief rehearsal break to long-term tactics for struggling students.
  4. Lead experiential exercises that offer a reset for CMEA attendees, and provide space to communicate about self-care experiences as they relate to career growth.

Looking to dive deeper into the content of the session? Check out these supporting materials: