The Piano and Its Perspectives - Interview with Jennifer Donohoo Davis
Once a month the MSU Department of Music presents The Piano and Its Perspectives. A partnership with EMAC/Federal University of Goiás in Brazil and the digital/ITS office, the Portugal Science & Technology Foundation, Center for the Study in Sociology & Music Aesthetics, Portugal New University, in Portugal and colleagues: Andréa Luísa Teixeira (coordinator), Maria Caroline Porto, Sérgio de Paiva e Pablo Lisboa.
This Friday, October 29, at 3:00 pm MS, 4:00 pm NYC, 5:00 pm in Brazil and 8:00 pm in Portugal, the interview is with the High School Choral Director at Starkville Oktibbeha Consolidated School District Jennifer Donohoo Davis.
You can watch the live interview at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=euL2ILS7o9M
Jennifer Donohoo Davis: In her 24 years, Mrs. Davis developed the piano lab and Advanced Placement Music Theory at MHS and SHS, and works with department-wide musicals at all three campuses. She has organized all-city elementary honor choirs, and helps her campuses prepare students for 6th-12th All-State auditions. She is the coordinator for MS’s State Solo and Ensemble Music Performance Assessment for the MS chapter of the American Choral Directors Association (ACDA). Her choirs have frequently earned Sweepstakes and Superiors at festivals, and performed with Carnegie Hall, Festival Disney, Six Flags Festivals, and multiple sports venues. She is a member of National Association for Music Educators and ACDA, and has served on the state boards for both organizations. She is currently president-elect of Mississippi Music Educators Association.
She has a Master and Bachelor of Music in Music Education (voice and piano), both from William Carey University, Hattiesburg, MS. Influential teachers are Milfred Valentine, Mark Malone, Constance Roberts, Teresa Sanchez, Frederica Braidfoot, Howard Keever, Martin Cuellar, and David Young.
Mrs. Davis has taken private piano since she was age 5 throughout her education, and was active in piano competitions and camps. In public school she played French horn in the school band and served as the student collaborative pianist for her high school choir. Her mother, a native of Kitakyushu, Japan, always emphasized opportunities in private and public school music education. Her father’s family, native Mississippians, were active musicians trained in Sacred Harp singing school traditions. Jennifer’s husband, Danny, is a managing editor and voice teacher for Mississippi State University and a seminary-trained church musician. Their son Connor sings at MSU, and their daughter Anna sings at SHS.
