Authored by
Micah Bland
Title

Dr. Micah Bland

Pronouns
He/Him/His
Placeholder for titles
Lecturer of Music - Choral

Contact Information

Office
Haas Fine Arts Center, 252
121 Water Street
Eau Claire, WI 54703
Email
Hours
By appointment
ID
Platforms
Biography

Biography

Dr. Micah Bland is Lecturer of Choral and Music Education at the ĚÇĐÄVloge, where he directs the Concert and Symphonic choirs, and teaches courses in choral music education and conducting. As an accomplished choral musician and educator, Bland has directed ensembles at the University of Southern California, University of Texas at San Antonio, The University of Toledo, Ranger College, James “Nikki” Rowe High School, and Gainesville Middle School, in addition to professional leadership positions in community and religious organizations.

During his three-year tenure as Director of Choral Activities at The University of Toledo, the Chamber Singers were invited to perform at the Ohio Music Education Association’s Professional Development Conference, the ensemble’s first conference invitation in twenty-eight years. At the University of Southern California (USC) Thornton School of Music, Bland served as the choral department’s Senior Teaching Assistant and Associate Conductor of the USC Chamber Singers, the university’s premier choral ensemble. His work as a conductor can be heard on their recent album, Gregorian Meditations: Choral Works of Forgotten French Masters.

Bland is an active author and clinician with nineteen articles published in academic and practitioner journals including Psychology of Music, Choral Journal, Music Educators Journal, The Choral Scholar, International Choral Magazine, The Journal of Film Music, and Tactus. His passion for music educator training led to the creation of ChoralEd, a video podcast on YouTube, which is also a monthly blog feature on the American Choral Directors Association’s (ACDA) Choral.Net. Bland currently serves ACDA as editor of the “Student Times” column for the Choral Journal and member of the Education and Communication National Standing Committee. Additional honors include first place at the Barbershop Harmony Society’s International Chorus Competition (2003) with the Vocal Majority Chorus, with whom he has recorded three albums, recipient of the Music Teaching and Learning Award from the Thornton School of Music, and first place in the ML Daniels Composition Competition.

Bland holds a Doctor of Musical Arts degree from the University of Southern California, a Master of Music in Choral Conducting from the University of Texas at San Antonio, and a Bachelor of Music in Vocal Music Education from Abilene Christian University. He has studied conducting with Jo-Michael Scheibe, Cristian Grases, Tram Sparks, John Silantien, Michael Scarbrough, Vance George, and Craig Hella Johnson, and choral arranging with Nick Strimple and Morten Lauridsen. He is an active member of ACDA, NAfME, NCCO, WMEA, and WCDA.

Education

Education

  • DMA, University of Southern California
  • MM, The University of Texas at San Antonio
  • BM, Abilene Christian University
Teaching and Research Interests

Teaching and Research Interests

  • MUSI 188/388 Concert Choir
  • MUSI 190/390 Symphonic Choir
  • MUSI 350 Conducting
  • MUSI 478 Directing Practicum - Cabaret Productions
  • MUED 410 Choral Teaching Methods
  • MUED 487 Student Teaching in Music
Published Research

Published Research

Selected Publications:

  • Bland, Micah. “The Life and Choral Works of Jester Hairston.” Choral Journal, 66, no. 3 (2025) 16–33.
  • Bland, Micah. “Preparing for a Career as a Professional Session Singer: An Interview with Sally Stevens.” Choral Journal, 65, no. 9 (2025) 35–38.
  • Bland, Micah. “A Guide for Audio Recording your Choral Ensemble.” Tactus (Spring/Summer 2025) 31–35.
  • Bland, Micah. “Idea Bank: The Flipped Clinic.” Music Educators Journal, 111, no. 2 (2024) 14–15. .
  • Bland, Micah. “Jester Hairston’s Film Music Career.” The Journal of Film Music 11, no. 1 (2024) 5–21. .
  • Bland, Micah. “Implementing the Flipped Classroom in Collegiate Choral Methods and Conducting Courses.” The Choral Scholar and American Choral Review 61, no. 1 (2024) 30–39.
  • Bland, Micah. “The International Choral Ensembles of Hollywood Film Music.” International Choral Magazine 42, no. 1 (2023) 40–42.
  • Bland, Micah. “The Published Choral Works of John Williams.” Tactus (Fall 2022) 27–30.
  • Bland, Micah. “Choral Music in Film.” Diss., University of Southern California, 2021.
  • Bland, Micah and Eun Cho. “The Effect of Physical Movement on Observers’ Perception of Musical Quality in a Choral Performance.” Psychology of Music 49, no. 6 (2021) 1449 ̶ 61. .
  • Bland, Micah. “Mouthing the Text: The Advantages and Disadvantages.” Choral Journal 60, no. 10 (2020) 63 ̶ 68.
  • Bland, Micah. “Developing Appropriate Teacher-Student Relationships.” ChorTeach 12, no. 3 (2020) 7 ̶ 10.
  • Bland, Micah. “Voices in your Head: A Method for Teaching Audiation in the Secondary Choral Classroom.” ChorTeach 10, no. 4 (2018) 5 ̶ 7.
  • Bland, Micah. “Changing the Expressionless Faces that Sing in Your Choirs.” Choral Journal 58, no. 2 (2017) 59 ̶64.