Assistant Professor of Jazz Studies - University of Oregon

Department: School of Music and Dance
Rank: Assistant Professor
Annual Basis: 9 Month

Application Deadline

Review begins October 22, 2024 (updated); position open until filled

Required Application Materials

To ensure consideration, please apply online and upload the following with your entire application by the review date:
• a current curriculum vitae including your professional experience, teaching experience, and education.
• a letter of interest highlighting how your knowledge, skills, experience, and professional/teaching interests qualify you for the position.
• a statement of teaching philosophy (optionally, consider including links to course syllabi for a jazz improvisation course and/or jazz studio lessons)
• a statement including contributions and/or plans you have made to foster a diverse, equitable, and inclusive community through current campus programs or new activities, or through national or off-campus organizations. (this can be uploaded as additional document 1)
• names and current contact information for at least three professional or academic references who can be contacted by the committee.
• a digital portfolio (submitted as a pdf or Microsoft Word document) including the following (this can be uploaded as additional document 2):
o 3-4 links to representative recordings of recent select performances or studio recordings, preferably in small jazz ensemble settings.
o 2-3 links to teaching/instructional video(s), including, preferably, a rehearsal video of a student ensemble under your direction and studio/classroom teaching examples.
o A representative portfolio of compositions and/or arrangements (include works for both small and large ensembles if possible)

Position Announcement

The School of Music and Dance is seeking highly qualified applicants for an Assistant Professor of Jazz Studies position to begin September 16, 2025. Guitarists, trombonists, and/or artists with a strong background in composition/arranging are especially welcome to apply.

Primary teaching responsibilities for the position include the recruitment and instruction of a successful studio, direction of a small jazz ensemble, and the instruction of undergraduate and/or graduate level courses in the Jazz Studies area curriculum. Depending on the candidate’s expertise, course topics may include jazz improvisation, jazz theory, jazz arranging/composition, jazz history, and/or additional jazz ensembles. Additional responsibilities in research/creative activity may include rehearsing/performing with the UO Faculty Jazz Ensemble, and sustaining artistic excellence, innovation, and high visibility in the field through regular performance. Serving on school, university, and discipline-based committees is expected.

Department or Program Summary

The UO Jazz Studies program features a robust curriculum and outstanding performing ensembles which include three big bands, ten small groups, a guitar ensemble, and Latin Jazz Ensemble. In addition to faculty positions, six graduate employee positions in Jazz Studies help staff the program and make the recruitment of outstanding graduate students possible.

Program facilities include a fully equipped recording studio for use by faculty and students. In addition to 40 to 60 concerts each academic year, annual events produced include the Summer Jazz Improvisation Camp, the Day of Improvisation workshop, and the Oregon Jazz Festival. Students and ensembles have been recognized internationally, including in DownBeat Magazine’s Student Music Awards on more than 15 occasions for excellence in jazz composition, arranging, and performance. Most recently, the school’s premier small group, JazzArts Oregon, was named a winner in the graduate school category of the 2024 DownBeat Student Music Awards.

The Jazz Studies program is housed in the Department of Music Performance in the School of Music and Dance (SOMD), which has an enrollment of more than 800 music and dance majors and minors, a faculty and staff of 85, and approximately 70 graduate employees. The School of Music and Dance is a premier higher education institution of music and dance in the Pacific Northwest, a comprehensive public institution that offers courses in choreography, performance, dance education, dance science, dance history and culture, music education, music performance, pedagogy, composition, conducting, jazz studies, music theory, musicology, ethnomusicology, music technology, and liberal arts studies in music.

The School of Music and Dance serves as an educational and cultural resource for the University of Oregon, the local community, and the state of Oregon. We prepare students to lead enriching lives by offering comprehensive educational curricula for professional arts-based careers and by providing a fully realized liberal arts education. Jazz Studies faculty focus on critical art-making that inquires, takes risks, and incorporates learning into creative problem-solving. Jazz Studies faculty and students are committed to creating music of our time, for our time.

The School of Music and Dance is dedicated to the UO’s goal of building a culturally diverse faculty committed to teaching and working in a multicultural environment and strongly encourages applications from all underrepresented populations.

Minimum Requirements

• Master’s degree in music or a closely related field
• Demonstrated accomplishment as a performer
• Evidence of excellence in teaching jazz studies as demonstrated through candidate CV and submitted portfolio
• Ability to contribute effectively to an inclusive working and learning environment
• Demonstrated potential for recruiting and building an outstanding studio/program

Preferred Qualifications

• Established national reputation as a performer or composer/arranger with high visibility in the field
• College level teaching experience
• Ability to teach studio lessons in jazz guitar, jazz trombone, and/or jazz composition/arranging

About the University

The university enrolls more than 20,000 undergraduate and 3,600 graduate students representing all 50 states and nearly 100 countries. The campus features state-of-the art facilities in a beautiful, arboretum-like setting. The University of Oregon is located in beautiful Eugene, a metropolitan area with a population of over 350,000, that supports a diversity of cultural, recreational, and educational opportunities. The City of Eugene features resident symphony and chamber orchestras, as well as ballet, modern dance, and opera companies, community theatre groups, art galleries, and museums. The award-winning Hult Center for the Performing Arts attracts many guest performers to the city each year. Eugene is also fortunate to have a variety of local venues supportive of live jazz including (but not limited to) the Shedd Institute, which brings in several national acts each year, and a dedicated jazz club – the Jazz Station – a non-profit establishment that hosts live music several nights every week.

Eugene is located about two hours south from Portland, in the southern end of the Willamette Valley. The Pacific coast is just over an hour to the west, while the Cascade Mountains lie about an hour to the east.

All offers of employment are contingent upon successful completion of a background check.

The University of Oregon is proud to offer a robust benefits package to eligible employees, including health insurance, retirement plans, and paid time off. For more information about benefits, visit https://hr.uoregon.edu/about-benefits.

The University of Oregon is an equal opportunity, affirmative action institution committed to cultural diversity and compliance with the ADA. The University encourages all qualified individuals to apply and does not discriminate on the basis of any protected status, including veteran and disability status. The University is committed to providing reasonable accommodations to applicants and employees with disabilities. To request an accommodation in connection with the application process, please contact us at uocareers@uoregon.edu or 541-346-5112.

UO prohibits discrimination on the basis of race, color, religion, national origin, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, pregnancy (including pregnancy-related conditions), age, physical or mental disability, genetic information (including family medical history), ancestry, familial status, citizenship, service in the uniformed services (as defined in federal and state law), veteran status, expunged juvenile record, and/or the use of leave protected by state or federal law in all programs, activities and employment practices as required by Title IX, other applicable laws, and policies. Retaliation is prohibited by UO policy. Questions may be referred to the Office of Investigations and Civil Rights Compliance. Contact information, related policies, and complaint procedures are listed here.

In compliance with federal law, the University of Oregon prepares an annual report on campus security and fire safety programs and services. The Annual Campus Security and Fire Safety Report is available online at https://clery.uoregon.edu/annual-campus-security-and-fire-safety-report.