ASO Salutes Music Educators

By Holly Hanchey

This month, the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra (ASO) joins communities across the country in celebrating school music programs and their teachers. For over 30 years, the National Association for Music Educators (NAfME) has designated March as “Music in Our Schools Month,” with the purpose of raising awareness of the importance of music education for all children. Daily, school music programs are positively impacting the social, academic, and personal growth of the younger generation. The ASO is proud to partner in that mission for metro Atlanta schools and beyond.

Each year, thousands of young musicians engage with ASO education programs including the field trip series Students at the Symphony, the ASO’s Talent Development Program (TDP), a diversity youth training initiative now in its twenty-ninth year, and the Atlanta Symphony Youth Orchestra (ASYO), now in its forty-ninth season. The ASO recognizes that none of this can be accomplished without the educators behind these young musicians. The list of music educators associated with the ASO is vast. Music educators facilitate ASO programs for families and schools. Hundreds of school music teachers are alumni of TDP and ASYO. And of course, every musician on the stage has a school music educator who assisted in their journey to Symphony Hall. In recognition of “Music in Our Schools Month,” the ASO shares the stories of a few exceptional educators special to the organization.

Jeffrey Rowser

Morgan County High School’s band director, Jeffrey Rowser, was inducted into the National High School Band Directors Hall of Fame, awarded the “Legion of Honor” from the John Phillip Sousa Foundation, and named the Georgia Music Educators Association Distinguished Career recipient, all in 2022.

Mr. Rowser has been a Georgia music educator for more than 40 years. His career accolades stem from the success of his ensembles: superior ratings in GMEA State Festival Concert Band performances and sight-reading for 40 consecutive years in addition to Superior, Best In Class and Grand Championship marching band awards.

Mr. Rowser’s collegiate marching band was barrier-breaking While attending Auburn University in the 1970s, he became the first black drum major at the university, and in turn the first in the Southeastern Conference (SEC).

Not surprisingly, he is an advocate for music education, but not just to create the next generation of musicians. Music education, says Mr. Rowser, is about more than learning notes and the mechanics of playing an instrument.

“I just think music education through symphonies and schools has such an impact on creating a whole person for today’s society,” he said. “I am really sold on the fact that music education can give kids the opportunity to work interpersonally with others, not only from a technological standpoint, but also in expression, communication and having a verbal lifestyle together.”

He is currently hosting many of the ASO’s UpTempo Teen Nights, where middle and high school students can participate in a pre-concert discussion, followed by a classical concert, all for just $5.

“I get so fired up about doing that, and I treat it just like I’m getting ready for the Grammys, or the Emmys or whatever, to be prepared to interact with the audience, or whomever I’m interviewing,” he said.

Mr. Rowser has also put together multiple ensembles to play in the Galleria during the ASO’s popular holiday concert series, and many of Mr. Rowser’s students have participated in the ASYO, including Harrison Buck, a percussionist and current member.

Stephen Lawrence-Carroll

Another music educator in Georgia with close ties to the ASO is Stephen Lawrence-Carroll, who is currently Director of Orchestral Activities and Department Chair at North Atlanta High School’s Fine and Performing Arts Department. An Atlanta native, Mr. Lawrence-Carroll started playing violin and cello at age 12, and later picked up the piano. He was concertmaster in multiple orchestras throughout his education, including Loyola University Symphony and Chamber Orchestra and the Atlanta Public Schools Youth Symphony. He is also a graduate of the ASO’s TDP.

Dr. Sara Womack, Fine and Performing Arts Coordinator for Atlanta Public Schools, says “Atlanta Public Schools is continually grateful for Stephen’s award-winning instruction that enables students to use the knowledge gained through performance to solve real-world problems.”

Womack says, “It is encouraging to watch the enthusiasm of his students as