BIOGRAPHY

Dr. Erik Piazza is the Fine Arts Instructional Specialist in the Webster Central School District in Webster, NY. Prior to this appointment, Erik spent nearly 20 years as a secondary instrumental music teacher in Webster and the surrounding area. During this time, he also briefly served as adjunct faculty at the Rochester Institute of Technology where he taught saxophone lessons and directed a Saxology ensemble. Erik is a NYSSMA certified woodwind adjudicator whose students have been selected to perform with county, state, and national honors ensembles.
 
Erik earned a Ph.D. and M.M. in Music Education, and a B.M. in Music Education and Saxophone Performance from the Eastman School of Music at the University of Rochester. He has presented practitioner sessions and original research at regional, state, and national conferences. Additionally, Erik has been invited to present lectures at numerous colleges and institutions. His publications center on the prioritization of creative musical activities in music teaching and learning, and he is published in the Journal of Music Teacher Education and School Music News.

 

In addition to his job in Webster, Erik maintains an active schedule as a performer, conductor, scholar, clinician, and music publisher. Erik studied saxophone with Chien-Kwan Lin, Chris Vadala, Dave Demsey, and Ray Ricker. He is a current member of the Vertex Saxophone Quartet and has performed with the Penfield Symphony Orchestra, Eastman Community Music School Music Educators Wind Ensemble, the Finger Lakes Saxophone Quartet, and the Eastman Wind Ensemble. Erik studied conducting with Brad Lubman, Mark Scatterday, and Donald Hunsberger, and has been a guest conductor in county and regional ensembles across the Northeast. Erik's current research studies encompass creative musical activities, educational change, motivation, and professional development. Erik is a co-founder of Low Down Publishing, where he is a Senior Editor.