Jonathan Bailey Holland has been appointed as the new dean of the Henry and Leigh Bienen School of Music at Northwestern University, effective from September 1. Currently serving as the Jack G. Buncher Head of the Carnegie Mellon University School of Music, Holland brings over 20 years of leadership experience in music education and is a highly acclaimed composer. He will be taking over from Toni-Marie Montgomery, who has been the dean of the Bienen School for the past two decades.
Expressing his enthusiasm for the new role, Holland stated his excitement in joining the passionate and dedicated artists and scholars of the Bienen School of Music. He praised the school's long-standing reputation and esteemed position in the field. He also emphasized the school's exceptional students and faculty, impressive facilities, wide range of performance opportunities, and its connection to the broader university community. In addition to becoming the dean, Holland will also hold the position of Kay Davis Professor of Music.
Before his tenure at Carnegie Mellon, Holland had a successful career in music education. He progressed from assistant professor to full professor of composition at Berklee College of Music and later joined the faculty at Boston Conservatory. Eventually, he became the chair of composition, contemporary music, and core studies at the merged Boston Conservatory at Berklee. He also served on the faculty of Vermont College of Fine Arts, where he played a role in establishing the low-residency MFA program in music composition, one of the first of its kind.
Northwestern Provost Kathleen Hagerty expressed her delight in welcoming Jonathan Bailey Holland to the university, highlighting his acclaimed artistic abilities and dynamic leadership qualities that align with the Bienen School's values of collaboration and excellence.
Holland's compositions have been commissioned and performed by renowned orchestras and contemporary ensembles worldwide. He has received numerous prestigious honors and awards from organizations such as the Guggenheim Foundation, The Boston Foundation, Civitella Ranieri Foundation, Fromm Music Foundation at Harvard University, and the American Academy of Arts and Letters, among others.
Throughout his career, Holland has been a dedicated advocate for music education. He has served on the composition faculty of various programs and organizations, including the Curtis Summerfest Young Artist Program and the Sphinx Performance Academy. He has also been involved in the development of advanced placement music theory examinations and has conducted professional development seminars for music theory teachers.
President Michael Schill expressed his excitement about working with Jonathan Bailey Holland to further enhance the reputation of the Henry and Leigh Bienen School of Music, both locally in the Chicago area and on the international stage.
Apart from his extensive involvement in the music field, Holland has also lectured and presented at numerous schools across the United States. He has written commissioned works aimed at introducing young audiences to orchestral music. Holland holds a Ph.D. in music from Harvard University and a bachelor's degree in music from the Curtis Institute of Music, where he studied composition under the guidance of Bienen School alumnus Ned Rorem (class of '44, honorary class of '77). He hails from Flint, Michigan, and currently serves on the board of the American Composers Orchestra while also acting as an artistic advisor for New Music USA.
