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Music Department Chair
Associate Professor
Director of Choirs and Choral Activities
Jay Dougherty headshot
Department
Staff/Faculty
Faculty
Office #
Hermann 209
Degrees
DMA-Choral Conducting, University of Colorado-Boulder (2016); MM-Choral Conducting, University of Colorado-Boulder (2013); BM-Music Education, Brigham Young University (2004)
Specialization
Choral Ensembles, Conducting, Music Education
Year Appointed
2016
Courses - Fall
  • Advanced Choral Conducting
  • Concert Choir
  • Floodstage
  • Oratorio Chorus
  • Treble Choir
Courses - Spring
  • Concert Choir
  • Floodstage
  • Oratorio Chorus
  • Secondary Choral Methods
  • Treble Choir
Biography

Dr. Jay Dougherty, Associate Professor, is the Music Department Chair and Director of Choral Activities at Marietta College in the Mid-Ohio Valley, where he directs the Concert Choir, the Treble Choir, a contemporary a cappella ensemble (Floodstage), and the community Oratorio Chorus. He also teaches Choral Methods, Beginning Conducting, and Advanced Choral Conducting.

Jay holds a Doctor of Musical Arts (DMA) in Choral Conducting, and a Masters (MM) in Choral Conducting, both from the University of Colorado Boulder. He also holds a bachelor’s degree (BM) in Choral Music Education from Brigham Young University, Provo.

Jay is a regular coach and clinician for ensembles worldwide and serves on the faculty for many of the Barbershop Harmony Society's educational events, including their flagship educational event, Harmony University, where he teaches about tuning and conducting.

Jay’s areas of research are varied. In one survey, Jay studied the perception and preference of tuning systems in a choral setting. The results of his study suggested that singers preferred the sounds of just intonation more after being instructed on the topic than they did prior to the instruction. Additional research interests include helping introverts succeed in the music classroom, and the ways imposter syndrome affects musicians. Other professional activities include 80+ conference presentations on a variety of topics surrounding conducting skills, tuning techniques, audition procedures, silent rehearsal planning, introverts in ensembles, imposter syndrome, a cappella warm-up techniques, unbiased audition procedures, and vocal production techniques, among many others.

He also is a published arranger and composer. His recent publications include arrangements of The Ukrainian National Anthem, Please Come Home For Christmas, as sung by the Eagles, and Once Upon a Dream from Jekyll and Hyde.

Jay is in demand as a clinician, arranger, judge, coach, presenter, conductor, and adjudicator for festivals, ensembles, honor choirs, conventions, and competitions worldwide. He lives in Vincent, Ohio, with his wife and five daughters.