In a career that has spanned more than twenty-five years in the music theory and aural skills classroom, Jena Root specializes in ear training, sight singing, composition, improvisation, and integrated keyboard skills. She was recently an invited faculty presenter at the 2023 Workshops in Music Theory Pedagogy at the University of British Columbia. Prior to her arrival at Brown, she was Professor of Music at Youngstown State University in Ohio. She has also taught at Shenandoah Conservatory, Syracuse University, Yong Siew Toh Conservatory at the National University of Singapore, and St. Olaf College.
Jena Root is the author of Applied Music Fundamentals: Writing, Singing, and Listening (Oxford University Press, 2014). Her work has appeared in the Journal of Music Theory Pedagogy, The Routledge Companion to Aural Skills Pedagogy, and The Routledge Companion to Music Theory Pedagogy. She has presented papers at the Advanced Placement (AP) National Conference, College Music Society National Conference, The Royal Academy of Music in London, Society for Music Theory (SMT) National Conference, Association for Technology in Music Instruction (ATMI), and the Ann Arbor Symposium. She has served as a Reader and Table Leader for the Advanced Placement Music Theory Exam, and as Resources Editor for the Journal of Music Theory Pedagogy. She is also an active composer, specializing in chamber and choral music.
