Features

Feature 1

Keeping the Beat in Cuban Classrooms

Feature 2

Dr. Julie Hill and Stacie Freeman, GCAC Co-Founders, 2024 Sterling Award Winners

Feature 3

Yamaha Educator Feature: Percussionist Julie Hill Brings the World Home

Biography

Dr. Julie Hill is the Co-President, CEO, and Founder of Global Citizen Adventure Corps, a non-profit whose mission is to facilitate global service-learning with a focus on access for rural students from the Mid-South.  Julie has 30 years of experience as a K-12 public school and university music educator and administrator, scholar, performer, lecturer, administrator, and non-profit arts leader/advocate. Previously, she served as Chair of the University of Tennessee at Martin’s Department of Music where she was also a Professor of Percussion since 2005.

As a scholar and performer, Julie has presented hundreds of workshops, concerts, and lectures, advocating for social mobility through music, particularly for Black women and underserved children in Northeastern Brazil. As a member of the award-winning Caixa Trio, she has performed in Peru, Poland, Mexico, Brazil, France, Puerto Rico, South Korea, Taiwan, and across the United States. Julie is fluent in Brazilian Portuguese and has functional proficiency in Spanish.

Julie has received several prestigious awards, including the University of Tennessee at Martin’s Cunningham Outstanding Teacher/Scholar Award, the Hardy Graham Distinguished Professorship Award, the UT Alumni Association Outstanding Teacher Award, and was the inaugural recipient of the University of Tennessee President’s (system-wide) Educate Award. She has been honored with Member Laureate distinction from the Sigma Alpha Iota International Music Fraternity and served as Past President of the International Percussive Arts Society. Additionally,

Julie is the principal percussionist with the Paducah Symphony Orchestra. Julie is the co-editorial director for Percussive Notes, the scholarly journal of the Percussive Arts Society, where she also previously served as president. She co-authored an audition method book titled *All Inclusive Etudes* (Row-Loff Productions) and a collection of solos and duets called *Music for Multi Percussion: A World View* (Alfred Publications). Julie has published numerous works for percussion ensembles with Innovative Percussion and Row-Loff Productions. Her scholarly research has been featured in *Percussive Notes* and the *Garland World Music Encyclopedias*.  During the Covid-19 pandemic, Julie worked with the Tennessee Music Educators Association to create, produce, and host a nightly interactive webinar called “Keeping the Beat by TNMEA.”  The result was 62 Shows hosting music greats such as Los Lobos, Chuck Leavell, Raul Malo and many more with viewers in 45 countries including 2 million engagements on social media which continues to grow.

Julie holds a Doctor of Musical Arts degree from the University of Kentucky, a Master of Music degree in Percussion Performance from Arizona State University, and a Bachelor of Music Education degree from the University of Tennessee at Martin.  She is an artist and educator for Zildjian Cymbals and a performing artist for Yamaha Corporation of America.

Julie holds the Doctor of Musical Arts degree from the University of Kentucky, a Master of Music degree in Percussion Performance from Arizona State University, and a Bachelor of Music Education degree from the University of Tennessee at Martin. 

Julie has traveled to 30 countries and visited all 50 United States along with 51 of America’s 63 National Parks. 

Julie Hill is an Artist and Educator for Zildjian Cymbals, and a Performing Artist for Yamaha Corporation of America. She is an artist and endorsee for Innovative Percussion, REMO, and Grover Pro Percussion. For more information, visit Julie Hill’s website at www.juliehilleducator.com 

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