Angela Ammerman

Angela Ammerman, referred to by the Washington Post as a “music teacher prodigy,” earned degrees in Music Education from the University of Cincinnati: College-Conservatory of Music, Boston University, and her Ph.D. from George Mason University. Dr. Ammerman has dedicated much of her musical career to providing access to quality music education for underserved populations of children including the beginnings of a strings program at a children’s home in Chiang Mai, Thailand. Dr. Ammerman is in high demand as a clinician and guest conductor and has conducted All State Orchestras in Utah, California, Georgia, Tennessee and more.

Dr. Ammerman is the Director of Online Graduate Studies in Music Education and Teaching Associate Professor at the University of Tennessee, where she runs the Tennessee Master’s of Music in Music Education for Practicing Educators, a fully online, asynchronous, highly relevant master’s program designed at every step with the current needs and preferences of working music teachers. Ammerman is also the Director and Master Teacher of the UTK String Project. “Dr. A” teaches courses such as the Habits of the Master Music Educator, Rehearsing and Building Your Orchestra Program, and Introduction to Music Education.

Angela has written chapters for multiple publications and her research can be found in multiple journals including the String Research Journal, the American String Teachers Journal, and NAfME’s Teaching Music. Ammerman particularly enjoys presenting practitioner-oriented research, and has shared her findings at countless conferences including the International Society for Philosophy of Music Education Pre-Conference in Frankfurt am Main, Germany, the Midwest International Band and Orchestra Conference, the Florida Music Education Association Conference, and more. 

Ammerman is the author of The Music Teacher’s Guide series, published by GIA Music and Meredith Music. Her work is grounded in a deep appreciation for educators and a commitment to providing practical, accessible resources that support music educators in their daily teaching. She is honored to collaborate with a wide range of outstanding educators from across the country on each volume in the series and to serve music educators worldwide.

Titles in the series include:

• The Music Teacher’s Guide to Engaging English Language Learners
• The Music Teacher’s Guide to Recruitment and Retention
• The Music Teacher’s Guide to General Music
• The Music Teacher’s Guide to Classroom Management

Known for a passion for recruiting future music educators, Ammerman has given countless presentations, in-services, and webinars to encourage classroom teachers to recruit for the profession all across the globe. Ammerman has been honored as a Yamaha 40 Under 40 Music Educator of the Year as well as the University of Tennessee at Martin’s Outstanding Advisor of the Year. Recognized by Fairfax County Public Schools as the Top Teacher in 2017 and the Virginia House of Delegates in 2016, Angela diligently works to pass along these teaching and mentorship qualities to her Music Education students. In 2016, Dr. Ammerman was named the Virginia Orchestra Director of the Year, a finalist for the Fairfax County Public Schools’ Teacher of the Year, and Washington Post Teacher of the Year.

Ammerman grew up listening to her mother teach piano lessons in her own home and attributes much of her own passion for teaching to her musical mother and her work ethic to her dad. Currently living in Maryville, Tennessee with her incredibly supportive husband and son, Ammerman is also the immediate Past-President of the Virginia String Teachers Association and is known for an emphasis on play-based learning, humor, a unique style, and for the creation of her Future Music Educators Camp as well as her viral Music Education Instagram Page: @musicteachersguide. Dr. Ammerman is in awe of the resilience and dedication of school music educators across the United States and is honored to have the opportunity to serve this community.