Moon Taxi, a band of Belmont alumni, recently signed a label deal with RCA Records. The quintet was founded in 2006 at Belmont, where they had originally practiced together in the residence halls. The members include vocalist/guitarist Trevor Terndrup (’07), bassist Tommy Putnam (’06), lead guitarist Spencer Thomson (’06), percussionist Tyler Ritter (’08) and keyboardist Wes Bailey (’09).
The band has four released albums, including “Daybreaker” (2015), which debuted at No. 2 on the Billboard New Artist chart. Their latest single “Two High” has earned nearly 50 million streams on Spotify.
The group’s music has also been featured in commercials for BMW, MLB, HBO Sports, NFL and McDonald’s, and they have performed live at such events as Coachella, Governor’s Ball, Bonnaroo, Lollapalooza, Firefly and more.
Operation Song consists of a group of Nashville songwriters who work with veterans in songwriting and recording. They came to campus on Friday to meet with three student veterans, two external veterans and a student’s Gold Star father.
The day included a light breakfast, a few songwriting sessions, studio recording sessions at Belmont’s 34 Music Square East location and a final performance of their original songs. Each of the participants left with a file of their songs, and final recordings will be put on CDs for all of the participants.
Operation Song’s mission is to empower veterans and active duty military to tell their stories through the process of songwriting. They hope to establish themselves as a unique and viable treatment option, using creative and integrative therapies to help individuals recover from the stress of war and improve the quality of their lives.
Tyler Hadden, a mathematics major and Belmont senior, passed the Actuarial Exam P/1 this summer. This is the first in a series of nine exams which are required for full status as an actuary. The exam has a pass rate of less than 50 percent.
Actuaries work in the insurance and financial sectors and specialize in analyzing the financial impact of risk and uncertainty.
Director of Development and Industry Relations Sarah Cates was recently asked to serve on the founding board of the Purpose Awards, an expansion of last year’s Streamy Awards Social Good category that honors creators, influencers, companies, brands, nonprofits and NGOs who use online video and social media to amplify their message, foster engagement and participation and make a greater, more meaningful impact.
The advisory board is a group of leaders doing meaningful work in the social good space who recognize the power of a creator class that has a unique and remarkable sense of obligation to social causes.
Belmont’s School of Occupational Therapy partnered with Vanderbilt’s Summer Academy for GoBabyGo, an interdisciplinary collaboration and nationwide program with local chapters that work to provide modified toy cars to young children living with physical, intellectual and/or developmental disabilities like Down syndrome, spina bifida or cerebral palsy. Serving as much more than toys, these cars provide an opportunity for children to move and explore their surroundings in news ways. GoBabyGo fills a significant need by providing low-cost, adaptive, ride-on toys for children.
In the Music City chapter of GoBabyGo, occupational therapy (OT) students from Belmont University and high school students attending Vanderbilt’s Summer Academy worked together to modify toy cars for eight children with diagnoses including spina bifida, cerebral palsy and traumatic brain injuries. Each OT student led and worked alongside a small group of high schoolers to assess the specific postural needs of each child and make recommendations for adaptations to the car. Most of the children have physical limitations (unable to sit up without support, limited arm movement/strength, low vision, etc.) that make it difficult to operate the car as it is manufactured. Extra support and modifications like 5-point harnesses, side-railings, bilateral head supports, built up steering wheels and moving the ignition to an accessible location allow for independent use.
Once recommendations were suggested, students made the modifications during their 3-week program alongside engineers at Vanderbilt. At the end of the program, all the parties (the children and their families, OT students, high school students and instructors) presented the modified cars to the children at Belmont University. It was a memorable day filled with smiles, tears and lots of pictures.
River is pictured in his new car, complete with his favorite character–Mickey Mouse!
River, a participant who has been diagnosed with cerebral palsy, required a 5-point harness across his chest to support him while sitting up, a built-up steering wheel to assist with reach, a constructed backboard and the rewriting of the ignition from a gas pedal to an easily accessible button. In time and with practice, River will be able to drive himself around his house and neighborhood, exploring and learning about his surroundings and making friends independently–all opportunities he’s never had before.
President of Belmont’s Occupational Therapy Student Association and OT student Cara Miller said the opportunity to work with River and his family was an incredible experience. “As an occupational therapy student, I’m very interested in working with individuals needing adaptive equipment like wheelchairs, prosthetics or other mobility devices to promote their ability to do the things that are important to them,” she said. “I was so impressed with how quickly the high school students were able to notice things like River leaning to one side and make suggestions that would enhance his ability to sit upright. They were so intuitive and sensitive to all the children and their families that were a part of this program. This opportunity only reinforced my desire to work within this field of occupational therapy, and I can’t wait for the next GoBabyGo build in October.”
Troy Tomlinson and Josh Van Valkenburg speak to students at Columbia Studio A at Belmont University in Nashville, Tenn. September 13, 2017.
Sony/ATV Music Publishing Nashville President/CEO Troy Tomlinson and Senior Vice President of A&R Josh Van Valkenburg spoke to a packed house of Curb College students in Columbia Studio A on Wednesday, Sept. 13. As part of the seminar conversation, the two announced the fourth annual Belmont Sony/ATV Music Publishing All Access Program that allows any Curb College student to submit their music to the company for review by their creative team. Van Valkenburg assured the students that they watch every video submitted by students. The Sony/ATV team will select a group of about six students they want to hear perform live later in the semester. The program has given the opportunity to several students to sign a music publishing deal with the company in previous years.
In addition to his role as a music executive, Tomlinson is also a member of the Belmont University Board of Trustees.
Joy Jordan-Lake, adjunct professor in Belmont’s Honors program, recently published her sixth novel, ‘A Tangled Mercy,’ set to release in November.
The novel centers around two characters living in Charleston, South Carolina nearly 200 years apart. An enslaved nineteenth-century blacksmith must grapple with the risk of leading the Denmark Vesey slave revolt of 1822 while a struggling graduate student conducts research on the revolt in 2015.
Jordan earned her PhD at Tufts University in Charleston where she specialized in the role of race and religion in nineteenth-century American fiction. Her inspiration for the novel stemmed from her research on the Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church, the site of the Denmark Vesey slave revolt and a racially-charged shooting nearly 200 years later.
‘A Tangled Mercy’ will release on Nov. 1 in hardcover, paperback and audiobook, but Amazon will launch an ebook early on Oct. 1.
David Herrera, assistant professor of music business, has written a section of the upcoming book ‘Hacking Music: The Music Business Model Canvas’ by John Pisciotta of Jetpack Artist Ventures.
Along with Herrera, the book will include sections from Rodney Jerkins, producer for Lady Gaga and Rhianna, Glenn Peoples, former writer for Billboard, Jeff McMahon, long-time accompanist for Tim McGraw and Lee Parsons, Ditto Music CEO and co-founder.
Herrera discusses the psychology behind relationships between artists and fans through social media. He will join the author and a few contributors at the Music Entrepreneur Conference at Harvard University when the book launches on Nov. 4.
Belmont’s College of Liberal Arts and Social Sciences has been busy preparing for the 16th annual Humanities Symposium set to take place Sept. 18-Sept. 25. “Making It Home” will be the central theme of the Symposium, with events and speakers that will explore how “we make it home” from an interdisciplinary perspective. There will be 30 speakers from several disciplines of study to touch upon what home means in the context of social work, ecocriticism, philosophy and migrant and refugee studies, among others.
The symposium will start with the Monteverde Plenary Address given by Dr. Regine Schwarzmeier of the foreign Languages department. She will introduce the theme of the week and explore the many facets of “home” on relation to the refugee situation in Europe today.
The symposium will also feature a few key speakers, including Dr. Jere Surber, professor and chair of philosophy at the University of Denver; Dr. Melissa Snarr, associate dean for academic affairs and associate professor of ethics and society at Vanderbilt Divinity School; Dr. Robert Barsky from the French and Italian Departments at Vanderbilt University; and Dr. Scott Sanders, professor emeritus from Indiana University.
Dr. Natalia Pelaz, professor in the Foreign Languages Department, who has been coordinating this event, discussed the importance of studying the evolution and fluidity of the concept of “home.”
“In an increasing mobile human experience, the notion of home has become a flexible, fluid concept. In arguing about its meanings and implications, we must problematize discourses of inclusivity and exclusivity; belonging and displacement; individual and collective identity formation; localism and globalism. ”
The symposium will conclude on Sept. 25 with a reflection and discussion of the themes from the events led by the Symposium Committee.
For more information on the symposium and this year’s events, click here or look for event listings on the campus calendar.
Belmont School of Music alumnus Dr. Timothy Sharp was honored with the 2017 Encore Award last night, Tuesday, Sept. 12, on Belmont’s campus.
Sharp is currently the Executive Director of the American Choral Directors Association (ACDA) and the Artistic Director of the Tulsa Ontario Chorus. Prior to his leadership of ACDA, Sharp served as the Dean of Fine Arts at Rhodes College in Memphis and previously served as Belmont’s Director of Choral Activities. Additionally, he served as a Belmont faculty member and conducted Belmont Chorale and Oratorio from 1997-2000.
Sharp’s research and writing focuses on conducting and score analysis, and his interests vary from regional music history to acoustics and aesthetics. He has experience conducting university, community, church and children’s choirs, and he continues to serve as a choral conductor and clinician throughout the United States and internationally.
After the award presentation, Belmont Chorale performed under Sharp’s arrangement of “When I Can Read My Title Clear” and “What a Wondrous Love is This,” co-written with Wes Ramsay, under his direction. The program was an autobiographical description of his journey as a musician.
The Encore Award was created in 2008 to honor a School of Music alumnus for achievement in the field of classical music. Previous honorees include Clifton Forbis (2008), Daniel Weeks (2009), Drs. Daniel and Sharon Lawhon (2010), Maestra Teresa Cheung (2011), Dr. Alfredo Colman (2012), Travis Cottrell (2013), Greg Walter (2014) and Tina Milhorn Stallard (2015). The award presentation and performance are free and open to the public.
David Herrera, assistant professor of music business, has written a section of the upcoming book ‘Hacking Music: The Music Business Model Canvas’ by John Pisciotta of Jetpack Artist Ventures.
Belmont’s 
After the award presentation, Belmont Chorale performed under Sharp’s arrangement of “When I Can Read My Title Clear” and “What a Wondrous Love is This,” co-written with Wes Ramsay, under his direction. The program was an autobiographical description of his journey as a musician.