As the Frost School of Music starts the 2024-25 academic year, here’s a look at the accomplished new faculty who have joined the instruction roster.
Dr. Craig McKenzie - Associate Director of Bands and Director of Athletic Bands; Associate Professor, Instrumental Performance
McKenzie is the new leader of the beloved Frost Band of the Hour (FBOTH) marching band, replacing longtime former director Jay Rees, who retired this summer. McKenzie knows both institutions well. He received his D.M.A. from the Frost School, working with Rees as a teaching assistant for the FBOTH and studying instrumental conducting with Professor and Chair of Instrumental Performance Robert M. Carnochan– a mentor for whom McKenzie will also oversee conducting and teaching for Frost Symphonic Winds. McKenzie is a lifelong marching band devotee and dynamic leader with over 20 years of university, high school, and middle school teaching experience. He comes to Miami after five years leading the Athletic Band Program at San José State University (where he received his master’s degree), revitalizing programming and significantly boosting the band’s size and quality. McKenzie has a Bachelor’s in Music Education from the University of Colorado at Boulder - where he was a drum major under Professor Carnochan and then led the marching band program there.
Dr. Sheldon McLean – Assistant Director of Bands and Associate Director of Athletic Bands; Senior Lecturer, Instrumental Performance
Also joining the leadership of the FBOTH is Dr. McLean, a Fort Lauderdale native and fellow lifelong marching band devotee and D.M.A. graduate of the Frost School. While earning his bachelor’s degree from Florida A&M University (FAMU), McLean was a drum major in the legendary Marching 100, one of the most famous marching bands in the world, where he played for Prince in the 2007 Super Bowl halftime show and for President Obama’s 2008 inauguration. McLean comes to the Frost School from Dillard Center for the Arts in Broward, an outstanding arts magnet school with a nationally regarded jazz program, where he was artistic director, magnet program coordinator and director of bands, taking the band to perform across the country and at New York’s Carnegie Hall. Dr. McLean, who holds a masters in music education from Florida State University, is an active and respected force in multiple marching band and music education organizations.
Dr. Matthew Brady – Assistant Professor, Choral Studies
The newest addition to the Frost School’s acclaimed choral studies program, Brady is a passionate, committed choral professional with extensive experience as a conductor, clinician, professional singer, and educator at the collegiate, middle, and high school levels. He was director of Choral Studies at the New Mexico Military Institute and at Cal State San Bernadino and has taught in Michigan public schools. He has an active professional choral singing career, and has sung with the Philadelphia Symphonic Chorus, the New York Philharmonic, and the Dallas Choral Festival. The artistic director of Collegium Musicum of Miami, Brady is in demand as a professional conductor and clinician and has been guest conductor of the New Mexico All-State Choir and the Broward County Honor Choir. A protégé of GRAMMY winner Simon Halsey at the University of Birmingham in the UK, Brady will teach choral ensembles, choral literature, and conducting courses.
Susie Green - Assistant Professor, Music Engineering
Green brings a unique mix of cutting-edge technical expertise and artistic understanding to a field that demands both. A composer, sound designer, audio/visual artist, and vocalist, she has been a singer/songwriter and composer for Gloria and Emilio Estefan’s Crescent Moon Studios, the Miami recording studio that has been home to numerous hit artists, and has done advanced post-graduate research at the University of Huddersfield, UK, investigating concepts ranging from the connection between movement and sound to quantum mechanics. Green has presented innovative installations, compositions, films, and audio-visual performances worldwide at prestigious festivals and conferences, from Harvard University to Miami Art Week to Seoul. She is a graduate of Miami’s New World School of the Arts and Miami Dade College, and is currently a Ph.D. candidate in Human-Computer Interaction and Human-Centered Design at Virginia Tech, renowned for its cutting-edge programs in technology and artistry. Green is dedicated to pushing the boundaries of music technology and fostering interdisciplinary collaborations that bridge art, science, and engineering.
Nicole Bartholomew - full-time lecturer, Musicology
Bartholomew is both a scholar and performer, with a bachelor of music in vocal performance and a master’s degree in ethnomusicology. She is currently working on her doctorate in musicology at Florida State University in Tallahassee. She is also an accomplished vocalist who has sung at local venues, including the Moss Cultural Arts Center and Arts Bonita, and performs regularly at Coral Gables Congregational United Church of Christ, an institution that is the subject of her dissertation. As a musicologist, Bartholomew is a champion of diverse musical and cultural traditions, and is committed to inspiring her students with a sense of wonder and curiosity, while also nurturing values of empathy and respect.
