Title: Instrumental Music Teacher
Company: Performing Institute of Minnesota Arts High School
Location: Eden Prairie, Minnesota, United States
Austin PeKarna, instrumental music teacher at Performing Institute of Minnesota Arts High School, has been recognized by Marquis Who’s Who Top Educators for dedication, achievements, and leadership in music education.
With over a decade of experience in the field of music and audio production, Mr. Adams has excelled as an instrumental music teacher at the Performing Institute of Minnesota Arts High School since 2019. In this role, he is dedicated to nurturing the musical talents of his students and fostering a deep appreciation for the arts. In addition to his teaching career, he arranges music and has been a Musical Instrument Digital Interface (MIDI) programmer at MusicPainter LLC since 2015. His career also includes significant roles in the audio and gaming industries. In 2015, he served as an engineering documentation contractor at Stratasys Inc. and as an assistant engineer and session bassist at Droptone Studios. Additionally, he was the lead audio director and sound designer at Omicron Game Studio in 2015, where he was responsible for creating immersive audio experiences for gaming applications. Before embarking on his career, he set a solid foundation, earning a bachelor’s degree in music from Berklee College of Music in 2018.
Mr. Adams has received several prestigious awards and recognitions throughout his career. In 2022, he was honored with an Outstanding Performance Award from the Minnesota Music Educators Association. He has also received the Outstanding Performance Award from the Association for Popular Music Education (APME) for two consecutive years, highlighting his consistent contributions to the field. He was also awarded a scholarship from the Berklee College of Music. He is also an active member of the Minnesota Music Educators Association, the National Association for Music Education, and APME, reflecting his commitment to professional development and community engagement in music education.
One standout moment in Mr. PeKarna’s career was having his high school students perform at Prince’s Paisley Park in Minnesota, which brought him immense pride. Looking ahead, he aspires to establish a sustainable music program at the Performing Institute of Minnesota. He also aims to develop a contemporary music program at the institute that serves as a model for expanding high school music education and offers professional development and training opportunities for fellow educators. He considers himself a prime example of the belief that teaching is a crucial step on the path to mastering any discipline, especially an oral tradition like music. He emphasizes, “You do not know what you know or how well you know it until you try to teach it yourself.”
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Materia Collective – Austin PrKarna
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