EDUCATION
2022: PhD, Music Education, New York University. Dissertation: Learning something deep: Teaching to learn and learning to teach hip-hop in New York City.
2014: M.Mus., Music Technology, New York University, NY. Thesis: Designing the Drum Loop, a constructivist rhythm interface for beginners.
1997: B.A., Amherst College, MA.
PUBLICATIONS
Books
2021: Kuhn, W. & Hein, E. Electronic music school: A contemporary approach to teaching musical creativity. Oxford University Press.
Refereed Journal Articles
2024: Cheng, L., Moir, Z., Bell, A. P., Humberstone, J., & Hein, E. Digital musicianship in post-pandemic popular music education. International Journal of Music Education, 0(0), 1-12.
2022: Hein, E. The politics is in the drums: Producing and composing in the music classroom. Journal of Popular Music Education, 6(3), 1-18.
2020: Hein, E. Chris Thile, Kendrick Lamar, and the problem of the white rap cover. Visions of Research in Music Education, 35(1).
2018: Hein, E. Reharmonization and recontextualization in Kanye West’s ‘Famous.’ Journal of Popular Music Education, 2(1–2), 101–114.
2015: Bell, A.P., Hein, E., & Ratcliffe, J. Beyond skeuomorphism: The evolution of music production software user interface metaphors. Journal on the Art of Record Production, 9.
Invited and Refereed Book Chapters in Edited Volumes
2024: Hein, E. & Blackman, T. Building hip-hop educators. In L. Eusterbrock, C. Kattenbeck & O. Kautny (Eds.), It’s how you flip it: Multiple perspectives on Hip-Hop and music education (pp. 223-242). Transcript.
2022: Hein, E. & Abrahams, F. Considering critical race theory. In F. Abrahams (Ed.), A music pedagogy for our time: Conversation and critique (pp. 61–92). GIA Publications.
2020: Hein, E. Shared sample project. In A. P. Bell, Ed., The music production cookbook: Ready-made recipes for the classroom. Oxford University Press.
2020: Hein, E. The Disquiet Junto as an online community of practice. In Waldron, J., Horsley, S. & Veblen, K., Eds., The Oxford handbook of social media and music learning. Oxford University Press.
2019: Hein, E. & Srinivasan, S. The Groove Pizza: A study in music and HCI. In K. Wilkie, T. Mudd, A. McPherson & M. Wandeley, Eds., New directions in music and human-computer interaction. Springer.
2017: Hein, E. Playing (in) the digital studio. In A. Ruthmann & R. Mantie, Eds., The Oxford handbook of technology and music education. Oxford University Press.
2014: Hein, E. Music games in education. In K. Schrier, Ed., Learning and education games volume 1: Curricular and design considerations. ETC Press.
Reviews
2021: Hein, E. Ableton Live 11. Journal of the American Musicological Society, 74(1), 214–225.
Music Education Resources
2023: Fortune, H. & Hein, E. 5 Pop Grooves for Orff Ensemble. F-flat Books.
Other Recent Publications
2024: Monthly column for MusicRadar, analyzing well-known songs.
2022: Hein, E. Remixing David Bowie’s “Starman.” California Music Education Association Magazine, Winter 2022, 32–33.
CONFERENCES, COLLOQUIUM TALKS, AND PANELS
2024: Rethinking the teaching of aural and theory skills. Educative Evidence-Based Practice in Music Education Symposium, Sydney, Australia.
2024: Inside the Song Factory: Songwriting in a Liberal Arts Music Program. Association for Popular Music Education Conference, Los Angeles, CA.
2023: Hip-Hop Creativities in Music Education [invited keynote]. A Day of Technology in Music Education Conference, Adelaide, Australia.
2022: An Art Class for Music. New Jersey Music Education Association Conference, Atlantic City, NJ.
2021: Beatmaking for music educators. Music Teachers National Association Conference, online.
2020: Learning music in and through hip-hop [invited keynote]. A Day of Technology in Music Education Conference, Sydney Conservatory.
2019: Hip-hop pedagogy for a post-performance age. Association for Popular Music Education Conference, New York University.
2019: An art class for music: Production in the general music classroom. Connecticut Music Education Association Conference, University of Connecticut.
2018: The Vocoder, Auto-Tune, pitch standardization, and vocal virtuosity. Graduate Students in Music Conference, City University of New York.
2017: Re-inventing music education through technology. Ableton Loop Conference, Berlin, Germany.
2017: Ableton Live for non-electronic music educators. IMPACT Conference, New York University.
2017: Designing accessible music interfaces. Department of Music Colloquium, Brown University.
2017: Kanye West, sampling, and intertextuality. OMEA/TI:ME, Cleveland, OH.
2016: Designing experiences for music learning and expression. ATMI/CMS National Conference, Santa Fe, NM.
2016: Why hip-hop is interesting. International Society for Music Information Retrieval Conference, Columbia University.
2016: The Song Machine: Pop songwriting in the digital audio workstation. IMPACT: Creative Collaboration in Technology and the Arts, New York University.
2016: Designing the Groove Pizza. SEMPRE – Researching Music, Education, Technology, University of London.
2015: Networked creativity and musical shares. IMPACT: Creative Collaboration in Technology and the Arts, New York University.
AWARDS, HONORS AND RESIDENCIES
2020: Teaching artist-in-residency at the Sydney Conservatory
2014: Special recognition for innovative contributions to music education, graduate music education program, Steinhardt School, New York University
TEACHING EXPERIENCE
2014-present: Steinhardt School, New York University
Music Education Technology Practicum (undergraduate). Designed, sole taught.
Popular Music Practicum (graduate, undergraduate). Co-designed, co-taught.
Technology Trends in Music Education (graduate). Self-taught.
2019-present: Eugene Lang College, The New School
Musical Borrowing from Plainchant to Sampling (undergraduate). Designed, sole taught.
Contemporary Music Theories (undergraduate). Co-designed, sole taught.
The Song Factory (undergraduate). Designed, sole taught.
2014-2022: John J. Cali School of Music, Montclair State University
Cultural Significance of Rap and Rock (undergraduate, online). Designed, sole taught.
Electronic Music Ensemble (undergraduate). Designed, sole taught.
Advanced Electronic Music Composition (graduate, undergraduate). Designed, sole taught.
Introduction to Music Technology (undergraduate). Designed, sole taught.
2023-present: Western Illinois University
Introduction to Music Technology (graduate). Designed, sole taught.
2022: Ableton
Developed Theory Hacks, a series of classroom projects and resources for teaching music theory and composition using Ableton Live.
2019: Techrow Fund Producer Club
Co-designed and led afterschool music production classes for middle school students in New York City public schools.
2017-2023: Soundfly
Unlocking the Emotional Power of Chords
2005-present: Professional development and education consulting
Designed and led professional development sessions for school districts in Illinois, New York, New Jersey, Georgia, Pennsylvania, Virginia and Georgia.
RESEARCH EXPERIENCE
2013-present: Design Lead, NYU Steinhardt Music Experience Design Lab. Design and develop innovative music education resources, including software, hardware, web-based courses and interactive experiences, and instructional videos. The Groove Pizza, a playful online rhythm sequencing app, has had over one million cumulative sessions, with 45,000 returning monthly users.
SERVICE TO PROFESSION
2021-present: Conducted peer review for Oxford University Press, The Journal of the American Musicological Society, Research Studies in Music Education, Journal of Music, Technology & Education, and Popular Music Education.
MEDIA APPEARANCES
2023: Walker, C. (Host). (April 26, 2023). Artificial Intelligence in Music. Daybreak South, CBC Radio Kelowna.
2021: Frankel, J. (Producer). (May 6, 2021). Profiles in Teaching with Technology Podcast.
2020: Neely, A. (Producer). (September 22, 2020). “Rap cover songs don’t exist (and here’s why).”
2019: Music Tech Fest (Producer). (May 1, 2019). MTF Podcast.
2018: Funk, B. (Producer). (April 4, 2018). AfroDJMac Music Production Podcast.
2017: Holder, N. (Producer). (November 19, 2017). Backstage Spotlight.
2017: Interviewed by Richardson, J. (April 4, 2017). Ethan Hein: “The copyright situation isn’t going to improve until the hip-hop generation gets into positions of legislative authority.” Cyclic Defrost.
2016: Interviewed by McKinney, K. (December 26, 2016). “The music theory principle that unifies 2016’s radio hits.” Vox.
2016: Interviewed by Avins, J. (2016). “Here are the best playlists for your summer road trip. They’re called albums.” Quartz.
2016: Quoted in Brazier, L. (2016, July). “The Disquiet Junto.” The Wire, 17.
2015: Interviewed by Dan Riendeau on At Night, CHQR 770 AM, Calgary, Canada.
2012: Featured guest on the Colin McEnroe Show, July 17 2012, Connecticut Public Radio.
SELECTED MUSICAL WORKS AND PERFORMANCES
2024: Beachcomber’s Buffet. Grateful Dead remixes included on several broadcasts on WFMU.
2021: A Duck in a Tree. Composition “Ahhh” included in a broadcast on Resonance FM, London, UK.
2019: Shinobi Cuts. Contributed to an album-length remix chain of “Different Use” by MDK. Featured in Bandcamp’s Best Electronic Music of February 2019.
2018: At Water’s Edge. Composition “Duke Ellington in Twin Peaks” included in a broadcast on Radio Spiral.
2017: Strange Voices. Composition “Auto-Tune Salad” included in a broadcast on Radio Vassiviére, Royère-de-Vassivière, France.
2017: A Duck In A Tree. Composition “A Hard Day’s Note” included in a broadcast on Resonance FM, London, UK.
2016: CogMap. Created a dynamic and interactive score for a virtual reality experience of place cells within the human hippocampus.
2015: Disquiet Junto. Twenty recordings of my prose score “Divergence/Convergence” were created and posted online by musicians in the United States, the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, Switzerland, Canada, Japan, Australia, and Argentina.
2015: NYU Laptop Orchestra—Dafna Naphtali, Director. Premiered “Divergence/Convergence” for fifteen laptops.
PROFESSIONAL MEMBERSHIPS
International Society for Music Education
Association for Technology in Music Instruction
The New York Academy of Sciences
Society for Education, Music, and Psychology Research
APPENDIX
My blog posts have been included in course syllabi at Williams College, Berklee College of Music, the Sydney Conservatory, the University of Auckland, Kingston University, UC Santa Barbara, Drew University, the City University of New York, Stony Brook University, California State University – East Bay, VanderCook College of Music, Wittenberg University, Agnes Scott College, Guilford Technical Community College, University of Rochester, Columbus State University, Rowan University, Mount Saint Mary College, Shiloh University, Southern New Hampshire University, and North Carolina State University.