Eastman School of Music Announces Erin Johnston as Assistant Professor of Music Theory
Eastman School of Music, of the University of Rochester, is pleased to announce that Erin Johnston has been named assistant professor of music theory, beginning in the 2026-2027 academic year.
“We are delighted to welcome Erin Johnston to Eastman,” shares Kate Sheeran, Joan and Martin Messinger Dean. “Her teaching experience and wealth of knowledge will benefit our students for years to come.”
Johnston comes to Eastman from New York University and the Mannes School of Music, where she has taught music theory and aural skills. She holds degrees in music theory from the CUNY Graduate Center and McGill University’s Schulich School of Music.
“We are thrilled to welcome Professor Johnston to the Music Theory faculty,” says Zachary Bernstein, chair of the Music Theory Department. “With degrees from McGill and CUNY and a deep well of pedagogical expertise, Johnston is ideally positioned to help us reimagine our aural skills offerings.”
“It is a tremendous honor to join the Eastman theory faculty,” says Johnston. “I have long admired Eastman’s extraordinary community of scholars, performers, and teachers, and I am excited to work with such talented students and colleagues. I look forward to contributing to the vibrant musical and intellectual life at this remarkable institution.”
Johnston’s research examines the influence of vocal music on the early symphonies of Gustav Mahler, with broader interests in musical form, music theory and aural skills pedagogy, and open-access principles in undergraduate music education. She has also contributed to the development of the Graduate Center Music Teaching Hub and co-founded the Pedagogy Interest Group at the Graduate Center, which supports dialogue around teaching practices and music pedagogy.
Media only: Jessica Kaufman, Executive Director of Marketing & Communications; (585) 278-4743, jkaufman@esm.rochester.edu
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About Eastman School of Music:
The Eastman School of Music was founded in 1921 by industrialist and philanthropist George Eastman (1854-1932), founder of Eastman Kodak Company. It was the first professional school of the University of Rochester. Mr. Eastman’s dream was that his school would provide a broad education in the liberal arts as well as superb musical training.
More than 900 students are enrolled in the Collegiate Division of the Eastman School of Music—about 500 undergraduates and 400 graduate students. They come from almost every state, and approximately 23 percent are from other countries. They are taught by a faculty comprising more than 170 highly regarded performers, composers, conductors, scholars and educators. They are Pulitzer Prize winners, GRAMMY winners, Emmy winners, Guggenheim fellows, ASCAP Award recipients, published authors, recording artists and acclaimed musicians who have performed in the world’s greatest concert halls. Each year, Eastman’s students, faculty members and guest artists present more than 1,000 concerts to the Rochester community. Additionally, over 1,700 members of the Rochester community, from young children through senior citizens, are enrolled in the Eastman Community Music School.
About the University of Rochester:
The University of Rochester is one of the nation’s leading private research universities, one of only 62-member institutions in the Association of American Universities. Located in Rochester, N.Y., the University gives undergraduates exceptional opportunities for interdisciplinary study and close collaboration with faculty through its unique cluster-based curriculum. Its College, School of Arts and Sciences, and Hajim School of Engineering and Applied Sciences are complemented by the Eastman School of Music, Simon School of Business, Warner School of Education, Laboratory for Laser Energetics, School of Medicine and Dentistry, School of Nursing, Eastman Institute for Oral Health, and the Memorial Art Gallery.