From kinesthetic music education to ergonomics to teaching for diverse learning needs, harpist Jennifer R. Ellis is dedicated to innovative music pedagogy.

She has taught a combination of harp, eurhythmics, and music theory privately as well as at institutions including MPULSE, Harps Etc., Avon School of Music, Oberlin Secondary Instrument Program, Cleveland School for the Arts, and Young Artist’s Harp Seminar. She was a 2014 University of Michigan Engaged Pedagogy Initiative Fellow, 2013 Rackham Centennial Fellow, and 2012 Alice Chalifoux Prize awardee. She trained in eurhythmics pedagogy at CIM and founded a eurhythmics program for University of Michigan music students that grew to span five levels of study. Her commitment to teaching has led her to help train other teachers through teaching eurhythmics pedagogy and leading practice teaching facilitations for University of Michigan Graduate Student Instructors (GSIs) and future music educators as a guest presenter for student NafME chapters. She served as the harp department assistant at both Oberlin and CIM and has published in The American Harp Journal. In addition to teaching harp and eurhythmics, she works to educate composers on writing for harp. She was a University of Michigan Engaged Pedagogy Initiative fellow where she trained in best practices for teaching undergraduates in community engagement. After studying at Oberlin and CIM, she completed her D.M.A. at the University of Michigan in Harp Performance with a Certificate of Musicology and CRLT Graduate Teacher Certificate. She is an in-demand clinician, giving a dozen university workshops in the 2015-2016 season.