Dean Jamal Rossi was the Joan and Martin Messinger Dean of the Eastman School of Music from 2014-2024. He earned his Bachelor’s degrees in saxophone performance and music education from Ithaca College, his Master’s of Music from the University of Michigan, and Doctorate of Musical Arts from the Eastman School of Music.
Dean Rossi was faced with his biggest professional decision when he decided to move away from the pathway of becoming a saxophone professor, to a career in music administration, serving as Dean of the School of Music at the University of South Carolina, and Assistant and Associate Dean of the Ithaca College School of Music before coming to Eastman.
It’s fascinating to learn more about Dean Rossi’s musical journey. He shares his advice on making important decisions, especially when facing challenging crossroads in life, what the job of Dean looks like, including the responsibilities that come with such a leadership role, and how he has taken concrete steps to balance and prioritize his family throughout his career.
DEAN ROSSI’S EPISODE RESOURCES:
Current Fav Composer: Brahms, Stravinsky, Gershwin, Porter, anything by Paul McCartney
Current Fav Piece of Classical Music: Barber’s Adagio for Strings, Ravel’s Pavane for a Dead Princess
Fav Movie Soundtrack: Out of Africa by John Berry
Book Rec: Good to Great by Jim Collins
Musician You Admire: Diana Krall
Most Useful App on Phone: Windy App
Resource Rec: Finding mentors in life
Audible Free Trial: https://amzn.to/3VXwMWf
Amazon Music Free Trial: https://amzn.to/3W1Ttsr
CONNECT WITH DEAN ROSSI:
ESM Bio: https://www.esm.rochester.edu/directory/rossi-jamal/
Email: jrossi@esm.rochester.edu
ORCHESTRATING YOUR CAREER
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCaCPf5xynqMHcFuQhCWrNCQ
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/orchestratingyourcareer
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/orchestratingyourcareer
ABOUT THE HOST
Rebekah Carpio received her BMus in clarinet performance from the Eastman School of Music. She was awarded a Fulbright grant to study at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama in their Orchestral Artistry program, which was in collaboration with the London Symphony Orchestra. She then went on to receive her PhD, also from the Guildhall School, researching the impact of education and community work in conservatoire training.
CONNECT WITH REBEKAH
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bitesbybekah
Websites: https://www.bitesbybekah.com
TIMECODES
00:00 Podcast Intro
1:25 Episode Intro
2:59 Start of Interview
5:53 Dean Rossi Musical Beginnings
10:53 Pursuing music professionally
12:40 Undergrad at Ithaca - Doing a Double Major
17:07 Doing a Doctorate
19:01 After Graduating from Michigan + Teaching
23:01 After Doctorate Degree + 1st job
25:37 Moving to South Dakota
27:07 Moving to Music Administration at South Dakota
29:29 Assistant Dean at Ithaca
32:27 The Transition into Music Admin
34:29 Turning Down ESM + Navigating Difficult Decisions
41:08 Prioritizing Family and Finding Balance
44:31 Dean at ESM - What’s the Job?
49:04 Hiring Faculty
53:26 Highlights of the Job
57:40 Challenges of the Job
1:02:57 AI and the future of music
1:05:35 Looking Forward to Retirement
1:07:48 Advice for Going into Music Admin
1:09:20 Rapid Fire Q&A
1:13:20 Final piece of advice and connecting with Dean Rossi
1:15:11 Episode Outro
1:16:16 Dean’s Rossi Performance
MUSIC IN THIS EPISODE
Theme Music composed by Ben Roundtree: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f0z6dZJL6GM
PHOTO CREDIT
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