About Us
A Little Bit About…
The Founders:
The Davis Academy of Music was founded in 2016 by Craig and Emily Davis in Bloomington, Indiana. West Coast natives, Craig and Emily fell in love in New York City while they were studying music at New York University. Moving to Bloomington, Indiana to pursue a Doctorate from the Jacobs School of Music, Craig is now on faculty teaching musicology, music theory, composition and music history. Emily is currently pursuing a Master of Fine Arts in Acting, at Indiana University’s Department of Theatre and Drama.
The Davis Academy of Music :
Combining their love for music, Craig and Emily founded The Davis Academy of Music in 2016 in Bloomington, Indiana. Emily focus on teaching voice, beginning piano, and music theatre, while Craig complements her role by focusing on intermediate and advanced piano, guitar, theory, composition, conducting, drums, strings, and beginning woodwinds.
Together Craig and Emily work to equip the next generation of musicians by challenging students to think critically and express themselves through the arts. The Davis Academy of Music often collaborates with painters, dancers, videographers and other artists to create memorable works that help students grow create new art in a challenging environment.
About our Curriculum:
Here at The Davis Academy of Music, we partner with the Royal Conservatory of Music in London for our piano curriculum, wherein we use RCM materials to tailor a specific program for each student, assessing their skills, and placing them on a level (P through 10). This level system has proved to be very valuable as it provides a structure for students and parents to observe growth. Each student is given a set of books including: sight reading, theory, repertoire, and others, to work from to accomplish weekly goals that culminate at the end of each semester with a studio wide recital (one in December, and one in May). At the end of the academic year, students are eligible to take the RCM test to receive a level certification, then pass on to the next level for the new year. Our program follows the academic year in that students generally spend 1 full year on each "level," before becoming certified.
Composition and Songwriting
Craig has spent the last 20 years studying sound and how it works. He spends most of his free time listening to and writing all kinds of music including operas, song cycles, music for large and small ensemble, music for diverse/available instruments, chorus, and piano. He has recorded three albums for solo piano, and once album of his opera, Letters to a Terrorist, portraying one woman’s oppression under the G.I.A. extremist group in Algeria.
Recently, Craig has been writing a set of pieces titled, Simple Strings, for piano and string ensemble. Craig has been called a post-minimalist because he values simplicity in music, and often can be found in the Holy Minimalism school of thought.
Craig has been teaching composition, theory, and history in the General Studies Department at the Jacobs School of Music since 2019. Recently, he has been teaching a course on American Minimalism and a course on film music. His film music course encouraging his students to look at film differently, noticing how music has a grand impact on the way we watch and interpret films.
Teaching composition and songwriting at The Davis Academy of Music, Craig challenges his students to make meaningful music that aligns with the current, relevant aesthetics.
A full list of Craig’s music can be found at www.CraigMichaelDavis.com.
“I never thought I’d be able to learn a new instrument as an adult, but after a 10 - week course at the Davis Academy of Music, I’ve accomplished one of my life-long goals!”
— Jenny Hartford