A Community Music School for Southern Tennessee
Committed to providing quality music lessons for Giles County and surrounding areas.
The University of Tennessee Southern Music Academy provides lessons to young and old, to beginners, and advanced students, to all who love music.
Lessons offered in Voice and Piano.
Who We Are
The University of Tennessee Southern Music Academy provides lessons to young and old, to beginners and advanced students, to all who love music!
What We Do
Lessons offered in voice and piano.
Lessons and Classes
The University of Tennessee Southern Music Academy offers private music lessons in voice and piano. Music lessons are one-on-one, and are based around the individual’s own level, and are the best way to advance your musical skills!
Lessons are offered weekly throughout the year, in 30-minute, 45-minute or 60-minute lessons. Schedules are flexible, and may be started at any time. Tuition will be prorated depending on the starting date.
Music Lesson Tuition
Faculty Instructors
30 Minute Lessons: $450.00/15 weeks (Fall and Spring), $330.00/11 weeks (Summer)
45 Minute Lessons: $675.00/15 weeks (Fall and Spring), $450.00/11 weeks (Summer)
60 Minute Lessons: $900.00/15 weeks (Fall and Spring), $660.00/11 weeks (Summer)
College Graduate Instructors (if applicable)
30 Minute Lessons: $375.00/15 weeks (Fall and Spring), $275.00/11 weeks (Summer)
45 Minute Lessons: $562.50/15 weeks (Fall and Spring), $412.50/11 weeks (Summer)
60 Minute Lessons: $750.00/15 weeks (Fall and Spring), $550.00/11 weeks (Summer)
Student Instructors (if applicable)
30 Minute Lessons: $300.00/15 weeks (Fall and Spring), $220.00/11 weeks (Summer)
45 Minute Lessons: $450.00/15 weeks (Fall and Spring), $330.00/11 weeks (Summer)
60 Minute Lessons: $600.00/15 weeks (Fall and Spring), $440.00/11 weeks (Summer)
Student Policies
Student Policies
Excused Absence for Individual Lessons
The student or parent must provide notice 24 hours in advance in order for a lesson to be excused. Per term, two excused absences are allowed. Both the instructor and student are expected to find a mutually agreed upon time for make-up lessons. Credits for excused absences will only be given after good faith attempts have been made at scheduling make-up lessons.
Unexcused Absence for Individual Lessons
Unexcused absences are absences for which a student or parent has not given 24-hour notice, or for any additional absence beyond the two allowed excused absences. Instructors are not required to provide make-up lessons for unexcused absences, and credits will not be given. If a student misses more than three consecutive lessons, the instructor has the right to drop the student and give their lesson spot to another student. Paid tuition for dropped students due to unexcused absences is non-refundable.
Absence Policy for Group Classes
Instructors are not required to offer make-up classes for any missed group classes.
Make-Up Lessons Due to Instructor Absence
Instructors will make every effort to arrange make-up lessons canceled due to instructor absences. In the even that these make-up lessons cannot be scheduled, a prorated credit will be applied to the student’s account.
Inclement Weather
Notification for closure due to weather or other emergency situations follows The University of Tennessee Southern policy. In case of inclement weather, please use your own judgment and contact your private instructor.
If an individual teacher cancels, they will contact students directly. Please do not assume that the Academy is closed based on public or private school cancellations. When inclement weather forces the closing of school, make-up lessons will be offered. Credits will not be given.
Tardy Policy
Instructors are expected to wait 15 minutes after the scheduled start of a private lesson for a student to arrive. Students arriving more than 15 minutes late are considered unexcused absences and are responsible for the payment of that lesson. Instructors are not required to make up missed lessons due to student tardiness.
Instrument Loan and Rentals
The Academy is able to loan string instruments to students (guitar and violin). Deposits are required for rentals, determined at the time of rental. Once the student commits to regular lessons, it is strongly recommended to purchase their own instrument.
Photo, Video, and Recording Release
The University of Tennessee Southern Music Academy students are occasionally photographed or recorded during instructional and promotional activities. These photos and recordings may be used in the Academy’s publications, promotional materials, and social media profiles. By enrolling your child, you agree to this policy. However, if you do not want your child’s photos or recordings to be released, please submit a written note along with your completed registration.
COVID – 19
- In-person lessons will only resume when deemed safe to do so by the State of Tennessee and The. University of Tennessee Southern Music Academy. If necessary, students may be required to maintain appropriate social distancing, wear a facemask, and/or have lessons in other rooms on the UTS Music Academy campus.
- Should it prove necessary to switch to an online format during a semester, you will be provided with
several options.
a. Continue regular lessons in an online format.
b. Receive a refund from UTS Music Academy for any lessons that have been paid for in advance.
c. Receive a credit for any lessons paid for that have not yet occurred. - To help with technological concerns, you may schedule a free trial lesson with the director to test your available technology. Please contact Brendan Jacklin (bjacklin@utsouthern.edu) for more details.

Registration
Ready for lessons? Download the registration form below.
How to Register
Mail – Completed registration forms, with payment, may be mailed to: Brendan Jacklin, The University of Tennessee Southern Music Academy, 433 W. Madison Street, Pulaski, TN 38478.
In Person – Complete registration forms, with payment, may be given to: Brendan Jacklin, Gault Fine Arts Center, Room 114, UT Southern, 660 West Flower Street, Pulaski, TN 38478.
Please Note – Tuition must be paid before lessons commence. Instructors are notified when payment is made and will only admit students after tuition has been paid. Tuition may be paid in full, or in monthly installments. You will be notified of late payments, with lessons stopping until payments has been completed.
Payment
For Check and Money Order
Checks and money orders should be made payable to ‘The University of Tennessee Southern.’
They may be given to Brendan Jacklin (Gault Fine Arts Center, Room 114), or mailed to Brendan Jacklin, The University of Tennessee Southern Music Academy, 433 W. Madison St., Pulaski TN, 38478
For Online Payments
Click here to go to The University of Tennessee Southern payment website to complete your online payment. Select ‘Music Academy’ under payment type, and complete the rest of the online form.
Faculty

Andrew Martin
Voice
Andrew Martin, a choral conductor, clinician, and arranger, is in demand as a choral clinician and adjudicator and his arrangements are performed by choirs throughout the country. Martin currently serves as Director of Choral Activities at the University of Tennessee Southern in Pulaski, Tennessee after previously holding the same position at Eastern Illinois University in Charleston, Illinois. Martin also was a graduate teaching assistant at Ball State University in Muncie, Indiana where he conducted the University Choral Union and was the assistant conductor of the Ball State University Singers.
From 2006-2016, Martin served as the Director of Choral Activities at Lawrence North High School in Indianapolis, Indiana. His concert choirs consistently earned Gold ratings, with distinction, in ISSMA Organizational and State Qualification events and his show choirs received numerous awards in competitions throughout Indiana. Andrew is currently pursuing a Doctorate in Choral Conducting from Ball State University and holds a Bachelor’s degree in Music Education from Ball State and a Master’s degree in Music Technology from Indiana University, Purdue University, Indianapolis.

Dr. Brendan Jacklin
Piano, Director
Canadian pianist Brendan Jacklin is an active performer, teacher, new music advocate, and adjudicator. In addition to traditional repertoire, he performs and collaborates with many living composers, commissioning composers from across North America. A special interest of his involves performing interdisciplinary and multimedia music, having performed works that include visual and electronic elements, as well as performances with spoken poetry and dance.
Outside of performing, Brendan has published articles and presented posters and sessions on many diverse topics at conferences across the USA, including the MTNA National Conference, the NCKP National Conference, SPLICE Festival, and NAMM’s Generation Next. Topics covered everything from incorporating multimedia into the private studio (AMT Journal, co-written with Dr. Courtney Crappell and Clinton Pratt), examining differences in editions of Chopin’s works, and teaching both extended performing techniques and Baroque ornamentation. He is currently assistant professor of music at The University of Tennessee Southern in Pulaski TN and Director of the The University of Tennessee Southern Music Academy. Previously, he taught at the Flint Institute of Music, and was Head Graduate Assistant with the Secondary Piano Department at the University of Cincinnati and served as the president of the student chapter of the Music Teachers National Association at CCM.
Brendan completed his doctoral studies at the University of Cincinnati’s College-Conservatory of Music with Prof. Awadagin Pratt and Dr. Michelle Conda, with cognates in both pedagogy and multimedia music. He completed his Masters of Music in Piano Performance at Bowling Green State University with Dr. Thomas Rosenkranz and visiting professor Robert Shannon, and completed his Bachelors of Music in Piano Performance with Prof. Megumi Masaki, with minors in cello with Dr. Leanne Zacharias and history.
The University of Tennessee Southern Music Academy Updates
Read the latest on updates from The University of Tennessee Southern Music Academy.
2021 Summer Term
Holiday Closures
May 1st – May 6th: Summer Break
Closed: June 28th-July 4th (Summer Break)
2021 Fall Term
Semester Dates: Sept. 6th to Dec. 17th
Holiday Closures
Sept. 6th: Labor Day
Nov. 24th-26th: Thanksgiving Break
Dec. 20th – Jan. 9th: Winter Break
2022 Spring Term
Holiday Closures
Jan. 17th: Martin Luther King Jr. Day
Nov. 24th-26th: Thanksgiving Break
Dec. 20th – Jan. 9th: Winter Break
2022 Winter Term
Semester Dates: Jan. 10th to Apr. 22nd
2022 Summer Term
Semester Dates: May 9th to July 29th

Music expresses that which cannot be said and on which it is impossible to be silent.”
Victor Hugo