Crhistian Folk, Ph.d.
Christian Folk is a Ph.D. candidate in music education with an emphasis on museum studies at the University of Maryland. Christian taught for several years in North Carolina and South Carolina private and public schools before beginning their graduate studies in music education. A fierce advocate for diversity in wind band programming, he created databases of pieces for wind band written by gender and/or racially minoritized composers which were featured in presentations at The Midwest Clinic and The College Band Directors National Association conference. Their research interests include arts education in museums and other cultural institutions, music education and disability, music and LGBQTIA+ studies, wind band programming, and minimalist music, specifically the works of Philip Glass. They have presented at conferences of The American Educational Research Association, The National Association for Music Education, the Society for Music Teacher Education, the South Carolina Music Educators Association, and the Society for Minimalist Music. He also has peer-reviewed articles published in the Journal of Band Research and Arts Education Policy Review. He is the director of the Vienna Concert Band in Vienna, VA, and the co-director of the Maryland Band Directors Band. Christian has a bachelor’s degree in music education from Winthrop University and a master’s in music education from The University of South Carolina. He enjoys visiting museums and local independent bookstores with his wife, Christy.