Joseph J. Amante y Zapata

Office Hours

TEACHING SCHEDULE

My email address at Roger Williams University is: jamante@rwu.edu 
https://www.rwu.edu/academics/schools-and-colleges/fshae/faculty/joseph-amante

Bio

Dr. Joseph Amante y Zapata is professor of music at CCRI and as Director of Choral Activities he conducts both the CCRI Chamber Singers and Chorus. He is also the music director for the Roger Williams University Chorus as well as instructor of Latin and Caribbean music history.

"Most important to me, and to my students, is that they broaden their experience both within and outside of the classroom. I have taken the CCRI choirs to a choral competition at McGill University in Montreal, Canada, to Boston to participate in a choral festival alongside the Boston Pro Musica, and to New York City to participate in a community college festival at Carnegie Hall."

Dr. Amante has been an officer of the American Choral Directors Association for many years in the states California, Massachusetts and Rhode Island.  He has been an accompanist for music instructors as well as a part-time keyboardist and vocal soloist at various churches throughout Rhode Island.  Dr. Amante also music directs theater productions and has recently been a member of Contemporary Theater Company (Wakefield, RI).  He is a violist with Rhode Island's Ocean State Pops Orchestra and South County Chamber Orchestra as well as a mandola player in L'Esperance Mandolin Ensemble.

Amante and his wife, Dr. Terry Deeney, a professor at URI, reside in South Kingstown, RI with their son and daughter.

Education

• D.M.A. major in Choral Music (minor in Vocal Pedagogy) 2002
  • University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA
  • Treatise: Sacred choral music in Colonial Mexico, 1650-1750: An Introduction
  • Awarded: Herb Alpert Scholarship for Emerging Young Artists
• M.M. in Choral Conducting 1989
  • New England Conservatory of Music, Boston, MA
• B.A. in Church Music 1987
• Point Loma Nazarene University, San Diego, CA
• Complete c.v. - PDF.
• https://oceanstatepops.org/
• http://lesperancemandolin.com/

Classes

I am on sabbatical this semester, Spring 2020.

(Choral ensembles, Sight Singing & Ear Training, Music History, Music Appreciation.)

Learning Resources

• MUSC 1160-600
• MUSC 1160-602
• Choir Facebook

Academic Focus

As a professor of music, I believe that every student can benefit from music instruction regardless of socio-economic status, physical or intellectual ability. That instruction should be well prepared and taught with passion to help each student realize his or her own individual potential and abilities. Moreover, I never teach music technique as an end in itself. For instance, many people think that once they learn the notes then they have mastered the "song." There is so much more to music than just learning the notes.

Music is for everyone and for any age. I have and continue to seek out opportunities to unite with other musical organizations outside of school.

I strive to engage students in understanding musicality and historical context. I endeavor to connect the music of the past with the music they commonly hear today. As the instructor of History of Rock at CCRI I have a unique ability to pull from that resource. I encourage them to really listen to the sounds they are creating and to understand the composer’s point of view.

Former choirs I have directed:

Additional Information (Links)

Learn more about the choirs:

https://www.facebook.com/CCRIchoirs/videos/2510477708973796/