Miami Musicology Professor 's Favorite Melody is Kindness

BY VERONICA STRICKLER
NOV. 20, 2007

Music fills the air. Concert posters devour the wall space. Books, magazines and scribbled notes cover every available surface in the room. Ominous stacks of large books loom higher and higher the closer they get to the desk.

Despite the potential avalanche, Tammy Kernodle sits calmly in front of her computer, typing with a dexterity that could put a court reporter to shame.


It would be next to impossible to guess what she is working on. After 10 years of teaching at Miami, Kernodle refuses to slow down. In addition to her duties as an Associate Professor of Musicology and head of the Miami chapter of the International Association for Jazz Education, Kernodle also frequently lectures at universities across the country on black world and women’s studies. She is also currently engaged in two major literary projects, one being a four-volume “Encyclopedia of African American Music.” The other is a revision of the “New Grove Dictionary of American Music” for which she is editing entries on African-American music.

It would be enough to make Wonder Woman swoon. But not Kernodle. No matter how heavy the work load, she manages to keep her heart light. She laughs when asked about her myriad of endeavors and says, “You asked about one? I’m talking about 400 or 500!”

Sure, she laughs, but she isn’t far off. It isn’t just scholarly work that keeps Kernodle busy. When she isn’t busy doing research in the library, or teaching classes on the history of jazz, she’s immersed in a heart-to-heart counseling session with a student, jamming with an in-prompt-to jazz ensemble on campus, or handling any number of other outside-of-class priorities.

“Her great value is not only what she does in a formal setting – teaching – but also the informal setting, in casual meetings with students,” said Richard Green, chair of Miami’s Department of Music. “[Some] students feel very close to her because of her perspective, which makes her a valuable resource for advice in crisis intervention and assistance. She handles that very well. She has very good sense of how to help students.”

For Kernodle, the personal interaction with students is one of the most fulfilling parts of the job.

“I aspire to be not just an instructor, but a friend, and confidant to my students,” she said. “I let them know that I have an open door policy and what is said in my office, stays in my office. I’m invested in their dreams and I have a real desire for all of my students to reach their goals.”

Kernodle’s passion for helping students fulfill their dreams may stem from her own upbringing by strong female role models. She cites her maternal grandmother and godmother as the guiding lights in her early life. “Both really accepted me for me and both were very instrumental in instilling me the value of hard work and getting an education,” she said. “They really guided me into womanhood.”

Kernodle’s grandmother also played a large part in developing her passion for music. She, along with many of Kernodle’s aunts, uncles, cousins and brothers, played the piano. Naturally, young Tammy learned to play as well.
But while music was always important to Kernodle, she would not discover her true muse – jazz -- until later in life.

Since her love affair with the art form began, Kernodle has devoted much of her scholarly work and personal life to studying and playing jazz. She served as the Scholar in Residence for the Women in Jazz Initiative at the American Jazz Museum in Kansas City, MO., and wrote her first book on jazz pianist and composer Mary Lou Williams, entitled “Soul on Soul: The Life and Music of Mary Lou Williams.”

“The soulfulness and raw emotion of the music [is what draws me to jazz],” said Kernodle. “It’s just something about the music that speaks to my soul; it just reflects the essence of who I am…Beyond the music itself, the stories of the people who played the music inspire and intrigue me.”

Though she is no longer affiliated with the American Jazz Museum, Kernodle continues to promote the preservation and spread of jazz culture in her work at Miami. She is spearheading efforts to launch new classes that focus on jazz theory, composition and performance.

“Right now you can’t study jazz saxophone here, you can’t study jazz guitar. The history side of it is just one side,” said Kernodle, although she would also like to see jazz history courses diversified as well. “I would love to see some upper level courses that pull out specific periods and genres of jazz and deal with them more in-depth. [I think] that would be something that could really be implemented probably in the next three to five years.”
But while jazz is Kernodle’s musical muse, teaching has always been her life’s passion. She knew at a very young age that she wanted to teach.

“I use to play school with my younger brothers and would always be the teacher,” said Kernodle. “It sounds nerdy, but I love the classroom. I love for students to challenge themselves, to think out of the box, to push beyond their obvious abilities.”

One needs only to speak with her colleagues to know that Kernodle’s early instincts steered her right.

“She is a terrific teacher and a fantastic colleague,” said Thomas Garcia, a fellow jazz musician and Department of Music colleague. “She has been a strong force in the department, and has brought new thinking to the teaching of music history and music in its cultural context… She is a professor who truly cares.”

That care is evident in all Kernodle does. In her teaching, writing and simple conversation she shows a genuine interest in others and a unique, straightforward brand of honesty. While she will always tell you exactly how she feels, Kernodle would rather hear what you have to say. It is perhaps this quality-- more than her keen intellect and winning sense of humor – that is the reason for her success.

“An older woman once told me—give many your ear and few your voice,” said Kernodle. “I’ve held on to that and have tried to live by that principle. So I choose my responses carefully and I focus on listening rather than talking all the time. So people get the impression that I’m moody, distant and/or arrogant, but I’m really just trying to live a quiet but honest life.”