Jean Carlo Ureña González: Exploring musical traditions

About the series: On Main Hall Green With … is an opportunity to connect with faculty on things in and out of the classroom. We're featuring a different Lawrence faculty member each time - same questions, different answers.

---

Jean Carlo Ureña González, assistant professor of percussion, joined the Lawrence University faculty in 2023, bringing his versatile performing and teaching to the percussion studio in the Conservatory of Music.

A performer, composer, and educator, Ureña González has performed as part of Strange Beautiful Music Detroit and Mass MoCA, with the Percussive Arts Society, and with multiple symphony orchestras, including the National Symphony Orchestra of Santo Domingo. He played percussion on John Luther Adams' Sila: The Breath of the World and An Atlas of Deep Time, the latter in collaboration with the South Dakota Symphony Orchestra.

The Dominican Republic native is the co-founder of the Hermanos Ureña Music Academy in his homeland and serves as the interim president of the Percussive Arts Society's Dominican Republic chapter.

Ureña González holds a Bachelor of Music from the Hartt School of Music and a Master of Music Performance, Master of Chamber Music Performance, and a Doctor of Musical Arts from the University of Michigan. During his DMA program, he worked on a first-of-its-kind commission project developing works for solos for percussion by Dominican composers.

We caught up with Ureña González to talk about interests in and out of the classroom.

In the classroom

Inside info:What's one thing you want every student coming into your classes to know about you?

One of the things that I love so much about teaching is seeing students grow as individuals and musicians. I love figuring out their individual method of learning, what works and what does not work for them. Everyone comes to my office at a different level and has a different skill set, and I enjoy seeing them develop their craft in their own unique ways. When we find their flow and fix things in lessons, rehearsals, or coaching, I get chills and am amazed by their ability to adapt and change on the spot.

Getting energized: What work have you done or will you be doing at Lawrence that gets you the most excited?

LU for decades has been a place that fosters creativity and exploration; because of that, the student response when learning new things is so quick; I am always impressed by that. This is my second year here at LU, and I am so excited to continue sharing the music from my country, the Dominican Republic, with my students. I believe we are one of the only schools in the States with actual traditional instruments from DR. I am particularly excited about two traditions I am teaching this term: Guloya and Gaga.

Going places:Is there an example of somewhere your career has taken you (either a physical space or something more intellectual, emotional, or spiritual) that took you by surprise?

I have two older brothers who play in the National Symphony of Santo Domingo. We all started our collegiate careers as engineers, but our connection with music was so strong growing up that it drew us to make the switch. I always knew my brothers and I had a unique bond, but the very first time we all shared the stage as professional musicians was very surprising to me to feel our brotherly bond and musical bond on a stage with so many other musicians. It made me feel like we were kids again serenading our family members playing the happy birthday song for them at 7 in the morning. It was also the first time I got to play the snare drum part for Ravel's Bolero, and if you are a percussionist, you will know why that performance was extra special!

Out of the classroom

This or that:If you weren't teaching for a living, what would you be doing?

I would have probably been an industrial engineer in the Dominican Republic. Or a baker; I love following recipes and making flans, tres leches, arroz con leches, habichuelas con dulces, anything. Next on the list is dulce de leche cortada.

Right at home:Whether for work, relaxation or reflection, what's your favorite spot on campus?

Esch Hurvis. I have come to appreciate that space so much. We have a Ghanaian drumming ensemble called Kinkaviwo, and I love looking outside and seeing the seasonal changes happening as we go through the school year, while everyone in the class grows.

One book, one recording, one film:Name one of each that speaks to your soul? Or you would recommend to a friend? Or both?

The Inner Game of Tenniswas one of the first books that, as I was reading it, inspired me to work on mindfulness and how to utilize that to improve yourself as a person, musician, or teacher.

Mahler's Symphony No. 2 was the first and only time I have cried while watching a live orchestra performance. When I heard the Dallas Symphony play it, I was inspired to be more present in life, and I felt like I finally fully understood the meaning of the phrase, "You had to be there…"

The Pursuit of Happyness was the first movie I cried at (the sleeping in the bathroom scene!). I was in my early teens, and the movie gave me a different perspective and made me even more appreciative, aware, and understanding of all the things that happened "behind the scenes" in my parents' lives.

See more faculty profiles in the On Main Hall Green With ... series