Jenny Mann
Executive Director
Jenny Mann became the Executive Director of the Tuscaloosa Symphony in 2014 and has been the principal bassoonist of the orchestra since 2006. She is also the Associate Professor of Bassoon and Music Management and Area Coordinator for the Arts Administration Degree at The University of Alabama. Prior experience includes Director of Ensembles and Scheduling for the Hot Springs Music Festival, Chamber Music Coordinator and Editor of Alabama Music Notes magazine for The University of Alabama.
A creative and innovative leader, Dr. Mann is skilled at building partnerships and collaborations. Through cultivating and strengthening relationships, she led the Tuscaloosa Symphony to present a new educational initiative in partnership with the Alabama Artistic Literacy Consortium bringing arts integration programs to area educators. She also helped establish an annual side by side concert to offer professional artistic experiences to collegiate musicians in cooperation with The University of Alabama School of Music. In addition, Dr. Mann increased the profile of the orchestra by cultivating the world premiere performance of the opera, Let Us Now Praise Famous Men, a collaboration between the Alabama State Council on the Arts and The University of Alabama Opera Theatre, broadcast on Alabama Public Television in October of 2020. She also added free pop-up concerts throughout the community, making live classical music accessible to all.
Dr. Mann, in partnership with the Board of Directors, increased the budget of the Tuscaloosa Symphony by 40% over five years by broadening the engagement of the orchestra with the community. She ensured the symphony continued to provide new performances under restrictive pandemic conditions in 2020 with monthly streamed concerts and new storytelling initiatives on the website and social media.
As Professor of Bassoon at The University of Alabama, Dr. Mann is the author of the textbook, Teaching Woodwinds: Bassoon, published by Mountain Peak Music, adopted by more than 15 colleges and universities. In addition, she recorded three albums with the renowned Cavell Trio: Dialogue, New Discoveries and The Art of Collective Invention, released on the Blue Griffin label.
As Director of Ensembles and Scheduling at the Hot Springs Music Festival, Dr. Mann designed a bespoke scheduling matrix which successfully organized simultaneous rehearsals, meetings and activities for the festival, enabling a smooth execution of up to twenty events per day and facilitated a diverse and enriching chamber music series.
Dr. Mann holds a CFRE: Certified Fundraising Executive designation, Bachelor of Music Education degree from Baylor University, a PreK-12 Teaching Certificate from the State of Texas, and a Master of Music degree from the University of Texas at Austin. She began her doctoral studies at the Eastman School of Music and completed the Doctor of Musical Arts degree at the University of Texas at Austin.
jmann@tsoonline.org (205) 752-5515