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Personal Summary

An experienced educator in teaching underserved and underrepresented communities, Dr. Stevie J. Hirner (she/her) is committed to promoting Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in choral environments for singers of all races, genders, sexualities, and socioeconomic circumstances. She desires to use music as a vehicle through which she can make a meaningful impact in the lives of others. Dr. Hirner believes in a balanced, science-informed approach to vocal technique through the study and performance of a variety of repertoire that includes traditional folk music, gospel, Spirituals, jazz and contemporary a cappella, as well as classical choral music, and in her continuing practices and learning, she remains committed to developing  an understanding of and proficiency in a wide variety of styles and genres in addition to pursuing advanced studies in conducting, choral music, vocology, music theory, and gender and sexuality studies.

As a result, she actively seeks to highlight the experiences and music of new composers, BIPOC individuals, women, and the LGBTQIA+ community instead of only programming composers from the traditional Western canon in order to further the work of decolonizing classical music making and to provide an opportunity to connect with audiences in a much more diverse, relevant, and empathetic way. Dr. Hirner maintains her commitment to developing a warm, supportive community in her classrooms led to her deeply-held passion for mentorship and guiding those in need through a mutual connection to music. She intentionally fosters a safe space where her students can embrace their vulnerability and try new things without fear of judgment or embarrassment. Dr. Hirner is dedicated to acknowledging and supporting her students as the best way help them find success because it creates a community that allows them to be vulnerable and to celebrate each other as the unique, beautiful humans that they are, all while challenging them to broaden their perspectives and encouraging them to support and learn from their peers instead of merely competing with them.

Education

Doctor of Musical Arts in Choral Music — University of Southern California

Master of Music in Choral Conducting — University of Missouri

Bachelor of Music Education in Vocal Music — Auburn University

Courses Taught

University Choir

Chamber Chorale

Choral Conducting

Choral Methods

Field of Study

Vocal Music Education

Choral Conducting

Choral Music

Music Theory & Analysis

Vocology

Gender & Sexuality Studies

Professional Experience

Stevie J. Hirner (she/her) is a choral conductor, composer, singer, and educator who specializes in cultivating transgender and gender expansive inclusivity in singing through empathetic practices and science-informed vocal pedagogy. As a transgender musician and one of the leading researchers in her field, Dr. Hirner is a sought-after lecturer and clinician at universities and professional conferences. Her article discussing her gender inclusive methodology, “Line Recombination,” appeared in the November/December 2022 issue of the Choral Journal. To supplement her research, Hirner has also launched the crowdsourced Recombined Choral Library at her website where recombined lines can be created and accessed by the public. Her recent professional conference interest sessions include presentations on her line recombination methodology at the 2022 Western ACDA Regional Conference, the 2023 ACDA National Conference, and the 2023 World Symposium on Choral Music in Istanbul. In 2024, Dr. Hirner introduced her new gender affirming singing protocol, “Flexible Fach,” at five out of the six Regional Conferences of the American Choral Directors Association in Spring 2024, which was also the focus of her doctoral dissertation, .

Dr. Hirner completed her Doctor of Musical Arts degree in Choral Music at the University of Southern California (USC) with secondary emphases in Music Theory and Analysis, Vocology, and Gender and Sexuality Studies in 2024, and she joined the faculty at the ÁÔÆæÖØ¿Ú (UM) in the fall of the same year as the Interim Director of Choral Activities. Prior to her position at UM, Dr. Hirner was a lecturer in Choral and Voice Methods at California State University - Long Beach, and in July of 2024, she ended her four-year tenure as the Artistic Director of the Long Beach Youth Chorus. During her studies at USC from 2020-24, she was the lead conductor for the USC Thornton Apollo Chorus and the University Chorus in addition to teaching Choral Conducting I/II to undergraduate and graduate students. 

During her six years of experience as a public school teacher, Dr. Hirner worked at Collins Academy High School in Chicago from 2014-16, where she built a choir program that included an 80-member beginning choir, 30-member honor choir, and a general music class. After Chicago, Dr. Hirner taught middle and high school choir in South Florida from 2016-20—directing the choral program and teaching AP Music Theory at Santaluces Community High School for one year and serving as the Associate Choral Director at Miami Arts Charter School (MAC) for three years. At MAC, she directed three middle school ensembles and two high school ensembles while also assisting with the school’s vocal jazz program and founding the school’s first contemporary a cappella ensemble. In addition to teaching, Dr. Hirner also worked as the Artistic Administrator for the 2016-17 season with the Florida Singing Sons Boychoir and was the associate conductor for the Master Chorale of South Florida (MCSF) from 2016-20 where she was recognized by the South Florida Classical Review for “[maintaining] a flowing line and [bringing] clarity to the contrapuntal writing” while directing “Wie lieblich sind deine Wohnungen” from Brahms’ Ein deutsches Requiem. 

While pursuing her Bachelor of Music Education degree in Vocal Music at Auburn University from 2008-12, Dr. Hirner founded and directed her own a cappella group (AU Cappella), the first of its kind at the school and also served as a student conductor for the university’s Men’s Chorus. Then, while earning her Master of Music degree in Choral Conducting at the University of Missouri from 2012-14, she directed the School of Music’s jazz choir, Hitt Street Harmony, which premiered many of her arrangements, conducted the University Singers in a premiere of one of her original compositions entitled “Resurget,” served as the chorus master for a production of Mozart’s Cosí Fan Tutte, worked as the music director for the First Christian Church in Centralia, Missouri, and directed Ars Nova—a select mixed-voice ensemble at the University of Missouri—in the annual Art and Music Performance that consisted of pieces selected to correspond with works of art in the university’s art museum.