The tempo of change is allegro — or brisk — inside Â鶹´«Ă˝â€™s school of music.
The F. Ludwig Diehn School of Music, under the leadership of Executive Director Emily Ondracek-Peterson and Director Nancy Klein, is fine-tuning curriculum to improve teaching and help students reach their goals.
A Commercial Music Ensemble has joined the university’s array of performing groups. Also, Old Dominion’s Sound Recording Technology program is creating a positive buzz. An in-house record label has even emerged.
And new faculty members — who are rolling out updated courses — are bringing fresh perspectives and enthusiasm.
Director of Keyboard Studies and Coordinator of Music History Zachary Deak, Coordinator of Theory and Aural Skills and organist Will Pearson, and interim Director of Athletic Bands David Enloe haven’t been at Old Dominion long, but they’re making an impact.
“They are all contributing immensely to the Diehn School of Music and are very interesting people, educators, and musicians,” wrote Ondracek-Peterson.
Will Pearson, music theory and aural skills coordinator and organist
Will Pearson feels empathy for freshmen. They’re adjusting to a lot of change — in and outside the classroom.
“I really struggled as a first-year student,” recalled Pearson, who launched Old Dominion’s new theory and aural skills curriculum in the Fall of 2024.
Straight out of high school, he attended the prestigious Eastman School of Music to study organ performance. As a teenager, he was excited, but unprepared for college life. He was overwhelmed by the workload and living on his own.
“I didn’t even last a year,” Pearson said. “It was a real learning experience for me.”
He discovered the value of asking for help.  “I would mess up or I would miss a class, then I would be afraid to go to the next class because I was embarrassed that I missed the class before,” he remembered. “I was really afraid of asking for help.”
Fast forward a few decades and Pearson is now a professor who is eager to lend young musicians a hand.
“If you’re a first-generation student, you may not know the expectations, or what it means to, say, go to office hours. I like being clear about all that. I want students to get the help they need.”
Pearson grew up in Upstate New York and lived in Illinois and Indiana before arriving at Old Dominion.
In many ways, Norfolk has been a pleasant surprise for him and his girlfriend. “We had been living in the middle of nowhere in Indiana, so we’re just having a ball, being able to go out to dinner,” Pearson said. “It’s been fun checking out the city.”
Zachary Deak, director of keyboard studies and coordinator of music history
For a young man named Zachary, Paris changed everything.
His college professor father moved the family from California to the City of Light for Deak’s 9th grade year. “I played piano before, but that’s when I made the decision to be a pianist,” Deak said. “I met a wonderful teacher, went to concerts in some of these wonderful concert halls.”
In Paris, his future snapped into focus.
After returning to the United States and finishing high school in San Diego, he immediately moved back to Paris where he studied piano for seven years at Ecole Normale de Musique. His next stop was the Royal College of Music in London, where he earned a master’s degree in piano performance. He applied to doctoral programs and landed a spot at University of Southern California. After finishing his degree in 2019, he taught as a lecturer at California State University in Los Angeles.
Then, Old Dominion offered the right opportunity.
He liked that the job mixed music history and applied piano. “I’ve always enjoyed the combination of those two fields — history and performance.”
Deak also relished the opportunity to build a keyboard program at Old Dominion and to expand the types of music that students explore at the university.
“We have a broad student population that is interested in a variety of things,” said Deak. “Some are interested in classical performance, but some are interested in jazz, in pop, in hip hop — a variety of genres. It’s important that we provide them with that broad education.”
David Enloe, interim director of athletic bands
After a 38-year career teaching and leading bands in primary and secondary schools, David Enloe was settling into retirement when Tyler Austin — a friend and fellow member of the Virginia Wind Symphony — reached out with a request.
“Hey, would you be willing to come speak with me about how you see the [marching band] program here at Â鶹´«Ă˝ and what we need to do?” Enloe remembers being asked by Austin, Old Dominion’s director of bands.
“We had a frank discussion,” Enloe recalled. One thing led to another, and Enloe got a job offer as interim director of athletic bands.
He accepted, and, this past fall, shaped the Monarch Marching Band’s football halftime shows. He enthusiastically threw himself into the role, leading rehearsals and writing musical arrangements for the band’s performances, including the Monarchs’ memorable October 24 armed forces tribute.
“The whole thing’s been a great experience,” Enloe said. “I am so lucky that the kids here have received me the way they have.”
He directs and recruits. Enloe frequently talks to area high school band directors, reminding them of the opportunities that talented students find at Old Dominion. From his years teaching music at Hickory High School in Chesapeake and Warhill High in Williamsburg, Enloe’s network of connections is extensive.
He sees his new job as the cherry on top of what was already a satisfying and successful career.
“It’s just fun,” Enloe said. “This is an honor, and I believe I can do something good here. I feel like I can finish strong.”