Berklee Appoints Casey Drieen as Director of Contemporary Performance Graduate Program at Valencia, Spain, Campus

Berklee appointed Casey Driessen the director of the contemporary performance graduate program at the college s campus in Valencia, Spain. The American musician, composer, producer, educator, and Berklee alumnus began his new role on June 1 in preparation for the start of the academic year in September 2015.

We are delighted to welcome Casey to the Valencia campus faculty. He brings a wealth of industry experience and will help prepare our students to succeed as musicians and performers on the global stage, said Maria Iturriaga, associate executive director and dean of admissions for Berklee's Valencia campus.

I m excited to take up my new role at Berklee and a new life in Spain, said Driessen. And I m looking forward to drawing on my diverse background and encouraging our master s students the performers of tomorrow to develop their artistic voices through self-sufficiency, dedication to craft, and an open mind to creative stimulus from life.

Driessen, a Grammy Award-nominated artist, began his musical career as a traditional American bluegrass fiddler. After graduating from Berklee s Boston campus, he developed a unique performance style using his fiddle as his voice and creating complex arrangements through live audio looping. A polished live performer, studio musician, producer, mixer, and engineer, he has recorded a number of albums, both solo and with collaborators that include B la Fleck and Steve Earle, as well as scores for TV and film. Extensive touring has taken him to 16 countries as a solo artist, bandleader, sideman, tour manager, stage manager, merchandise manager, crew, and drum tech.

A skilled educator, Driessen has more than 15 years of experience teaching in various countries, including Australia, Belgium, China, Finland, Japan, Spain, the U.K., and the U.S.

Casey is an accomplished performer and fiddler extraordinaire, as well as a composer and artist who has embraced technology to further develop his own unique artistic voice, added Brian Cole, dean of academic affairs for Berklee's Valencia campus. This, combined with his international teaching experience, makes him the ideal person to lead our Contemporary Performance graduate program.

Launched in September of 2012, Berklee's master of music in contemporary performance (production concentration) is designed to give advanced instrumentalists and vocalists the experience and skills in performance and production technology to take their careers to the next level. During the one-year intensive degree program, students hone their live and recorded performance skills through private instruction, ensembles, and frequent performances, and work with faculty and visiting artists to develop their own artistic identity. Students also become adept at pre-production, recording, and mixing processes at the campus state-of-the-art recording studios and scoring stage, further preparing them to meet the unique demands facing the artist of tomorrow.

Department Leadership Guillermo Cisneros Vice President for Global Initiatives

Department Contact Info Valencia, Spain Campus Room 4th Floor

855 Boylston Street

Boston, MA 02116 United States

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