Where the Music Flows
Oct. 6, 2026
With classic studies, instrument lessons and a deep connection to the performing arts, COCC’s music program sets a vibrant stage
It’s the first day of fall term at Central Oregon Community College and a morning
piano class is marking the occasion by sending a raft of musical notes out into the
world.
Seated at keyboards, the nine members of the introductory course coach their hands
into placement, held as though gripping an imaginary ball. They’re learning basics
of body positioning and reading music, deciphering quarter-notes from whole notes,
finding the timing and duration of beats. Music, at its very essence, taking shape.
The class is diverse, spanning from younger students to several retirees; it’s offered
for college credit but can also be taken through COCC’s Community Education program.
Some in the group have found their way back to the piano after long-ago childhood
lessons. Some have been on different musical journeys — of varying distances — with
the French horn, guitar, flute and other instruments. All are intrigued by the 88
black-and-white keys.
Instructor Nancy Milliron, a retired elementary music teacher whose own piano-playing
path began at age 7, brings decades of joy for teaching and playing — collaborating
these days with local high school musicals and accompanying choirs — to her promising
pianists.
“I've always loved making music with students, seeing the smiles on kids’ faces, the
joy of high school students performing in a musical, the lightbulb that goes on with
my college students. It doesn't get much better than that,” says Milliron.
Among her students are several music majors. In fact, while COCC’s music program offers a chance to learn and practice an instrument, the department also focuses
on core learning for continued study and performance, centered on an Associate of
Arts Oregon Transfer degree. The curriculum weaves together elements of theory and
history, offering topics in music technology, scoring for media and the history of
rock and roll.
Music majors, like recent graduate Spencer Holliday, discover the setting they need
to hone their musicianship while earning a degree for deeper study.
“Because of the amazing opportunities, mentorship and scholarships at COCC, I was
able to realize that a career in music was a possibility,” says the three-time recipient
of the Sunriver Music Festival Young Artists Scholarship. “The instructors pushed
me to be the best I possibly could, even when I didn’t think that was possible.” Holliday
transferred to the University of Oregon this fall to major in piano performance and
music education.
Instructors include James Knox, a proficient composer whose work has been performed
around the globe, from Brazil to Russia to Spain, and who was once appointed guest
maestro at the Conservatorio di Musica “Arrigo Pedrollo” in Vicenza, Italy. They also
include Christopher Thomas, a veteran of the film and TV industry who has composed
music for series like “Lost” and “House. His work has earned top honors from the Hollywood
Music in Media Awards for outstanding score for a live-action short film. And he channels
that excellence into his classes. “There is no greater feeling than seeing your instruction
launch a young musician in the right direction, especially when they know somebody
believes in them,” he shares.
Jonathan Moore, COCC’s new music director and conductor, has a background that includes
directing the Central Oregon Youth Orchestra and contributing to both the Sunriver
Music Festival and OperaBend. He now helms the Central Oregon Symphony, Cascade Winds Symphonic Band and OperaBend — all COCC-based ensembles with rich
histories.
The symphony, for instance, got its start in 1967 and has become a true pillar of
Central Oregon’s arts and culture scene. This fall’s three concerts will take place
Oct. 24-25 at Mountain View High School’s auditorium; the program features Beethoven,
Bernstein and Bruch. Each performer is enrolled in a one-credit class at the college.
Tickets are free to member-supporters and free to others on a first-come, first-served
basis just prior to performances.
The college’s music department has certainly come a long way. When the Bend campus
first opened on Awbrey Butte in 1964, trailers were hauled onto the site for added
classroom space. But that posed a unique problem for the music department: How to
fit a piano through an undersized door? Still, the show (or song) must go on, even
if walls have to come down. Workers sawed away a section to safely notch out a new
home. The pianos have been active ever since.
COCC’s winter term starts Jan. 4; applications are due Dec. 26. Visit cocc.edu to get started.
By Mark Russell Johnson, COCC Marketing and Public Relations
