Bienvenidos! Nicaragua welcomes 2 JSU Sonic Boom members who will teach marching

January 25, 2016
Holman, left, and Hinton will were selected for the prestigious honor because of their stellar talents.
Standing in the foreground, JSU Sonic Boom seniors Steven Holman, left, and Walter Hinton Jr. – flanked by other band members – are on a two-week trip to Nicaragua to share musical skills with their peers in Central America.
Standing in the foreground, JSU Sonic Boom seniors Steven Holman, left, and Walter Hinton Jr. – flanked by other band members – are on a two-week trip to Nicaragua to share musical skills with their peers in Central America.

Two senior music education majors from Jackson State University’s Department of Music are visiting Bluefields Indian University in Nicaragua, teaching musical pedagogy and marching techniques.

JSU students Steven Holman, a native of Chicago, and Walter Hinton Jr., a native of Tuscaloosa, Ala., are on a two-week excursion to Bluefield University, the largest state university in that Central American nation.

Holman, left, and Hinton will were selected for the prestigious honor because of their stellar talents.
Holman, left, and Hinton were selected for the prestigious honor because of their stellar talents.

The students were chosen because of their majors and excellence in marching band techniques for the internationally acclaimed Sonic Boom, said Dr. David O. Akombo, JSU’s interim music department chair. He said the partnership is important because of Nicaragua’s desire to develop a band for its public and sporting events.

“The JSU-BICU (Bluefield Indian and Caribbean University) Music project is not only a window into the world for our music students but also an integral part of internationalizing our music education curriculum. Our students provide Nicaragua a much-needed music education and they will, in turn, learn about another culture while helping to enrich their own global worldview.”

Dr. David O. Akombo, JSU’s interim music department chair, described the project as a “window into the world for our music students (and) … integral part of internationalizing our music education curriculum.”
Dr. David O. Akombo, JSU’s interim music department chair, described the project as a “window into the world for our music students (and) … integral part of internationalizing our music education curriculum.”

The two-year partnership came to fruition after Akombo was approached by the assistant director of the Nicaraguan program, New Orleans-raised jazz saxophonist eZra Brown, who had performed in 2013 at the Mississippi Museum of Art for his CD release party under the auspices of WJSU-FM.

After the initial contact about the possible project, Akombo then approached leadership in the College of Liberal Arts and the provost at JSU. Dr. Mario Azevedo, the college’s dean,  and Dr. Priscilla Slade, special assistant to the provost for International Studies and Community Colleges, were instrumental in the global partnership. The university eventually signed a contract with Bluefields University, and Akombo said the trip is being underwritten by the U.S. Embassy in Nicaragua.

Akombo added that JSU is the only institution from the United States participating in this project. He said JSU aims to send another two students in the summer and in the fall.

To watch JSU students in action in Nicaragua, click on JSU Nicaragua.