"Music is always on my mind," said Dr. Terri Teal, associate professor of vocal music.

That's because Teal has a full measure of musical duties in teaching, conducting and performing. Her many tasks include selecting new chorus music each semester, studying musical scores and planning rehearsals to maximize the students' learning.

"As a conductor I don't have the right to stand in front of my choirs unless I know a lot more about the music than they do. I need to know the score backwards and forwards. I spend a lot of time in score study," said Teal, who directs JCCC's Chamber Choir and MadRegalia. "When I'm driving home, I am thinking about a song and how to improve it in the next rehearsal."

In addition to the choirs, Teal teaches music theory classes.

Teal started out as a singer, earning her bachelor's degree in voice from Louisiana College, Pineville. She only enrolled in a conducting class to understand a conductor's rationale. But her first job out of college was conducting. Subsequently, she earned a master's degree in musicology from North Texas State University, Denton, and a doctorate in choral conducting from the University of Kansas.

"I sang a lot and still do, but choral conducting is what I like the best," she said.

Teal, who has been at JCCC since 1999, wanted to offer music students something at a two-year college that they couldn't get at a four-year institution. So she gave freshmen and sophomores the opportunity to audition for a select chamber group called MadRegalia, limited to eight to 12 students.

"The challenge of conducting choirs is that the literature changes every semester. That's one of the things that makes my job hard; also one of the things that makes it interesting," she said.

Teal's goal for students is not "just to learn a bunch of songs." She wants them to know how to sing well and articulate different vocal styles.

"I want students to learn different styles of music; that's why I select a wide variety of literature," she said. "The wide range is one of the reasons I like music - you can never master it."

Teal works on her mastery beyond the college. She conducts the Kansas City Fine Arts Chorale, a group of semi-professional singers who perform at Grace and Holy Trinity Cathedral, Kansas City, Mo. She sings recitals and performs oratorio work with area groups. In the past, she directed children's, youth and adult choirs and sang with the former Poulenc Choir, dedicated to the music of French composer Francis Poulenc.

"I like it that I get to be involved in all aspects of music with people of all ages," Teal said.