Rate My Professor Jeff Suarez

Jeff Suarez, D.M.A., serves as Associate Professor of Music in the College of Integrated Studies at the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater Rock County campus. He holds a Bachelor of Music in Composition/Theory and a Bachelor of Music Education from Central Michigan University, a Master of Arts in French horn performance from the University of Michigan–Ann Arbor, and a Doctor of Musical Arts from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Currently, he also acts as Interim Department Chairperson for the Department of Integrated Studies and Ad Hoc Program Specialist. Suarez has been a key figure in music education at the Rock County campus since 2002, teaching jazz history across various delivery modes and leading ensembles that enrich student, faculty, and community experiences.

In his performance career, Suarez has participated in numerous jazz groups, including the Creative Arts Orchestra at the University of Michigan–Ann Arbor, as a soloist with the Central Air Jazz Band at Central Michigan University, and various smaller jazz combos. At UW-Whitewater Rock County, he directs the U-Rock Jazz Band, which he has led since 2003, the URock Chamber Orchestra performing regularly since 2002, and the URock Summer Band. As a French horn performer and producer, he creates music opportunities that extend beyond the classroom. His teaching portfolio includes courses such as Jazz History and Appreciation, Music Literature and Appreciation, History of Rock and Roll, World Music, TikTok, YouTube, and Instagram in music contexts, Careers in Music and the Arts, and Music Theory. Suarez contributes to public engagement through lectures, including 'American Pop Culture Through the Lens of Music' and sessions in the World of the Arts series. His administrative role supports the department's mission of providing accessible, transferable education in liberal arts and interdisciplinary studies.