Southwest Region

SWRO 2026

2026 Southwest Region Orchestra

conductor, Dr. Heather Lofdahl

Dr. Heather Lofdahl is Assistant Professor of Music Education at The Ohio State University, where she directs the string education program and conducts the Campus Orchestra. In addition, she serves as Music Director of the Newark-Granville Youth Symphony and music education specialist for Play Us Forward, a community partnership aimed at increasing access to string instruction for underserved students. Dr. Lofdahl is the recipient of the 2025 Ohio State School of Music Distinguished Teaching Award.

Dr. Lofdahl is published in the String Research Journal and American String Teachers Journal. She is an active member of the American String Teachers Association (ASTA) and the National Association for Music Education. Through these organizations as well as the Suzuki Association of the Americas and the International Society for Music Education, Dr. Lofdahl has presented research and pedagogy sessions at the Symposium for Music Teacher Education; International Society for Music Education Conference (Scotland, Finland, and Canada); American String Teachers Association National Conference; and various state conferences. Her research is focused on equity and access in music education, best practices of outstanding string teachers, and practice behaviors of string players. In addition, Dr. Lofdahl is President-Elect of the Ohio String Teachers Association.

Dr. Lofdahl holds Bachelor of Arts degrees in Music Education and Viola Performance from Augustana College, Master of Music degrees in Music Education and Viola Performance from the University of North Carolina Greensboro, and a PhD in Music Education from the University of North Carolina Greensboro. She is an active guest conductor and clinician throughout the United States and abroad. 

Mark your calendars for required festival dates!
November 7 / November 21 / November 22

Questions?

Jordan Millard
OMEA SW Region Chair
omeaswro@gmail.com