Owen Rockwell, DMA, is Director of Music for the Belhaven University Department of Dance where he leads a staff of dedicated musicians - together, they provide live accompaniment for all dance technique classes offered on campus. “Doc Rock” uses an assortment of drums, keyboards, electronic looping/sampling, and his voice to create rich aural soundscapes. His experience includes playing for Ballet, Modern, Jazz, Tap, West African (Guinea, Ghana), as well as Afro-Latin/Caribbean dance forms. Additionally, he composes music for dance performances and teaches music within the dance curriculum and serves in the Department of Music teaching private percussion lessons and managing the Belhaven University Recording Studios.
He is an active member of the International Guild of Musicians in Dance where he serves as Treasurer and Membership Director and in partnership with that organization, in 2023 founded the International Center for Musicianship in Dance at Belhaven University. He is a past recipient of a Performing Arts Fellowship through the Mississippi Arts Commission/NEA. He is also a former Instructor of Music at Jackson State University, where he was an Assistant Band Director for the marching band, the “Sonic Boom of the South.”
In 2021, Dr. Rockwell participated in the 2nd annual Mark Morris Dance Group Dance Accompanist Training Program in New York City, further solidifying his interest and commitment to guiding dancers and musicians through the process of discovering effective co-teaching and learning strategies for music within the context of the dance technique class. He received Bachelor and Master of Music degrees in Percussion Performance from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, and later the Doctor of Musical Arts degree in Percussion Performance and Pedagogy from the University of Southern Mississippi.