School of Music

Welcome to our New Faculty

Welcome to Tess Jones, our new Assistant Professor of Music and Director of Athletic Bands at the Indiana State University! Previously, she served as Lecturer of Music at Penn State Behrend College in Erie, Pennsylvania where she conducted the Concert and Pep Bands and taught courses in music history. While in Erie, Tess also served as the conductor for the Millcreek Area Community Band and performed on flute and piccolo for the Mercyhurst Civic Orchestra. A native of Abilene, TX, Tess received a Bachelor of Music Education degree from the University of North Texas and a Master of Music degree in Wind Conducting from Texas State University. She is currently completing a Doctor of Music degree in Wind Conducting at the Indiana University Jacobs School of Music.

Prior to graduate school, Tess served as the Director of Bands at Craig Middle School in Abilene, TX, Assistant Director of Bands at Waltrip High School in Houston, TX, and Director of Bands at Levi Fry Intermediate School in Texas City, TX. In addition to her teaching duties, Tess serves as a clinician for both marching and concert bands in Texas, Indiana, and Pennsylvania. Outside of music, she enjoys exploring the outdoors, reading, and enjoying time with her partner and their pets. Tess is an alumnus of Mu Phi Epsilon and Kappa Kappa Psi and holds membership with the College Band Directors National Association, the Texas Music Educators Association, and the Pennsylvania Music Educators Association.

Welcome to our new Saxophone Instructor, Dr. Andrew Gaffey! Equally at home in the music of Monteverdi and Berio and hailed for his “brilliant playing …conveyed with admirable subtlety” (The News-Gazette) and “control over soft dynamics and sustained vitality” (Smile Politely), Indiana based musician Andrew Gaffey is rapidly establishing himself as a saxophonist, educator, and conductor at the international level. Performance engagements have taken him throughout the United States and abroad, with recent appearances at the Darmstädter Ferienkurse für Neue Musik in Germany, Cleveland Institute of Music, Indiana University, the International Saxophone Symposium, and national and regional North American Saxophone Alliance Conferences.

A dedicated teacher, Gaffey will serve as Instructor of Saxophone at Indiana State University beginning in fall 2026 and maintains a private studio. In the past, he has served on faculty as Instructor of Saxophone at Illinois Wesleyan University and on summer faculties at the University of Central Arkansas, Illinois State University, and the University of Illinois. He holds the Doctor of Musical Arts degree in Performance and Literature with a cognate in Musicology from the University of Illinois, where he was the Saxophone Teaching Assistant, was a University Fellow, and was named the 2026 Krannert Center Debut Artist. He holds additional degrees from Florida State University and the Blair School of Music at Vanderbilt University. His teachers include Nicki Roman, Debra Richtmeyer, Geoffrey Deibel, Brian Utley, and Jeff Coffin.

Welcome to Dr. Keisy Peyerl Xavier as our new Collaborative Pianist! Dr. Xavier is a Brazilian collaborative pianist and educator whose work spans classical performance, opera, musical theatre, and contemporary commercial music. At Indiana State University, she brings a broad range of professional and artistic experience to the School of Music, with a particular focus on collaboration, stylistic versatility, and supporting performers in developing confident and authentic musical voices. Known for her stylistic versatility, Keisy performs and improvises across a wide range of musical languages, including classical repertoire, musical theatre, Brazilian jazz, R&B, pop, rock, neo-soul, and gospel. Her diverse musical background allows her to collaborate with artists across genres with flexibility, musical sensitivity, and technical fluency. Each summer, Keisy returns to IPAI Bavaria in Germany, where she serves as Collaborative Pianist and Music Director for the Musical Theatre program, working with emerging artists from around the world.

Originally from Brazil, Dr. Xavier has pursued her musical training and professional career in the United States and internationally. She holds a Doctor of Musical Arts in Piano Performance from The University of Southern Mississippi, in addition to degrees earned in Brazil and accomplishments include receiving First Prize in the MMTA Collegiate Competition and recognition in the National Piano Competition of the Brazilian Academy of Music in Rio de Janeiro.