Alum

Gaye Tolan Hatfield

Position
Professor
Affiliated Departments
Telephone
617-747-8382

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Gaye Tolan Hatfield is a Berklee graduate and an associate professor in the Ear Training Department. She has taught in the Harmony, Voice, and Ensemble departments. Her work outside of the college includes writing, arranging, transcribing, and performing locally as a vocalist, pianist, and flutist. She has assisted orchestrators for the Boston Pops, and wrote a choral arrangement that was performed at the Fourth of July concert by the Boston Pops in 2013.

Hatfield’s compositions can be heard on a variety of television shows, including NCIS, History Detectives, The Young and the Restless, Revenge, NUMB3RS, CSI: NY, The Good Wife, and United States of Tara. She also has composed for the films Dear John and What to Expect When You’re Expecting. She has also been a member of the Providence Singers, and wrote an arrangement of “Someone to Watch Over Me” for their 2007–2008 Gershwin tribute concert.

Career Highlights
  • Member, Sisters of Swing
  • Composer, MetroMusic, Heavy Hitters music libraries
  • Source music placements for television including Ed, NCIS, Judging Amy, Brotherhood, and The District
  • Arranger, National Public Radio's From the Top, and Tanglewood Festival Chorus
  • Player, FX's Rescue Me
  • Member, American Society of Composers, Authors, and Publishers (ASCAP)
Education
  • B.A., Berklee College of Music
  • Level 3 graduate, Somatic Voicework: The LoVetri Method
In Their Own Words

"My background as a former Berklee student, vocal and instrumental performer, arranger, and composer allows me to share real-life experiences with my students. I work on making new musical experiences for myself, which help keeps me passionate about teaching—and life in general."

"I describe my teaching style as thorough and friendly. I cover melodic, harmonic, and rhythmic ear training in my classes, which are reinforced by performing, dictating, and listening activities. I want my students to succeed and feel good about their accomplishments. Hopefully, this is achieved through our partnership and their determination to truly 'own' the material. Ear training is an integral piece of the puzzle for the professional musician. Having a good ear means better communication in any musical setting, including stage, recording studio, and teaching studio. If a note, chord, or rhythm is heard that elicits a response (whether good or bad), how cool is it to know exactly what the sound was and why it worked—or didn't! In those circumstances, I feel as if I'm in on a little secret that nonmusicians never get to experience."