FORT WAYNE, Ind. — The streets of downtown Fort Wayne are alive with sound this weekend as more than 4,000 music teachers, college professors, and students descend on the city for the Indiana Music Education Association’s 80th anniversary Professional Development Conference.
The three-day event, running January 16-18, 2026 at the Grand Wayne Convention Center and venues across the city, marks the largest gathering in IMEA history and celebrates eight decades of keeping music alive in Hoosier classrooms.
This is not just a conference. It is a family reunion for everyone who believes music changes lives.
Record-Breaking Attendance Shows Music Education Is Far From Dead
Early registration numbers topped 4,200, shattering previous records, according to IMEA executive director Michael Barrett. Educators traveled from all 92 counties, with some driving more than five hours each way.
“People keep saying music programs are being cut,” Barrett said Thursday evening as honor choir students warmed up in the convention center lobby. “Look around. This room proves the opposite. Music teachers are more committed than ever.”
The surge comes after two years of post-pandemic growth. Membership in IMEA has climbed 18 percent since 2022, and student participation in All-State ensembles hit an all-time high this year.
Non-Stop Music Turns Downtown Into Indiana’s Biggest Stage
Walk anywhere near the Grand Wayne Center and you will hear it: trumpets spilling out of hotel ballrooms, a string quartet rehearsing in a parking garage, a gospel choir turning a courtyard into church.
More than 120 performances are scheduled across 14 venues through Saturday night.
Highlights include:
- The 2026 All-State Honor Orchestra conducted by Soo Han from Carmel High School
- The Indiana All-State Jazz Ensemble directed by Quincy Davis from University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory
- Combined choirs of over 600 voices performing at the Embassy Theatre Saturday evening
- Over 40 clinic sessions on everything from mariachi pedagogy to music technology
First-time attendees say the energy is electric.
“I have never heard this much live music in one city at one time,” said Sarah Johnson, a middle school band director from Evansville. “It feels like the entire state is singing.”
From Committee Chair to Proud Papa: Chris Taylor’s 30-Year Journey
Chris Taylor stood near the registration desk Friday morning wearing the same proud smile he has worn for three decades.
The veteran director from Northrop High School in Fort Wayne started as a young committee chair in the 1990s. He later served as IMEA president and has attended every conference since 1994.
Now he watches his former students lead sessions and direct honor groups.
“Two of my student teachers from ten years ago are presenting clinics this weekend,” Taylor said. “Several of my old band kids are here as first-year teachers. It is the best feeling in the world.”
Taylor says the conference reminds everyone why they fight for music programs year after year.
“Kids need this now more than ever,” he said. “Music gives them confidence, community, and a way to express things words cannot touch.”
College Students Steal the Show and Prove the Future Is Bright
Ball State University’s Yufang Chen brought her Chinese chamber ensemble to perform Friday afternoon, a group she formed just two years ago.
One graduating senior fought back tears after their performance.
“This was my graduation gift,” Chen told the audience. “These students gave me so much more than I ever gave them.”
Similar stories play out across the convention: college students performing alongside their professors, high school seniors committing to music education majors, elementary students from the Indiana Children’s Choir charming everyone in sight.
80 Years Strong and Still Growing
Founded in 1946, IMEA has survived budget cuts, culture wars, and a global pandemic that silenced schools for months.
Yet here they are in 2026, bigger than ever.
The message from every stage this weekend is clear: music education is not dying in Indiana. It is evolving, expanding, and refusing to be silenced.
As one retiring educator put it while watching the All-State Jazz Ensemble rehearse:
“We started with a handful of teachers who believed every child deserves music. Eighty years later, look what they built.”
The conference concludes Saturday night with a massive combined performance at the Embassy Theatre. If you are anywhere near Fort Wayne this weekend, roll down your windows.
You will hear proof that music education in Indiana is very much alive and stronger than ever.
What does music education mean to you? Drop your stories in the comments below. Many educators are sharing moments using #IMEA80 on social media this weekend. Join them.
