Antonio Hunt, DMA

Bio & Experience

Dr. Hunt brings more than 18 years of music education and performance experience to us, currently serving as the Assistant Professor of Music and Director of Choral Activities at Randolph-Macon College, as well as the Director of Music at Duncan Memorial United Methodist Church. He holds a Bachelor of Arts in Piano Performance from Morehouse College, a Master of Music from Georgia State University, and a Doctorate of Musical Arts from the University of Oklahoma.

Outside of his musical endeavors, Dr. Hunt enjoys cooking, grilling, and socializing with close friends and family. He also enjoys traveling and experiencing unique historic sites throughout the country and the world.

Teaching Philosophy

Dr. Hunt’s philosophy is rooted in the belief that music is a universal language that develops over time through patience and consistent, positive encouragement. He brings an intentionally sequential approach to his lessons, creating customized benchmarks to meet individual student needs rather than applying a one-size-fits-all curriculum. By prioritizing finger anatomy, flexibility, and independence, his method gives students the technical skills, solid practice habits, and confidence to not only excel at performing music but also to understand the foundation behind it.

Texts & Necessary Materials

All lessons and assignments will be drawn from the following sources, with additional supplemental sources assigned as needed. 

Attendance Policy

• Students will not receive make-up lesson credits for lessons in which they do not attend without prior notification to the instructor. Should the instructor need to miss a lesson, the student(s) will be notified, and make-up lessons will be conducted at a later appointment. 

• Should a student be late for a lesson, the instructor will wait for 10 minutes before canceling the lesson. If you are planning to be late for a lesson and you do contact the instructor 24 hours in advance, it is recommended that you still reschedule the lesson if you would like your full amount of time. Usually, students are taught back-to-back without any buffer time, so it’s difficult to give students their full time when they are late without delaying other students. Certain extreme circumstances will be handled on a case-by-case basis as long as the student contacts me within 24 hours of their lesson. 

Assignments & Award System

• In addition to the lesson every week, students may have small homework assignments that will help them better understand piano theory. Also, students will have at least one page of music out of the textbook to practice every week, and they may also need to practice their recital music. All assignments are posted to my Google Classroom page. Each student will have their own section heading in my Classroom with their name on it where I will post all of their notes and assignments. 

• Point values are assigned to each task students complete. Points are awarded on three conditions: Completeness, Improvement, & Effort. I will average these points to get a final percentage at the end of the term. Below is my award system breakdown. 

  • Theory & Piano: 60%

    • Theory Assignments: 10 pts each

    • Piano Performance: 5 pts per page of a song assigned

  • Lesson Participation: 15%

  • Recital: 25% 

• Students who attain a 95% point average by the end of a term and receive a recommendation from their instructor will receive the Birchfield Piano (BP) Excellence Award. This award will give students a discount on their next month of private lessons or group course tuition charges, whichever comes first. 

• Synchronous Students: Generally, all theory assignments (written homework, online quizzes, etc.) are due 24 hours before your next lesson unless noted otherwise on your Google Classroom assignment. This will allow me time to check your work prior to the lesson, so you can get the most out of your lessons. Any theory assignment submitted beyond one (1) hour late will only receive half credit. All credit is lost once the assignment is 24 hours overdue. Please reach out to me ahead of assignment due dates if you feel you need more time. 

• Asynchronous Students: Generally, all assignments (theory work and piano practice videos) are due every Monday at 5 pm EST unless noted otherwise on your Google Classroom assignment. I will then provide feedback and further assignments every Tuesday following the Monday deadline. Assignments are accepted up to 24 hours late, but will only receive half credit. Late work may also result in your next assignments being posted a day later. All credit is lost once the 24-hour grace period has passed. Please reach out to me ahead of assignment due dates if you feel you need more time. 

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If you have any further questions, please feel free to send me a message, and I will be happy to help.