Welcome to SPACE, our adult continuing education program which offers interactive monthly courses for personal enrichment! Learn more here.

Jack Schabert

Prospective SPACE Preceptor

Musician, Composer, Educator

Jack Schabert is a Twin Cities based musician, composer, and educator. He performs professionally around the metro with various jazz groups, and is an Instructor of Percussion, Piano, Drum Set, and Jazz Studies at various music schools in the area. He holds a Bachelor of Music degree from St. Olaf College in Northfield, Minnesota. [see full bio...]

Highlighted Modules

All Modules

The Music of Middle-earth Non-Sequential Series

The Music of Middle-earth series explores the musical storytelling of works related to the writings of J.R.R. Tolkien. This discussion-based course is not targeted to musicians, and no prior musical knowledge or skill set is required. Rather, the course seeks to discuss how music can tell stories, and how music interacts with text, poetry, and adaptation. A familiarity with Tolkien’s work is very helpful.

This series will study three types of musical adaptation: music inspired by Tolkien’s writing, work that has taken Tolkien’s poetry and put it to music, and music written for adaptations of Tolkien’s work. Each of these types of composition comes with their own unique storytelling approaches and outcomes.

Note: This series is not sequential, and folks are more than welcome to register for any class that interests them at any point.

The Music of Middle-earth: Howard Shore's The Fellowship of the Ring

Discussion-based • Low intensity
In this iteration of The Music of Middle-earth, we’ll be exploring Howard Shore’s score to The Fellowship of the Ring, and seeking to better understand how the music behind Peter Jackson’s film interacts with the source material, the action on screen, and even Tolkien’s poetry.

Note: This series is not sequential, and folks are more than welcome to register for any class that interests them at any point.

The Music of Middle-earth: Howard Shore's The Return of the King

Discussion-based • Low intensity
In this iteration of The Music of Middle-earth, we’ll be exploring Howard Shore’s score to The Return of the King, and seeking to better understand how the music behind Peter Jackson’s film interacts with the source material, the action on screen, and even Tolkien’s poetry.


Note: This series is not sequential, and folks are more than welcome to register for any class that interests them at any point.

The Music of Middle-earth: Howard Shore's The Two Towers

Discussion-based • Low intensity
In this iteration of The Music of Middle-earth, we’ll be exploring Howard Shore’s score to The Two Towers, and seeking to better understand how the music behind Peter Jackson’s film interacts with the source material, the action on screen, and even Tolkien’s poetry.


Note: This series is not sequential, and folks are more than welcome to register for any class that interests them at any point.

The Music of Middle-earth: Storytelling and Adaptation

Discussion-based • Low intensity
In this module we will explore the musical storytelling of works related to the writings of J.R.R. Tolkien. This discussion-based course is not targeted to musicians, and no prior musical knowledge or skill set is required. Rather, the course seeks to discuss how music can tell stories, and how music interacts with text, poetry, and adaptation. A familiarity with the work of Professor Tolkien is very helpful.

This course will study three types of musical adaptation: music inspired by Tolkien’s writing, work that has taken Tolkien’s poetry and put it to music, and music written for adaptations of Tolkien’s work. Each of these types of composition comes with their own unique storytelling approaches and outcomes.

Session Outline
  • Session 1: Johan de Meij, "Symphony No. 1: The Lord of the Rings"
  • Session 2: Martin Romberg, "Symphonic Poem, Telperion and Laurelin"
  • Session 3: Paul Corfield Godfrey: “The Tolkien Cycle”
  • Session 4: John Sangster, "The Hobbit Suite"
  • Session 5: The Tolkien Ensemble, "An Evening in Rivendell"
  • Session 6: Donald Swann: “The Road Goes Ever On, a Song Cycle”
  • Session 7: Howard Shore, "The Fellowship of the Ring"
  • Session 8: Bear McCreary, "The Rings of Power, Season One"
If you have any questions about the SPACE program, please reach out to [email protected].