The Music Department enjoys two performance spaces on campus. The Heckman Auditorium, located in the Communications Building near the center of the campus, is a 525-seat performance space in which all major concerts, such as the Homecoming Concert and Christmas Festival, take place.
The recently remodeled Whitcomb-Lee Conservatory served for many years as the home for the Doane music program. Several Music Department events are held each year in the conservatory performance space.
The Music Department has several dedicated spaces including a choir room, band room, and a music education resource room complete with a state of the art Mac lab, Orff instrument lab, and sets of music methods and texts, and much more.
The college owns a great deal of music equipment including two Steinway concert instruments, state-of-the-art recording equipment featuring the industry standard Pro Tools software. Additionally, recent significant gifts to the college Music Department have made it possible to provide continuous future upgrades of equipment, facilities, and experiences for students.
Doane's proximity to Lincoln has made it possible to bring great artists and educators from around the country to the campus. Recent visits include such notable artists as jazz pianist Valerie Capers, noted choral arranger Alice Parker, wind band conductors Robert Grechesky and Frank Tracz, pianists Arnoldo Cohen, Spencer Myer, and Joel Fan, and ensembles such as the Imani Winds and the Modigliani String Quartet.
Every year students have the opportunity to travel as members of the college's elite musical organizations. In 2008, the choir traveled to Arizona and Europe where they performed several concerts and took advantage of the cultural opportunities available to them. In 2010, the Symphonic Wind Ensemble will take an Interterm trip to the Pacific Northwest where they will visit important places as well as perform in some summer venues as part of the tour.
The high quality of our music program has brought recognition to both our students and our musical organizations. The Doane choral program has performed with both the Omaha and Lincoln Symphonies, and has also performed with Abendmusik at First Plymouth Congregational Church in Lincoln. This year, Doane Choir has been selected to perform at the Nebraska Music Educators Association Conference in November. The Symphonic Wind Ensemble has also performed for both the Nebraska Music Educator's Association conference and The Nebraska State Bandmaster's Association conference. Last year the Symphonic Wind Ensemble presented a clinic with nationally known music educator Dr. Jeremy Lane at the annual Nebraska State Bandmaster's Association meeting.