Don Byrd

Biography

Don Byrd is a professor in the Belmont University School of Music. He teaches classes in Music Theory and offers a General Education course entitled “What’s So Great About The Beatles?” He previously taught interdisciplinary courses and mentored students as an adjunct in Belmont’s Honors Program.

He received a Juris Doctor degree (J.D.) from the Belmont University College of Law, a Master of Arts degree (M.A.) in Music Theory and Composition from the University of Pittsburgh, where he was awarded a Mellon Predoctoral Fellowship, and Bachelor Degrees in Music Theory/Composition (B.M.) and Philosophy (B.A.) from Belmont as a member of the inaugural Honors Program class.

Professor Byrd’s writing and academic lectures have focused on diverse topics including the United States Supreme Court decision in Eldred v. Ashcroft, The Beatles as experimental composers, Mozart’s “Don Giovanni” through the lens of Kierkegaard’s “Either/Or,” Caetano Veloso in the 1960s, John Zorn, the film “Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind,” and Martin Scorsese’s re-make of “Cape Fear.”

He is currently researching and writing about legal issues related to musical originality in Copyright Law, as well as The Beatles’ “Rubber Soul,” in anticipation of the 50th anniversary of the album’s November 1965 release.

He lives in East Nashville with his hilarious wife, Lisa, and their two brilliant cats, Sammy and Chandler.