Alvin F. Mistak received his Bachelor of Music Education from Chicago
Musical College, his Master of Music from Northwestern University, and
his Ph.D. from the University of Iowa. He was the director of orchestras
and in charge of theory and composition studies for 28 years at Evanston
Township High School in Evanston, Illinois. Before that, he served as
the director of the string program in the Park Ridge, Illinois public
school system. He was a part-time lecturer in music education at Northwestern
University, teaching string methods. Currently, he serves as a new music
reviewer for The Instrumentalist magazine, a position he has held for
over 20 years. Dr. Mistak was a member of the Board of Directors of the
Illinois Music Educators Association, serving as vice president in charge
of the high school composition contest. He is still active as a consultant
for the Super-Sensitive Musician String Company of Sarasota, Florida,
and is a recorded and published composer.