Payne is the third person to receive the biennial award, presented by the American Musicological Society and Society for Music Theory.

"Dorothy Payne's impact on music pedagogy, especially in the areas of music theory and ear training, is monumental," says Jamal Rossi, dean of USC's School of Music. "Her textbook on music theory has been adopted by more than 500 music schools throughout the country, and it has been used by many thousands of music students.

To be honored with the Gaile Boyd de Stwolinski Prize for Lifetime Achievement in Music Theory Teaching and Scholarship is a most fitting testament to her passion and commitment toward teaching and the respect in which she is held throughout the national/international music community."

A $10,000 prize accompanies the award.

Payne is a professor of music theory and former dean of the USC School of Music (1994–98). She has served on the executive board of the National Associations of Schools of Music and is a consultant for Educational Testing Service and the College Board. She earned three degrees, including two in piano performance, from the Eastman School of Music, where she taught theory and ear training for 13 years. She has been on the faculty of Pacific Lutheran University and the University of Texas and served as chairman of music at the University of Arizona before coming to USC. She earned teaching-excellence awards from the Eastman School of Music and the University of Texas and received the Michael J. Mungo Undergraduate Teaching Award from USC. Payne is the co-author of "Tonal Harmony," a theory text published by McGraw-Hill, now in its fifth edition.

The Gail Boyd de Stwolinski Center was established in 1985 as a clearinghouse for the collection and dissemination of information concerning the teaching and learning of music theory in higher education. Boyd de Stwolinski was the chairman of the department of music theory at the University of Oklahoma, where she worked to elevate the role of the classroom music theory teacher.

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