As music teachers in many contexts, we strive to cultivate learning communities and design instruction that encourage students to develop a deep and personal connection with music-making. Current research has suggested that Self-Determination Theory (SDT; Ryan & Deci, 2017) can be used to understand the development of musical skills, continued participation in music (Guan & Luo, 2025), well-being (Bonneville-Roussy et al., 2020; Krause, 2019), practice habits (Fonseca, 2023; Schatt, 2018, 2023), and sense of belonging and connection (Ryan & Deci, 2020) as they relate to intrinsic motivation. The purpose of this session is to present a theory-informed application of Self-Determination Theory to teaching strategies in the music classroom. Grounded in our professional practice and guided by the literature, we will discuss teaching strategies that support students to develop intrinsic motivation for lifelong musical curiosity and creativity (Evans, 2015). This session will address motivation in a variety of ensemble classroom settings, including K-12 schools, higher education, and community music schools. SDT is a framework for intrinsic motivation that stresses the importance of three basic psychological needs: autonomy, competence, and relatedness. Autonomy is the need to be in control, competence is the need to develop mastery, and relatedness is the need to experience a sense of belonging and connection with others (Ryan & Deci, 2017). Ryan and Deci conceptualize motivation on a spectrum, including amotivation, extrinsic motivation, and intrinsic motivation (Ryan & Deci, 2020). By supporting our students’ psychological needs of autonomy, competency, and relatedness, within the ensemble community, we can create the conditions for students to develop intrinsic motivation that enriches their musical experience. In this session, we will use an SDT lens to reflect on our previous teaching experiences and share how SDT continues to inform our teaching across music classroom contexts. Teachers can help students develop autonomy by providing them with the tools and opportunities to plan, perform, create, evaluate, and reflect on their learning and musical performances. They can help students develop competence through well-sequenced instruction within their zone of proximal development (Vygotsky, 1978) and by providing specific constructive feedback. Finally, to facilitate relatedness, teachers can cultivate a classroom defined by belonging where students feel welcomed, seen, heard, and valued (Sherman & Gallion, 2023) for who they are. We will discuss the implementation of these practice-based examples to offer strategies for teachers that center autonomy, competence, and relatedness in their classrooms in service of supporting students’ intrinsic motivation to make music.