In this, the centennial anniversary of Leonard Bernstein's birth, all sorts of things that this American musical icon did are being brought out into the public consciousness. Of course, most know of Bernstein's work as a conductor, composer and teacher, what with his numerous recordings, lectures, young peoples concerts and musical compositions. Of all that … Continue reading Artful Learning
A New Vision for Music Appreciation
In my post, "Essential Questions that Matter to Students," I placed a great deal of importance on building value and relevance for students through the use of essential questions. Today, I would like to extend that conversation into the area of music appreciation. Music appreciation has been, by and large, a concept whereby those with … Continue reading A New Vision for Music Appreciation
Essential Questions that Matter to Students
One of the foundations for the design of the National Core Arts Standards is "Understanding by Design," and foundational to that method of planning and delivering instruction is the use of essential questions. Essential questions are open-ended, though provoking questions that reveal important, transferrable ideas. Because they are open-ended, they must be supported with evidence, … Continue reading Essential Questions that Matter to Students
Tips for Better Conducting
Today I want to discuss conducting. Because conducting is all about visual communication, it seems to me you will be better served with a video than with a written post. So here I am. I hope you enjoy this. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tHGSX0sI4yg
Iconic Notation and Music Literacy
Honestly, for years I considered iconic notation a cheap substitute for "real" music notation. I thought it was something music teachers used as a last resort when they had thrown in the towel at successfully teaching their students to read and write in standard music notation. Because of this view of iconic notation, I avoided … Continue reading Iconic Notation and Music Literacy
What Does Music Mean?
One of the more perplexing questions of the ages concerning music is the question, what does music mean? Philosophers from Aristotle to Bernstein have tried to answer this question, but none have done so in a way that once and for all settles the matter. Bernstein devoted much of his lecturing life to tackling the … Continue reading What Does Music Mean?
Using Student Feedback to Plan Music Instruction
When it comes to teaching, I'm a pretty old school kind of guy. Many teachers, and I count myself among them, tend to teach the way we were taught, especially if we were generally successful in school. For me and I would guess most others of my generation, we accepted what the teacher told us … Continue reading Using Student Feedback to Plan Music Instruction
21st Century Skills and Music Education
The phrase "21st century skills" has been in use for almost twenty years, yet educators still can find it difficult to find clarity in just how these skills differ from what they and their students were doing in the 20th century. Certainly technology, high level thinking, and authentic performance tasks were nothing new to educators … Continue reading 21st Century Skills and Music Education
What Is Musical Texture?
As I was writing my lesson plans for this week, I decided I wanted to teach a lesson on musical texture. I had mentioned texture in passing, but decided I needed to go further with it than that. As I prepared my lesson, I was surprised to find a limited amount of information on the … Continue reading What Is Musical Texture?
What Is Creativity and How Do Music Educators Develop It?
When asked to advocate for music education, one of the frequently given pieces of evidence is that music education develops creativity or creative thinking. While this sounds reasonable, at times it can be difficult to find much creative activity in the things that students are asked to do in both general music and music performance … Continue reading What Is Creativity and How Do Music Educators Develop It?
mister a music place 
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