Though music is always a product of the cultural context in which it is created, American popular music is perhaps more than others genres placed in a position of sociological prominence. Both from its characteristic rebelliousness and its bent toward social commentary, American popular music, unlike other musical genres including jazz and Western classical art … Continue reading The Power of Music X 2: What Happens When Music and Video Join Forces?
Music Education
A practical guide to planning, teaching, and assessing music instruction.
What Are Some Effects of Combining Music and Video?
While both music and visual art, including video, are powerful art forms in their own rights, both capable of eliciting emotional responses and memories of experiences of artistic work, their affects when combined are even more potent. While research in this area has largely been inconclusive, researchers have suggested that videos do influence a listener's … Continue reading What Are Some Effects of Combining Music and Video?
Hierarchy in Rhythmic Structure: Meter, Beat and Duration
For many years, I have been bothered by the usual definition of a time signature. In common time, it is often taught that the top number refers to the number of beats in each measure, and the bottom number refers to the kind of note that gets one beat. So a time signature of four-four … Continue reading Hierarchy in Rhythmic Structure: Meter, Beat and Duration
Musical Intelligence, Three Systems, and the Creative Processes
Among the nine intelligences identified by Howard Gardner in his Multiple Intelligences Theory, is musical intelligence. An intelligence is a way of knowing, and different people have different ways of knowing and learning. Someone who has a prevalent musical intelligence is able to use rhythms and patterns to assist learning. Such a person will learn well … Continue reading Musical Intelligence, Three Systems, and the Creative Processes
Some Musing (Maybe Ranting) on the Unhealthy State of Classical Music
Some would say that music is a reflection of the past. While this may be true, music must be more than that, or become irrelevant in spite of scholars insisting that certain music is great and worth hearing. Indeed, if any music were only a reflection of the past, it would be astounding that it lasts at all. Surely an … Continue reading Some Musing (Maybe Ranting) on the Unhealthy State of Classical Music
Creating Music and Audiences
One of the more popular composing projects in music classrooms is taking a video clip and assigning the students to compose music to accompany what they see on the screen. Such projects must be preceded by instruction on how to use musical elements and structure to convey, express, and represent emotions, images and even stories. … Continue reading Creating Music and Audiences
Rhythmic Structure of Music: It’s More Than Syllable and Counting Systems
I have observed among students and colleagues alike that there is a good deal of confusion when it comes to rhythm in music. Students are frequently confused about what rhythm is, and teachers are often confused about how to teach it. From the teacher's point of view, much of the confusion seems to come from … Continue reading Rhythmic Structure of Music: It’s More Than Syllable and Counting Systems
Developing Goals and Objectives for the Music Curriculum
With this post, I continue my series in music curriculum writing. From the title, you may notice the phrase "goals and objectives" indicating that there is a difference between the two. Goals are open-ended, long-range general statements that provide direction for the entire music education program, PK-12. Goals indicate the broad areas of learning the students … Continue reading Developing Goals and Objectives for the Music Curriculum
Developing A Philosophy Statement for the Music Curriculum Guide
In my post on the steps of developing a curriculum guide, I explained that the second step, after evaluating the current program, is to develop a philosophy statement. This statement includes why music education is important and how music education fits into the overall educational plan. In that post, I promised to explain in more … Continue reading Developing A Philosophy Statement for the Music Curriculum Guide
Double-Lip Embouchure and the Clarinet
Oboists use it, bassoonists use it, brass players use it. Using both lips to form the embouchure for playing these instruments is rarely if ever given a second thought. Not so with the clarinet. Because of the type of mouthpiece used on a clarinet, double-lip embouchure can seem difficult to learn at first, but when … Continue reading Double-Lip Embouchure and the Clarinet
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