Today I would like to explore conductors. Not the kind that drives a train, or the kind that carries electricity, though both have similarities to my topic. No, the conductor I want to explore is the kind that stands in front of a symphony orchestra, or wind ensemble, or choir. At first glance, it appears … Continue reading What Is A Music Conductor?
music teaching
What Does an Embouchure Do?
Today I will discuss embouchure. Virtually every wind instrument music teacher uses the word, and teaches students how to form and use one. Yet embouchure can easily become one in a list of things the student must do to produce a pleasing sound on a musical instrument. When difficulties arise, or when obstacles (such as … Continue reading What Does an Embouchure Do?
Connecting–The Contextualization of Music Education
We all have musical interests, knowledge and skills. Some of each we gain from exposure to music, through a process of enculturation in which we learn from experience the structures and expressions of our own culture’s music, and to a lesser extent, of others’ cultures with which we are brought into contact. All of the … Continue reading Connecting–The Contextualization of Music Education
What Does A Classroom Where Everyone Is Teaching and Learning Look Like? (Creating Music Part 2)
Today's post is a continuation of yesterday's article, where I began to describe using the core arts standards for creating to design a classroom environment where ideas and knowledge are shared freely as a key part of a rich educational culture. Once musical ideas have been created and selected, they are evaluated. The student is … Continue reading What Does A Classroom Where Everyone Is Teaching and Learning Look Like? (Creating Music Part 2)
What Does A Classroom Where Everyone is Teaching and Learning Look Like? (Creating Music, Part 1)
Today, using the American National Core Arts Standards for music, I will begin to develop how to design learning environments that allow for bi-directional flow of ideas and knowledge between students, and between students and teacher. I will use the artistic process of creating, and the grade levels of 3-5 in American public schools. The … Continue reading What Does A Classroom Where Everyone is Teaching and Learning Look Like? (Creating Music, Part 1)
Are Teaching and Learning Really That Different?
Often when reading educational theories, I find the phrase “teaching and learning.” Typing the phrase into a popular search engine yielded 113,000,000 results. In general, understanding is seen as the goal, and teaching is seen as the actions leading to that goal. In their seminal work “Understanding by Design,” Wiggins & McTighe explained a concept … Continue reading Are Teaching and Learning Really That Different?
The Variety of Musical Dissonance
Dissonance is one of those musical elements I love to teach. This is because I love dissonance in music. For me, it is what makes music expressive, passionate, driving, exciting, powerful, and fun. Like anything else, too much dissonance is not good, but used in a balanced and skillful way; it turns very ordinary music … Continue reading The Variety of Musical Dissonance
Is Melody Always Music?
In my post on June 26, I defined melody as a sequence of tones, each of which has pitch and duration. We saw that melody did not have to have beat, rhythm, meter or tonality, just pitch and duration. I ended that post by suggesting that birdsong qualifies as melody, but questioned whether or not … Continue reading Is Melody Always Music?
When Speed Is The Thing
Anyone who has taught music lessons more than likely has encountered students who were only interested in playing fast. They come into your studio and start flying all around the music, but rarely land in just the right place. They are moving quickly from one note to the next, but the rhythm is uneven and … Continue reading When Speed Is The Thing
What Is The Most Effective Way To Teach Rhythm?
Yesterday, I discussed rhythm, defining a rhythm as a group of durations that establishes beat and meter. Once beat and meter are established, then any single duration can be considered a rhythm, because its beat and metric functions are known. Because rhythm needs a beat and metric contextual basis, music teachers should avoid teaching rhythm … Continue reading What Is The Most Effective Way To Teach Rhythm?
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