As I embark on a new school year, I am faced with the challenge of taking my school ensembles “to the next level” in terms of their performance ability.  They have always struggled with the concept of HAVING TO PRACTICE in order to improve your playing skills!

For this year, I think taking a step back and going over the basics will help.  The more advanced students will have a nice review time, while the younger players will learn something new!  As music directors, we tend to get focused on the performance aspect, and not the learning.  I have heard countless veteran directors say that the basics will lend toward a better performance; meaning if students have a better understanding of the basics of playing the instrument (good tone, posture, articulation) and basics of reading (notation, rhythms, dynamics), then the music will come together much easier.  It’s time to step back, get re-focused on what is important in music education-have students enjoy creating music.

From A Music Education Blog Collaborative, Joseph Abramo has initiated a discussion about the notion that modern society may eventually see the end of the “traditional ensemble.”  His argument is that there are more options available with the use of computers, keyboards, and other tone generators to create timbres that are not possible with the traditional ensemble.  While I agree that a composer can create more tone color with tone generators and samplers, it cannot replace what we consider to be “traditional” instrumentation.  The violin, flute, saxophone, and all others were considered new technologies when they were conceived.  Composers have used that form of new technology to create a vast array of tone color.  Think about what Stravinsky did with his use of tone color.  He radically changed the way modern music is composed.  Alternative ensembles are nothing new.  MIDI ensembles, laptop ensembles, and others are becomig more mainstream all of the time.

Interesting concept, though.

I am pleased to announce that I have been elected as Chairperson-Elect for the Southeast District Board of Directors for 2006-2008.  I am honored to serve the board, and all of my fellow music educators in the Southeast District.

There has been much discussion over how the library of the future will look. I think a glimpse may be upon us with Google's Book search. All 37 Shakespeare plays are now available for searching on the Googl website. I wrote a while back about what Kathy Schrock had said about what the library will look like in the future.

The library (the actual structure) has always been the center of all student research, but now the Internet is now growing to be just as important as the library. The trouble with the Internet is how EASY it is to get information, and how EASY it is to plagiarise. The benefit of the library is that one sometimes comes across other sources not originally thought of.

A great article on ideas on how to use a Smartboard in the classroom.

There has been much about the idea of "Web 2.0"  This is not a new version of the web, but more of a paradigm shift from a place to read and gather information, to a place where one contributes information.  This can also be called a "read and write" web.

Here are some Web 2.0 companies

It's that time of year when I start to ask my kids how many are taking band again next year. The school I teach in is fairly small, and scheduling is always tight. Many WANT to be in band, but their schedule does not allow. I also have that group that wishes to "move on" and try different things. Many want to take a computer course, or a TV Production course. This lengthy article touches on the unique task of recruiting.

(I love this picture of a contra that I found!!!)

There are several theories out there on what schools should be teaching when it comes to technology. Many feel that teaching how to “use” the computer is actually incorporating technology into the curriculum. Instead, the school should be asking “how can technology enhance student learning?” The instruction must go beyond showing students how to use the technology, but how to learn from using the computers.

Here is an article that comments on this subject…

Below is a news item I found about a documentary exploring the history of the "devil's interval" or the tritone (Augmented 4th or Diminished 5th) It also touched upon the "reverse playback" craze of the sixties with The Beatles and Led Zeppelin. Interesting stuff…

A new documentary about heavy metal music history explores the musical phenomenon known as "The Devil's Interval," which was suppressed by church authorities during the Middle Ages. Snip:

On the surface there might appear to be no link between Black Sabbath, Wagner's Gotterdammerung, West Side Story and the theme tune to the Simpsons. But all of them rely heavily on tritones, a musical interval that spans three whole tones, like the diminished fifth or augmented fourth. This interval, the gap between two notes played in succession or simultaneously, was branded Diabolus in Musica or the Devil's Interval by medieval musicians.A rich mythology has grown up around it. Many believe that the Church wanted to eradicate the sounds from its music because it invoked sexual feelings, or that it was genuinely the work of the Devil. It is a mythology much beloved of long-haired guitar wizards.

April is Jazz Appreciation Month! A bit late, but I've been "to the hills, where my heart is lonely…" MENC is promoting this great music with lessons and information.
http://www.menc.org/guides/jazz/jazzappreciation.html