News

New UK National Curriculum Materials Announced

The United States isn't the only nation in the midst of wide-ranging overhauls to education standards. According to the Music Education UK blog, the first batch of the the United Kingdom Department for Education's support materials for England's new National Curriculum for Music (which goes into effect this September) has been released. On behalf of the Incorporated Society of Musicians (ISM), Music Education Consultant and Research Fellow at the University of Sussex, Alison Daubney, has produced a number of documents to support teachers to develop their music curriculum in line with the requirements of the new National Curriculum.

Ice Music

The Ultimate Winter Orchestra

While much of the U.S. slogs through a cold, snowy winter, a group of artistic-minded people from an area where harsh winter weather is the norm have adapted some unique creative outlets. In what might be the most extreme ensemble of its kind, a Scandinavian group has created an entire orchestra out of ice. Ice Music, based in Swedish Lapland, some of the northernmost inhabited territory on the planet, is a performing group that plays in a giant igloo on instruments built out of blocks of ice.

Music for All Joins The Music Education Policy Roundtable

Coalition for Music Education Advocacy Continues to Grow

Music for All is continuing its efforts to expand the role of music and the arts in education by joining the Music Education Policy Roundtable (MEPR). MEPR works to ensure the presence and perseverance of school music programs, by advocating for Music Education policy among political and governmental agencies.

“Encouraging strong policymaking and public commitment to music and arts education are fundamental strategies of Music for All,” said Eric L. Martin, President and CEO. “Joining and being active in the Music Education Policy Roundtable is a logical way for us to advance our vision to be a catalyst to ensure that every child across America has access and opportunity to participate in active music making in his or her scholastic environment.”

The 2014 Essay Contest Winners

SBO is proud to present the winners of the 2014 SBO Essay Scholarship Contest

Two students each from Illinois and Virginia were among the 10 scholarship winners of this year’s SBO essay contest, with the other six from Colorado, New Jersey, New York, Massachusetts, Texas, and Wisconsin. Five winners from grades 4 to 8 and five students from grades 9 to 12 each received music scholarships of $1,000, with their respective school music programs awarded a matching prize of musical products from cosponsors NAMM, Alfred Music Publishing, the Woodwind & Brasswind, and Yamaha Corporation of America.

USAF Academy Band Plays Beethoven’s 5th

Check out this unique rendition of Beethoven's 5th Symphony, as the United States Air Force Academy Band fuses acting, comedy, and sports metaphors to educate the audience on a classic piece of symphonic repertoire. 

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CMA Donates $1m toward Music Ed in Nashville

The Country Music Association's Keep the Music Playing Campaign Funds Public School Music

The Country Music Association (CMA) Foundation has donated $1 million toward music education programs for Nashville public school students, part of CMA’s Keep the Music Playing campaign.

The donation stems from CMA’s 2013 Country Music Festival and raises the organization’s support of metro schools in Nashville to more than $7.5 million. The funds have been used for the purchase of musical instruments and supplies through a partnership with the Nashville Public Education Foundation.

Foundation Provides $25K Grant for Music Ed

The Board of Directors of the Joseph and Vera Zilber Family Foundation has awarded a $25,000 grant to the music program at Milwaukee, Wisconsin's Ronald Regan International Baccalaureate (IB) High School to continue helping students perform, compose and study music.

WGI’s 2014 Hall of Fame Inductees

Tom Aungst, Julie Davlia, and Jim Dwyer to enter WGI HOF on April 9, 2014

Tom Aungst, Julie Davila, and Jim Dwyer have been elected into the WGI Hall of Fame. These individuals will join 52 distinguished fellow honorees and will be inducted in a ceremony to take place Wednesday, April 9, just prior to the start of the 2014 Percussion World Championships in Dayton, Ohio.

The Hall of Fame is the highest honor presented to individuals who have influenced WGI history through their achievements and contributions. Each year, outstanding individuals who have made significant contributions to the activity are inducted.

Bands of America’s 2014 Hall of Fame Inductees

Music for All announces three industry leaders to be inducted to the 2014 Bands of America Hall of Fame

Music for All has announced the industry leaders who will be inducted into the 2014 Bands of America Hall of Fame: Eugene Migliaro Corporon, Fred and Marlene Miller and Camilla M. Stasa.

The Bands of America Hall of Fame recognizes individuals who have had a positively life-changing impact on Music for All’s Bands of America programs and music education.  2014 inductees were announced in the evening of Saturday, November 16^th, during the opening ceremonies of the Bands of America Grand National Championships, presented by Yamaha, at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis.

A Truly Inspiring Pianist

Kent Knappenberger Wins Inaugural Music Ed Grammy Award

In its inaugural year, The Recording Academy and the Grammy Foundation will present the Music Educator Award to Kent Knappenberger, a music teacher form Chautauqua County, N.Y. Knappenberger, who works at Westfield Academy and Central School, was one of 25 finalists selected from more than 30,000 nominated educators.

A former student of his, Laura Lee Anderson, posted this statement that she made in support of “Mr. K” on her blog, lauraleeanderson.wordpress.com:

Final Public Review of Core Standards Set for February

The National Coalition for Core Arts Standards (NCCAS) has scheduled the final public review of its draft Pre-K-12 arts standards in dance, media arts, music, theatre, and visual arts to run February 14, 2014 through February 28. A draft reading copy of will be available on January 30 at nccas.wikispaces.com.

This review is part of the NCCAS’s process designed to allow time for each arts discipline time to incorporate changes suggested by those reviewing the drafts.  The project’s timeline was recently revised, with this February review coming as the first in a series of new benchmarks that will lead to the web-based release of the standards in June, 2014.