music educators

Third Annual Choral Directors of Note

MAC to the Rescue

Of the many organizations created to aid music educators, few offer such direct assistance as the Music Achievement Council. With the singular goal of promoting school band and orchestra participation, MAC has updated and re-released their non-commercial Practical Guide for Recruitment and Retention.

Rick Young, Yamaha Corporate VP and the Council's chairman, recently took some time to speak with SBO about MAC's latest publication and its practical applications for music educators.

School Band & Orchestra: First off, can you tell me a little bit about the MAC?
Rick Young: The Music Achievement Council is an action-oriented non-profit organization sponsored by NABIM (the National Association of Band Instrument Manufacturers), NASMD (the National Association of School Music Dealers), and NAMM (the International Music Products Association.). The Council is comprised of three representatives from NABIM, three from NASMD, and one from NAMM. The purpose of the council is to promote instrumental music participation, with particular emphasis on producing materials that encourages students to join and stay in band and orchestra.

Breathing Your Way to a Better Band

"More…More…MORE!" How many times as music educators have we shouted this word out of frustration with air production? For the majority of us, the question is answered with a number somewhere around one million, give or take a couple hundred thousand. Perhaps the more important question to ask ourselves is, "How many times a week as music educators do we incorporate breathing exercises into our daily warm-up procedures?" My intuition tells me the number is not nearly as high as the answer to the first question. Regrettably, for bands and students alike, not enough time is spent on the one fundamental that can instantly transform both individual and band sound: breathing.

The Need for Breathing Warm-ups
In many school rehearsal situations, directors barely have time to do any type of playing warm-up. How can anyone rationalize even just two precious minutes for a breathing exercise? The main justification lies in the fact that a proper airstream, coupled with a good embouchure, is critical in achieving superior performance. By mastering control of their breathing, students will improve their individual tone qualities and contribute to the overall sound of the ensemble. With tone being inseparably linked to intonation, breathing exercises also help with pitch stabilization and the result is generally a more "in-tune" sound. Appropriate breath support also helps students execute crescendos and decrescendos without going out of tune and allows them more control in extreme dynamic registers. Finally, students are able to play longer phrases in fewer breaths, heightening the musicality level of the ensemble. The benefits reaped from breathing exercises affect all aspects of performance from beginning band through the collegiate and professional ranks.

If mastering correct breath control involved only taking big gulps of air before playing your part to get a better tone, directors would just need to be verbal "Post-It Notes" for their players, reminding them to take in more air for a richer sound. When habits are not formed early in the training of instrumentalists, students will respond to the litany of director outcries, but only for so long. Eventually the student, who once responded to the incessant begging and pleading, will dismiss these commands entirely.

MENC Celebrates 100 Years

Our unique field of education benefits from the support of a large number of organizations and the largest one, MENC - The National Association for Music Education, is now celebrating the historic event of their 100th anniversary. This extraordinary milestone places a marker on the side of the mountain that we continue to climb in order to provide a sound musical education for every student in the United States. Although this goal may never be 100 percent achieved, the leadership and staff at MENC is certainly working creatively and effectively to make this dream a reality.

According to the MENC Web site, the humble beginning of the organization was in 1907 with just 64 founding members. It has since grown to 130,000 members from all levels of music education, including pre-school through college, friends of music, and corporate and outside sponsors. This tremendous number of affiliates provides MENC with the resources necessary to accomplish projects such as the highly successful National Anthem project, their three-year program to restore recognition and understanding of the "Star Spangled Banner" and to get the country singing again.

When you consider the depth of accomplishments of this organization it is not difficult to imagine the widespread visibility it has generated for music education. By partnering with some of the nation's great corporations and organizations, such as Jeep, Texaco, Oscar Meyer, NAMM, The Smithsonian, and many others, MENC has brought together disparate groups to foster support for their many pro-music education initiatives. Most notable have been the development of the National Standards for Music Education, sponsorship of the National Music in Our Schools Month, and the Harris Poll on how music programs contribute to higher school attendance and graduation rates, along with many other programs. MENC continues to support our efforts as music educators with both the Washington establishment and the country at large.

Time is a Barometer of Success: More Shortcuts with Music Suite and Notation Applications Part Three of Four

Technology is supposed to make it easier and faster to accomplish tasks. And, in theory, music software applications can be worth their weight in gold. But there is an important issue to consider: the learning curve. This may challenge even the experienced among us. To counteract this, consider using suite applications. This allows different software applications to employ the same user interface, making mastery of the product much easier and more direct. Microsoft Office 97, 2000, 2002, 2003 and now the Microsoft Office 2007 suites are good examples for a business/office application. Many modules are seamlessly integrated - such as Microsoft Word, Access, PowerPoint, Excel, and Outlook, among others - with data compatibility and the same user-interface.

Model Suite Concept for Music Educators
In a perfect world in terms of software development, an integrated suite is the most efficient way for busy music educators to teach several different software applications. However, most software applications are modular and proprietary. This means you have to learn different keystrokes between several software applications such as notation, sequencing, film scoring, et cetera. But now there is an Australian product that is attempting to set the global standard for all music software manufacturers. This powerful product seamlessly integrates six different instructional applications together with one user interface for the music education market. It is called Mastering Music, by Datasonics (www.datasonics.com.au).

There are some unique features that help Mastering Music stand apart. In one integrated package, Mastering Music teaches lessons in composing, publishing, digital audio, music theory, ear training and film scoring. And the learning curve is refreshingly short. 430 comprehensive tutorial lessons guide the user through various musical activities, with hyperlinks in the lessons that link to a help page containing text, pictures and video tutorials that tell-and-show how to complete the activities. Using this approach, it doesn't take an "expert" to see results. Self-paced learning lets students move at a speed suited to their level of ability and experience. A V.I.P. introduction to Mastering Music is available online (www.datasonics.com.au/mmusavideo.html). You, the music educator, can spend time with students who need more direct supervision, while the majority of students will be able to work well on their own. The latest version of Mastering Music (7) includes a student log. As each student works through the lesson material, a log is generated containing which lessons were worked on, session times, and results achieved. Each student's log file is in XML format and can be viewed using the log viewer. The teacher can access these to prepare reports on the student's progress, or the logs can be accumulated to produce assessment reports.

2004 Midwest Band Clinic: Furthering the Careers of Music Educators

The recent Midwest Band Clinic, held at the Chicago Hilton, was a typically action-packed affair, with numerous student performances, clinic sessions, award ceremonies, and lectures - not to mention plenty of opportunities to eat, drink, and socialize with colleagues and mentors. The exhibit halls were well trafficked and most organizations that we spoke with reported brisk business.

Challenges in the New Year

Budget cuts, government initiatives, and offshore instrument manufacture were some of the "hot topics" of 2004 for music educators. While at the Midwest Band Clinic, SBO took the opportunity to ask a handful of directors for their opinions on what issues will take center-stage in 2005.

Music Literacy Applications

A new frontier for music educators is interactive Web-based instruction and assessment. Why? Because there aren't enough hours in the day let alone class time to do all the great things music educators can accomplish. And now with music technology, it is possible to successfully augment your curriculum as well as cleverly assess all those pressing standards.

Interactive Web-based instruction and assessment can bring you and your students together with 24/7 flexibility. Band, choral, and string performance techniques now have home instruction options because programs such as Makemusic's SmartMusic and Pyware's iPAS can improve the quality of home practice and provide accountability data.

The most recent development is numeric data assessment on your Web site that is not easily obtained in the classroom setting where teachers are overloaded with so many responsibilities. I can't think of anything more precious to busy music educators than more efficient use of their time.

Ray E. Cramer and Kelly S. Jocius

2006 marks the 60th anniversary of the Midwest Clinic - an International Band and Orchestra Conference (www.midwestclinic.com). From its humble genesis as one-day event held at a Chicago YWCA to its present-day status as a five-day, multi-venue symposium, The Midwest Clinic has been consistent in its aim to expose music educators to effective teaching techniques, as well as new products and published music.

SBO recently spoke with Ray E. Cramer and Kelly Jocius, president and executive director of The Midwest Clinic, respectfully, about the organization's milestone, their own feelings about the clinic, and what the future may hold.

More Free Stuff for the Looking

A journey of a thousand miles beings with a single step. And all of us music educators who have taken a single step into technology have seen wonders in spite of the obstacles. It can be difficult to start the journey, though, when you're in survival mode with limited resources. The previous article in this series may have helped you cut through the expensive technology hoopla and there's more good news. Read on.

Shareware Vs. Freeware
Shareware and manufacturer product demos have certain advantages over freeware because their products usually get upgraded faster and can be superior over to freeware applications because of significant product research and development. More personal technical support is another advantage. There are also more shareware applications available than freeware. The cost for shareware and manufacturer demos can usually be justified once success is imminent, especially when your students are "buzzing" about them. In the case of shareware, the cost is usually rather nominal with a $20 to $30 fee per workstation after you have fully tried it and are satisfied after 30 days of use with yourself or your students. Updates are sometimes free as well, making shareware even more attractive.

The main difference between shareware and freeware is that shareware is not free software. If you continue to use it after the trial period, you must send the author your registration. This is described in the documentation that comes with the software and states the terms on which the software can be used, such as education or non-commercial use, for example.

Shareware

A journey of a thousand miles beings with a single step. And all of us music educators who have taken a single step into technology have seen wonders in spite of the obstacles. It can be difficult to start the journey, though, when you're in survival mode with limited resources. The previous article in this series may have helped you cut through the expensive technology hoopla and there's more good news. Read on.

Shareware Vs. Freeware
Shareware and manufacturer product demos have certain advantages over freeware because their products usually get upgraded faster and can be superior over to freeware applications because of significant product research and development. More personal technical support is another advantage. There are also more shareware applications available than freeware. The cost for shareware and manufacturer demos can usually be justified once success is imminent, especially when your students are "buzzing" about them. In the case of shareware, the cost is usually rather nominal with a $20 to $30 fee per workstation after you have fully tried it and are satisfied after 30 days of use with yourself or your students. Updates are sometimes free as well, making shareware even more attractive.

UPCLOSE: THE MAGNITUDE OF MENTORSHIP

It's the first day of school for the 22-year-old music director, and it's also his first day on the job. This small town has but one high school and he is the only music educator in the building - teaching band, orchestra and chorus. The empty music hall that awaits him seems large and unwelcoming as his solitary footsteps echo throughout the concrete room. The nearest high school is 15 miles away in the neighboring school district. Not surprisingly, the new director feels very alone - but not unprepared.

His undergraduate courses have trained him well for the tasks at hand. His lesson plans are in order, his grade book organized with all the names of his new music students. The director has selected, researched and memorized every piece of music each ensemble will be playing this term. He's even survived the week-long marching band camp - although a few unexpected situations had arisen, and at the time he had looked around for someone to help him, to answer his questions...only to realize that the solutions must come from him alone.

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