Music Education for All

Here is our official review of the new movie "El Sistema." Please see our forum to connect with others who are interested in this ground-breaking idea.

"El Sistema cries out for music in a time when music programs are getting cut and government dollars are dwindling. Largely funded by the government of Venezuela, this nation-wide music education program is teaching over 250,000 youth not only how to play instruments, but also how to play a positive role in society. Paul Smaczny and Maria Stodtmeier do a fantastic job bringing the real struggle of Venezuelan citizens to life – including several interviews with people who are scared each day for their own lives and the lives of their children. It is in just this kind of intense environment that El Sistema has thrived! José Antonio Abreu, the founder of el Sistema, makes frequent appearance in the film and it is clear that his perseverance has inspired those around him to continue to promote and sustain el Sistema for years to come. The profound impact of el Sistema has given thousands of Venezuelan children a new chance at living. Musical expression has given them a way to create a bright future in a country where that future once seemed questionable."
 
- Music Ed for All

As I continue to reflect in my first two months of teaching, I have started to notice what pushes my buttons- this week, it was incessant chatter during rehearsal.

If students are goofing around during rehearsal time and time again, one's natural inclination might be to get mad at the students.  "Why aren't you paying attention?! You're distracting everyone!  If I have to tell you one more time..." But should I really be mad at my students? No- I should be "mad" at myself for not having better classroom management. 

Why are students goofing around? Oh, she's probably bored.  Why is she bored?  She plays percussion and hasn't been assigned to either of the last two pieces I was rehearsing.  Hmm... maybe I should find something for my percussionists to do when they're sitting... 

These are the internal conversations I need to have.  I am still young enough to vividly remember rehearsals as a trumpet player in middle school.  I was used to getting the melody- if I had a "boring" part on a lyrical piece, my mind was anywhere but in that rehearsal. If I, the student who knew he wanted to be a band director since middle school, still find myself antsy in professional ensemble rehearsals, surely I shouldn't blame my own students.

Yes, some students have ADHD.  Yes, some students are being disrespectful of other students, teachers, and the learning environment. Yes, we all have "off" days.  But I still think our focus should revolve around our ability as teachers to foster an environment where students are engaged and excited about what they are learning.

-Dan Leeman

Technology has created new concert etiquette challenges...


While checking my Facebook page, I noticed one of my younger brothers friends post: 

I've found that teaching tuning and intonation to students can be very challenging. It is not something that can be learned instantaneously, but is a skill that must be carefully developed over time.

In my experiences, tuning is taught by saying, "Get rid of the beats," "Pull out," or "push in." This probably sounds very familiar to some people, but is there an understanding of what is actually happening? My instincts tell me that there isn't. Amidst the time crunches and pressures from administrators and parents to put on a concert, we become completely engulfed in preparing that concert. When really as MUSIC educators we neglect teaching the skills necessary to become fine musicians.


To nurture a sense of intonation, one must get students to listen. Not hear, but listen. Once a student becomes focused and listens to the sound, work with intonation can begin. 


It seems that there is a giant black hole where knowledge about tuning exists, but so many are afraid to delve into it in the correct manor. More to come in future posts about my specific thoughts on the sequencing of instruction needed to nurture Intonationally independent students.


~Neal Raskin

As I have thought about how to advocate for music, there is a theme that keeps coming up. Do I stand up for music because it helps students' standardized test scores? Or, do I argue that music for musics' sake is enough for people to understand? 


The obvious answer is a hybrid of the two questions, but nevertheless, I would like to lay down a framework of ideas that have come up.


#1:  When we make connections between music and student achievement in other disciplines, we need to explore WHY this achievement has climbed. Music gives students a new way to see math. The dimension of time relationships in music is a way that students can feel math. They can sense proportions of 2 to 1, 2 to 3, etc... when they perform the differences between quarter notes, half notes, and triplet figures. This is a way to experience mathematical ideas in a different way. Students who may never have understood fractions can still perform notes of different lengths. When a student can begin to understand how their performance relates to what is printed on a page of music, that student can make connections between performance and mathematics.


#2: Students "Read" music in a way that creates connections with English test scores. In traditional reading, students can stumble over words and spend a lot of time fumbling around for understanding with what they read. In music reading, students must read in a given tempo, which forces them to read at a faster rate. Since musical line can be left up for interpretation, a student learns to make inferences about possible meanings of notes on a page. This kind of creative thinking adds depth to that student's understanding of classroom texts in reading and other reading-based disciplines.


#3: Students who participate in a music ensemble have a chance to be part of a group in which NO SINGLE person is un-important. If one musician does not play a solo, or if one player holds onto a note for too long, an entire performance can be jeopardized. This is a unique situation that does not happen in a normal classroom or any sport (except for individual sports). This kind of accountability teaches students much more about life than many experiences in their adolescent years. 


While I do not claim to be an expert in cognitive research and music, I do think that, as musicians, we must find ways to speak up for ourselves as important independent from our affect on test scores. This is a short list of items I believe are crucial to advocating for the arts and music specifically. I hope to add more as time goes on and I hope to edit these as I learn new things about music and education.


-Andrew Beard

With the philosophy of music education for all, I have been thinking a lot about the social groups that instrumental music tends to “leave out” - ELL students and students with special needs.

In my own experience, I have worked this year with students who are in the process of being diagnosed with specific learning disabilities and others who have already been diagnosed with mild learning disorders. Without a para or a team teaching situation, I have found it difficult to set an appropriate pace for the class to accommodate a variety of learning styles and needs in the classroom.

The most positive interactions I have had with students with special needs are always in a one-on-one teaching scenario. Even taking a few minutes outside of class can make a world of difference to a student. One brass student had difficulty finding the appropriate register when asked to play a note, even a trumpet C4 would sound half an octave below due to lack of an aural target and air support. With time spent on pitch matching back and forth (and without the pressure of other students in the classroom), he/she was able to match the pitches and identify any discrepancies between my pitch and the one that he/she performed.

I also have been considering the expectations we place on our students from the very beginning of instrumental lessons. Think of how many physical and mental processes we foster in our students: appropriate posture, constancy and stability of breathing, steadiness of tempo (internally as well as tapping a foot), identification of musical symbols, reading notation at a steady tempo... the list goes on and on! For a student with learning disabilities, some steps may fall into place more easily than others. While I may be able to have a student emulate pitches by rote, expecting them to “read” music at a steady beat is often too difficult of a task to complete right away. In individual situations, I'll spend time to “break down” the notational components into smaller, more recognizable chunks. I really strive to constantly encourage and reinforce the correct habits so that each student can feel successful in their playing while isolating more difficult areas and spending time on individual components that need additional work.

-Dan Leeman

It is commonly understood that reading literacy is the gateway to a solid educational foundation. Without the ability to read, students would find it difficult to learn without direct instruction. They would rely upon information that would be either experiential or told to them directly by another person. If a student wanted to gather information without outside help, it would be nearly impossible.


Imagine a classroom in which the following happens:
A Ninth Grade student is studying a passage of Shakespeare. One the first read, the student struggles to pronounce some of the words. On the next, the student is able to pronounce all of the words smoothly and without pause. On the third read, the student finally recognizes a few of the words and their meanings. Not until the fourth and subsequent readings is the student able to comprehend anything that is being written. It is long after that before the student is able to grasp for deeper meaning and plot points.


I have come to believe that when my students cannot have any grasp of sight reading, it is similar to the student who struggles reading Shakespeare. Without the knowledge of how to smoothly get from measure to measure, my student does not understand the larger intent of the piece. Once the student learns to read music, however; interpretation, analysis, and style are no longer things reserved only for memorization. A new world has been opened in which the student can truly become an independent musician.


The question of what (sight reading proficiency) is so much easier to talk about than the how. There are so many "If Only's" (Time, money, staff, to name a few) that seem to work against us as teachers that the task seems daunting. After watching Jerome Upton of Duluth, MN work with his choirs, I am convinced that sight reading can be accomplished. His group sang pieces with concert appropriate interpretation on their THIRD DAY of reading the music. His students came alive with expression and with questions and comments about how to better perform the music. Instead of taking time to read and re-read the piece, the students were making music right away! 


As I go on with my musical journey, I will try and share insights into anything I learn about sight reading. Until then, I would love to hear from anyone who has ideas!


-Andrew Beard 

This is the start of an exciting journey for me- my first year of teaching!

I am fortunate to have the wonderful opportunity to work in Fargo Public Schools in Fargo, ND as a middle school band teacher.  I teach brass, percussion, and clarinet sectional lessons, in addition to sixth grade, eighth grade and jazz bands.

One of the greatest benefits to working in a large school district is the chance to learn from other veteran educators.  So many teachers, administrators, and school staff have offered me their time and expertise if I ever have questions or concerns.

I will continue to blog about my experiences as a new teacher, but for a while I have been hoping for more collaboration within the blog world of music education.  I am happy to announce that my friends and colleagues, Andrew Beard and Neal Raskin, will be joining the "Music Education for All" blog.

My philosophy of "Music Education for All" was never intended to showcase wind band-only related ideas, rather this is my own area of concentration.  Andrew Beard will be able to contribute ideas that are more geared for choral music, and Neal Raskin will be able to contribute the ideas and opinions of a senior music education major.

We look forward to sharing and collaborating in the year to come!
-Dan Leeman

These past couple of weeks have been exciting as I prepare for my first year as a middle school band teacher in Fargo, ND. I moved up to Moorhead, MN yesterday and had the fortunate opportunity to attend an ACDA-MN Summer Dialogue session at Concordia College-Moorhead.

The session featured Minnesota composers David Dickau, Jocelyn Hagen, and Timothy Takach. Though I am primarily a band teacher, my interest in choral composition and the commissioning of new music drew me to this dialogue.

Choosing a Text:

Dickau commented that choosing a text was one of the most important parts of his compositional process. After choosing a text, Dickau reads and recites the text for two weeks, meditating on the flow and the meaning of the lyrics before even considering the musical composition. Takach and Hagen agreed that there has to be some lyricism and evocative phonics and phrases that would textually stimulate the audience.

Conductor and Composer:

Hagen communicated strongly that she “expects to work with your choir if you commission me! It is part of the experience.” Dickau hopes that conductors will take their own direction with his music (within reason); no piece of music should ever be performed exactly the same way twice.

The Commissioning Process:

All three composers agreed that the conductor or commissioning party should be involved in the creative process of the music. While some conductors have very clear images in mind and others simply want to help aid in the creation of a new piece of music, the composers stressed that creative input is welcome, but also need freedom to be creative. Hagen encouraged conductors to commission arrangements if full compositions are too expensive. Dickau said that while he gives a quote to interested commissioners, he is always willing to negotiate. After all, commissioning and musical composition is all about the people, and not the money.