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Contemporary Issues

Reflections on using American Idol in the Music Classroom

As many readers know – ABC world news tonight broadcasted a story on the use of American Idol in the music Classroom recently that included me and many of my 5th-7th grade general music students. In this post I want to provide some background information on why I chose to use the show in my classroom, how I use it, why I participated in the news story and my reflections on the entire experience. I also just found out about… Read More »Reflections on using American Idol in the Music Classroom

MP3 Players & Hearing Loss…

While some of our students may already own an MP3 player, many more (who come from families that have enough money to buy them) will have one at the start of the new year. It might be a good time to discuss the importance of listening to music at a healthy volume level. Our students should know that listening to music through headphones at loud volumes may irreversibly damage their hearing. Take a look at some resources at the NIDCD… Read More »MP3 Players & Hearing Loss…

Copyright in (and out) of the classroom……

The issue of copyright came up in class today as it does very often. While I was explaining to a 7th grade general music class how we could apply what we have been learning about pitch, tone color, harmony, melody and rhythm by creating music in FLstudio, a student who had already downloaded the demo version at his house told me he ” inserted the voice of the Southpark character Mr. Garrison into the music” he made at home. I… Read More »Copyright in (and out) of the classroom……

The development of a student's "voice"…..

While listening to readings this evening from the new book “Letters From Young Activists: Today’s Rebels Speak Out” I was inspired by the idea that young people were given an opportunity for their voices to be heard. By providing a space for young people to give voice to their passions, perspectives and self reflections the book acted as a catalyst for further dialogue and possibly even a model for involving young people in important discussions in a very meaningful way.… Read More »The development of a student's "voice"…..

Remix Culture, Philosophy & Music….

DJ Spooky (also known as Paul D. Miller )sent an interesting email out today (also archived on nettime) that contains an interview in which he discusses issues of music as a metaphor, remix culture , collage and the relationship between his perspectives of music and the philosophies of Deleuze and Guattari. It’s definitely an interesting read and might even get you motivated to crack open some philosophy texts or at least look up some info on the web. I find… Read More »Remix Culture, Philosophy & Music….