Skip to content

Blog: Catalysts & Connections

Sounds and Spaces around the world…

Thanks to David Wolf for the link to Soundtransit! While some people play music from around the world for their students, it is probably less common to have field recordings for our students to listen to of actual everyday sounds from spaces and places around the world. After taking a sound journey across the world our students will probably be more conscious and aware of the everyday sounds in their own lives and environment. Since the recordings on the site… Read More »Sounds and Spaces around the world…

Catalysts & Connections – A Music Education Mixtape V3

Track 1 – How long until public school music programs start up their own laptop orchestras ? If you had one in your school one of your students might even eventually make a career writing electronica and orchestral music! Track 2 – Speaking of orchestras, why not let your students know what playing in an orchestra is like from an orchestral horn player’s perspective. Track 3 – The Cranbrook Composers’ Workshop website is a great model for music programs to… Read More »Catalysts & Connections – A Music Education Mixtape V3

Shredding & Jamming: Multimedia Music Education that is fun!

Guitar Shred Show is definitely one of the more creative ways of using multimedia applications to allow people to interact with music on the internet. One nice thing about Mr. Fastfinger is that he’ll never loose his patience as you work with him to learn licks and techniques on the electric guitar or jam with an accordion playing demon or dancing dwarves. With software that allows for the creation of online multimedia applications available at reasonable prices (with education discounts)… Read More »Shredding & Jamming: Multimedia Music Education that is fun!

Students know best about other students! More on young audiences…

It was refreshing to finally read about students’ perspectives of how to get other young people to attend classical music concerts. In some previous posts I have mentioned the need for a younger perspective when it comes to the topic of young audiences and classical music concerts. I’m not sure what the demographic make up is of this particular group that advises Lincoln Center but all the more reason to get this discussion going in our classrooms with our own… Read More »Students know best about other students! More on young audiences…

Hip Hop and Improvisation

The way hip hop is portrayed in the media plays a great role in the way our students and society in general perceive it. There has been an entire world of hip hop that has been left out of the mainstream media and that may soon change. The way rap is discussed in music classrooms can be greatly broadened if consciousness in hip hop becomes a part of the mainstream coverage of it and the conversations in our classrooms. Speaking… Read More »Hip Hop and Improvisation