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music education

Summer Transitions…

I recently returned from the Mayday Group Conference held this past weekend. There were many excellent papers presented that have interesting implications for music education. I’ll be posting sporadically throughout the summer since I will be travelling around for much of it and will start posting regularly again in September. Enjoy your summer!

What music does the doctor order?

Whether in a car on a long trip or a surgery room, the conversation of what music should be listened to is a common one. Whether you are an anesthesiologist or a driver, deciding on music that works for the majority of people present can be a tricky task.  These conversations might spark some debate in our classrooms. Besides discussing taste, it might be interesting to have a discussion with students about what music best fits certain situations and why.… Read More »What music does the doctor order?

Analyzing arrangements and covers by mashing them up …

I’ve always enjoyed having my students compare various arrangements of the same piece, discussing style and various musical elements that are similar and different. Over at the riddimmethod, wayneandwax gives an interesting example of tracking the development of different versions of a piece of music. Focusing on the various versions of “Solomon linda’s “mbube

Does anyone play the laptop in your school?

The topic of composing and performing with a laptop will be a theme running through this blog I’m sure for a long time. Over at newmusicbox Marc Weidenbaum recently wrote an interesting article tracing the history of musciains using the laptop, focusing on some recent composers/performers making use of it in their own work. After getting a lot of feedback he wrote a short follow up with information that gives a fascinating insight into the possibilties that laptops allow musicians.… Read More »Does anyone play the laptop in your school?

Iconic notation music videos

I have written before about the use of iconic notation in composing with computer software. In having students listen to and analyze music it can be very helpful for them to use iconic notation to help them focus on various details in the music. This online video of Bach’s’ Toccata and Fugue in D Minor is completely in iconic notation. This is just one of many videos created by the music animation machine. By importing a MIDI file into a… Read More »Iconic notation music videos