Jump to I. Curriculum Consultation | In-Service Sessions | Teacher Guidance
Jump to II. Professional Development Workshops
Jump to III. Conducting & Choral Literature
I. Curriculum Consultation | In-Service Sessions | Teacher Guidance
Curricular Consultation – K-12 music educators are guided through multiple levels of decision-making to coordinate curriculum for teachers’ ease in long-term planning of students’ musical success (Backwards Design). Because each district has different goals and needs, this work includes in-depth consultation with the district coordinator prior to the event.
Curricular Development of Part-Singing Skills in School-Age Musicians – K-12 general music/choral educators are guided through the sequential development of part-singing skills. A portion of the in-service is spent learning to purposefully identify, name, and teach these singing/choral techniques and the other portion is spent in guiding the faculty to embed these skills into their existing curriculum. Based on the book One Accord: Developing Part-Singing Skills in School-Age Musicians (revised edition) from Music Is Elementary.
In-Service Sessions can be chosen from the Professional Development Workshops/Conducting & Choral Literature lists or can be tailored to meet specific needs of the district. Please inquire.
Teacher Guidance is given to new teachers who might not have a music education mentor or to more experienced teachers who are struggling to meet curricular standards. Previous outcomes have been successful for the teachers and their students.
II. Professional Development Workshops
Developing Part-Singing Skills in School-Age Musicians – This workshop examines the sequential development of part-singing skills in school-age musicians to help students acquire the ability to sustain a given voice part in a multi-part context. Purposefully identifying, naming, and teaching these techniques produces more singers able to fulfill their potential as self-sufficient musicians in a choral setting. Based on the book One Accord: Developing Part-Singing Skills in School-Age Musicians (revised edition) from Music Is Elementary.
Elements of Music Literacy: Listening Lessons for Middle- and High School Musicians – Lead older students to deeper levels of music literacy through experiential listening lessons. Musical elements such as form, rhythm, melody, harmony and expressive qualities will be explored. This session focuses on Vaughan Williams’ English Folk Song Suite but will include numerous other favorite pieces of Art Music.
For the Love of Art Music! – Lead students to a true understanding and love of Art Music through meaningful, active listening lessons. This workshop explores the elements of music literacy such as form, rhythm, melody, and expressive qualities through Art Music lessons. Complete Art Music units experienced and explained in detail for primary and intermediate classes. Includes composers from multiple genre, style periods, gender, and cultural backgrounds.
From Folk to Pop – Where is the line crossed and where is it blurred? Explore with songs, games, dances, and interesting comparisons.
Furthering Musicianship Through Recorder Skill Development – Where does musicianship begin? Can musicianship be developed in students? Can we assess musicianship in a way that is fair to students of differing technical levels? This workshop will examine a recorder sequence designed to guide students toward a higher level of personal musicianship. By playing authentic tunes, echo playing, improvising, composing, and playing in parts, as well as listening to others play, musicianship can be fostered and developed through recorder playing.
“Hot Cross Buns” As Mocking Metaphor & What We Can Do About It In Our Music Classrooms – How did the song “Hot Cross Buns” become a mocking metaphor for all this is wrong with contemporary music education? Challenge your brain, your musicianship, and perhaps your philosophy of music education as we romp through various levels of engagement with this time-honored tune.
Introduction to Zoltán Kodály: History, Methodology, and Good Literature – Understand how Zoltán Kodály’s vision of “Music for Everyone” has become a developmentally-appropriate philosophy of music education that is more relevant than ever. Explore how music education is meant to develop one’s entire being: personality, intellect, and emotions through a child-centered, sequential apprehension of musical elements.
Modal Madness: Songs & Activities Beyond Major & Minor – Students love the modes when they are learned through meaningful music making. Musical elements and expressive qualities of the pieces will be covered through singing, games, and activities during this workshop. Appropriate pieces for the youngest through older students included.
Sequencing Singing Games for Success – Short-term sequencing for the teaching of singing games leads to long-term musical gain in your classroom: students will play difficult games more easily, and selected melodic or rhythmic elements can be used as transitions to literacy concepts. Participants will sing and move.
Solving Musical Enigmas & Cryptic Canons – While using folk songs to teach musical concepts is a hallmark of Zoltán Kodály’s vision and philosophy, the natural extension of literacy is to relate these constructs to the larger musical lexicon. This workshop will focus on canons that are to be solved as puzzles. Easy canons for younger students include simple rhythms and pentachordal melodies that can be sung in 2- to 4-parts. Others, written for multiple voice parts, can be quite complex with challenging rhythms and set in interesting scales or modes, with many having been presented without a key to unlocking the puzzle. Come stretch your brain and refresh your musicianship skills.
Successful Teaching of Choral Octavos: Note Not Rote – In a literacy-based curriculum, teaching a choral octavo successfully takes more than just learning to sing the tune from beginning to end. Instead, it is important to lead students to musical understanding by rehearsing each octavo in short segments based on the form of the piece via same/different/similar relationships. Delve into multiple rehearsal techniques for specific octavos through literacy-based lesson segments for rhythmic, melodic, formal, and harmonic understanding.
III. Conducting & Choral Literature
Private Conducting Lessons – in person or via On-line | Video (alone or with your singers).
Conducting Honor Choirs – One of my greatest pleasures is working with diverse choral groups! It is amazing when developing musicians learn to make acute musical decisions and think reflectively on what the composer wishes to communicate. It is a joy to lead singers to discover the important essence of each piece thereby allowing them to connect deeply with the music, each other, and the audience.
Connecting General Music Class to Choral Literature – Want your short choral ensemble rehearsals to run more efficiently? Are you required to put on a program without designated choral rehearsals? This workshop demonstrates how teachers are capable of connecting what they accomplish in their general music classes to teaching developmentally appropriate choral literature that can be performed as part of a public concert. These musical relationships allow quality octavos to be rehearsed in short segments over a length of time without sacrificing entire class periods to concert preparation.
The Crooked River Choral Project – This workshop examines the vast array of choral octavos in the Crooked River Choral Project series from Music Is Elementary, a collection of artful choral music composed specifically with music teaching and learning in mind. Our selections are first and foremost beautiful pieces of music. They are rooted in solid pedagogical thinking, providing music educators with rich teaching opportunities through quality literature. This series offers music with lyrics that inspire the human spirit, nurturing the best in musicians of all levels. Each title contains rehearsal recordings (individual voice parts, entire performance with accompaniment, and an accompaniment-only track), reproducible scores (full, accompaniment, vocal), teaching plans, and vocal health plans. Current titles include: Erie Canal (Cyndee Giebler), Hazrat Bibi Maryam (Zuleikha/James Carr), Marching Song (Roger Sams), Star (James Carr), and Where Go the Boats? (Roger Sams), Buckeye Jim (Ruth Dwyer), Noël Nouvelet (Douglas Beam), and The Swing (Roger Sams).
Modes & Meters: Teaching Strategies for Unusual Choral Octavos – This workshop leads choral directors to make the most of each rehearsal when preparing octavos that include mixed meters, interesting rhythms, or unusual scales and modes. Choral repertoire lists, resource information, rehearsal planning guides, and a choral packet are provided. The preponderance of the day will be spent reading through and listening to recordings of this music to learn the most efficient teaching techniques and conducting gesture appropriate for each.
Successful Teaching of Choral Octavos: Note Not Rote – In a literacy-based curriculum, teaching a choral octavo successfully takes more than just learning to sing the tune from beginning to end. Instead, it is important to lead students to understand musical relationships by rehearsing each octavo in short segments. This workshop delves into multiple rehearsal techniques for each octavo (unison through mixed voices): appropriate warm-ups; correlated vocal techniques; style period/genre appreciation; interpretation of expressive elements; literacy-based lesson segments for rhythmic, melodic, formal, and harmonic understanding; as well as insight into the meaning of the text.