Herseth was the MAN!!!

Fun video of Bud.

Funny because it's true!

Oh the stuff Band Kids say...

Counting Systems

After looking online for various ways to teach rhythm counting I found some interesting results. Here are some of them. Eastman System Various Other Methods

...and the musicians laughed

http://journalofmusic.com/discover/music-theory-song This kinda stuff just makes music people laugh and leaves others shaking their head.

Linky links

http://www.philtulga.com/counter.html Interesting website for counting rhythm in music. Great for visual learners. http://www.music-mind.com/Music/mpage2.HTM Another rhythm page. Thorough but not boring.

Kent State University’s Online Masters Degree in Music Educationn

Tech resources and general music use resources

Sometimes all we need is a few bucks to improve our classroom.  Most schools scoff at our requests for money to improve the music classes and so we are left to look to other sources for change.  Here is a site to start the grant process for technology in the music education classroom.

When I talk with other music teachers in my district I notice a strong resistance to new ideas.  I won't guess as to why these barriers get put up, but I do provide these links to help some teachers try things in their own time.  Hopefully this helps you too.

Bicycle Assignment

http://www.noteflight.com/scores/view/43520ab85d5b5eca3aaed81ae26d0f2a1e7154d5

Not the most original name for a post, but the program was stellar to use.  Easy to input and simple to edit.  I could use this program in music ed classes easily when having the students compose melodies and talking about chords.  Instant playback and part editing will make for easy reference to phrase building and dissonance/resolution examples.

Useful links

Been surfing around finding neat stuff online to share with my students and found a well-known software called Spotify (https://www.spotify.com/us/) and have used it already in my classroom music settings to great effect.  

Also found this free online string instrument tuner from get-tuned.com (http://www.get-tuned.com/).  

Of the many online metronomes out there this one is really simple and user friendly (http://www.webmetronome.com/).  

Many useful tools for instrumentalists and vocalists to use while practicing.  

Choral Conducting Inservice

At an in-service with Joseph Modica, DMA working on choral conducting techniques.  Amazing to watch how much of a change he can make in a tiny change to his gesture.  More detailed than instrumental conducting but still applicable to the instrumental genres.  Amazing stuff.  The body is the conductor's instrument and there are techniques how to "play" it effectively.  I'll post a video later...

Some spiffy links

http://www.blanksheetmusic.net/  Neat site for printing various sizes and designs of staff paper.  Useful if you can't make it to the music store or you enjoy using school toner and paper instead of your own!

http://keepvid.com/   Site for downloading YouTube (http://www.youtube.com/) videos to your computer.  Just make sure you get necessary permissions first!

Fun times with band nerds!

Student reactions to old music

Today in classroom music class, I showed a downloaded youtube video of the Farewell Symphony no. 45 by Haydn.  Hearing the story behind it seemed to overpower the students' boredom with "old music" and they thought the musicians walking out was hilarious.  Looking forward to showing more Haydn and Mozart to get their reactions.

http://cloud.feedly.com/#subscription%2Ffeed%2Fhttp%3A%2F%2Fjrm.sagepub.com%2Frss%2Fcurrent.xml  Blog about music education research

http://cloud.feedly.com/#subscription%2Ffeed%2Fhttp%3A%2F%2Ftomrudolph.berkleemusicblogs.com%2Ffeed%2F  Blog about Music Notation Software

Can't wait to start my Technology in Music class.  I love using tech in teaching because the kids love to see it and will pay attention to it.  How to maximize this usage in the classroom is going to help me be a better teacher.  That's why I am pursuing my MMEd, to be a better teacher.  Let's get it started!!