Group items tagged

The Library of Congress website has a plethora of free historical recordings. For example, I found The Liberty Bell March from 1905. You should listen to the recordings in advance to check for inappropriate language. I think it would be very valuable to have authentic historical recordings for students to listen to, which would present the opportunity to discuss the history of recording music.

This free site includes an on-line orchestration course and a free jazz arranging course. There are sample music libraries, a virtual instrument forum, Linux Audio and music discussions related to sound software and open source initiatives, a virtual piano forum, and many more topics for students and teachers.

Tonal Energy provides individualized instruction and videos for band and orchestra students. Each instrument is listed and linked to a fingering chart, exercises, scales, instrument care, and videos of professional artists. The website also has a place for discussion between other musicians, teachers, and students. One of the best items about Tonal Energy is the tuner App. The TE Tuner provides a visual representation beyond the original needle and shows the students proper intonation through a smiley face and colored circles.

This website was developed to share and discuss the science of rudimental snare drumming.  You can also use this source to develop ideas for teaching and developing your marching percussion section.  Also included are common exercises that can be used.

The article discusses insight on intonation and ways that teachers and students should approach intonation. The answer is, not with a tuner.

The Library of Congress has a plethora of information and media related to music education. Within the archives of the Library of Congress are recordings of folk songs, articles about music in America, and podcasts. One of these podcast collections is about Music and the Brain where research related to music and how it affects the brain is reviewed and discussed. This is an excellent resource for music advocacy. It is also a great resource for better understanding music learning.

This article discusses possible uses for PBL in the music classroom.

I found this to be a very interesting read/listen. She discusses how to foster creativity in the classrooms. In music, composing is an essential skill and the ultimate creative activity. However, I find myself sometimes nervous to let the kids compose. What if they are not successful? What if they talk too much or get too loud? But Goodwin really gives me the courage to start small and grow from there. It's not about having the kids write a symphony, but to show what they learned by creating something new.

This is a blog discussing music technology. Different review of programs for music teachers are reviewed. By reading this blog, all music teachers could enhance their knowledge of technology that could be used in their teaching setting.

American School Band Directors Association is a national organization for band directors whose mission is to promote, enhance and preserve quality school band programs through leadership and fellowship of exemplary band directors. The ASBDA provides national conferences and workshops for band director to network, gain rehearsal techniques as well as discuss how to provide a higher quality education to their students

This is a podcast designed to help piano teachers of all experience levels. They discuss different teaching techniques, studio information, practice ideas, and other helpful information. This can be used by piano teachers to enhance their teaching knowledge and learn ways so successfully run their piano studio.

Good website that discusses all the new apps available for the IPad's use in the classroom and for personal use.

Discusses the importance of the March in American Concert band literature.

The article discusses a new app that was created to improve or teach improvisation concepts using loops on any particular scale.

This is a very valuable resource contains helpful strategies on motivating students to practice at home. It also discusses how parent play a major role in making sure that students rehearse.

I have always found it difficult to make my warm-up something that the students take seriously, and improve from. This is the PDF of Larry Clark's clinic at Midwest 2014. It discusses a variety of different tools to help make warm-up something that the ensemble excels at, rather than a waste of time. Also includes a great graphic for the Circle of 4ths / 5ths.

This website is a game designed to introduce instruments to students (K-5) in a fun and interactive way.  Benjamin Britten's composition "A Young Person's Guide to the Orchestra" is used as the basis for this adventure.

This is a fun, interactive website that helps students get to know the instruments, the set up of a professional ensemble, different genres, and musical roles.

This website is a game developed by Carnegie Hall that helps younger students learn the instruments of the orchestra. The game uses Benjamin Britten's Young Person's Guide to the Orchestra. This interactive game helps students understand the layout of an orchestra, the ranges of the individual instruments, and how they sound individually and together in an ensemble. This is an excellent tool for elementary music!

This interactive TED lesson offers a fun video introduction to learning how to read music along with multiple choice questions, higher level questions, and discussion boards.

The article discusses different microphones that all music teachers should be familiar with.

This website has a cool ear training applet. Other links discuss improvisation and trumpet techniques.