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Wynn Literature is a site I found a few years ago as I was looking for music for my high school Intermediate Band to play for the Georgia Music Educators Association's Large Group Performance Evaluation (concert festival). The band I had one year was unprepared to play most Grade 4 Literature and I needed help choosing Grade 2 or 3 pieces. Wynn created this list of compositions that are on the GMEA LGPE required list. It is important to double check the most current LGPE list as the list is updated yearly. The compositions are written by composers whose works have been deemed to be "Contemporary Concert Band Standards" as they have the best mix of challenging the students as well as entertaining. Some of the composers include James Swearingen, Quincy Hilliard Robert W. Smith, David R. Holsinger, and James Curnow just to name a few. The site has changed a lot since I originally found it. You were able to click on the individual compositions to get more information about the piece such as key signature, meter, performance ranges for most of the instruments, technical issues that may occur (difficult rhythms or harmonies), background on the composer and historical perspective of the composition. Since the site's links do not work anymore, WynnLiterature is a great starting point to search for literature to play at the middle school level as well as the lower/developmental bands in high school.

Wynn Literature is a site I found a few years ago as I was looking for music for my high school Intermediate Band to play for the Georgia Music Educators Association's Large Group Performance Evaluation (concert festival). The band I had one year was unprepared to play most Grade 4 Literature and I needed help choosing Grade 2 or 3 pieces. Wynn created this list of compositions that are on the GMEA LGPE required list. It is important to double check the most current LGPE list as the list is updated yearly. The compositions are written by composers whose works have been deemed to be "Contemporary Concert Band Standards" as they have the best mix of challenging the students as well as entertaining. Some of the composers include James Swearingen, Quincy Hilliard Robert W. Smith, David R. Holsinger, and James Curnow just to name a few. The site has changed a lot since I originally found it. You were able to click on the individual compositions to get more information about the piece such as key signature, meter, performance ranges for most of the instruments, technical issues that may occur (difficult rhythms or harmonies), background on the composer and historical perspective of the composition. Since the site's links do not work anymore, WynnLiterature is a great starting point to search for literature to play at the middle school level as well as the lower/developmental bands in high school.

Wynn Literature is a site I found a few years ago as I was looking for music for my high school Intermediate Band to play for the Georgia Music Educators Association's Large Group Performance Evaluation (concert festival). The band I had one year was unprepared to play most Grade 4 Literature and I needed help choosing Grade 2 or 3 pieces. Wynn created this list of compositions that are on the GMEA LGPE required list. It is important to double check the most current LGPE list as the list is updated yearly. The compositions are written by composers whose works have been deemed to be "Contemporary Concert Band Standards" as they have the best mix of challenging the students as well as entertaining. Some of the composers include James Swearingen, Quincy Hilliard Robert W. Smith, David R. Holsinger, and James Curnow just to name a few. The site has changed a lot since I originally found it. You were able to click on the individual compositions to get more information about the piece such as key signature, meter, performance ranges for most of the instruments, technical issues that may occur (difficult rhythms or harmonies), background on the composer and historical perspective of the composition. Since the site's links do not work anymore, WynnLiterature is a great starting point to search for literature to play at the middle school level as well as the lower/developmental bands in high school.

Interesting and scholarly article regarding theory/harmony in pop music vs. serious music.

Thanks for sharing this! I just sent it to my daughter, who's writing a college paper on the ways Schoenberg thought traditional theory should change to reflect modern harmony. Very timely!

Harmony Central is a collection of articles geared toward the performing or gigging musician. For students, this resource could provide guiding documents for those considering a leap into the field of live shows, with expert advice, user reviews, and a forum for collaboration.

The Music Animation Machine offers videos that visualize pitch and rhythm in a way that is easy to understand. Voices are color coded (and arranged vertically by pitch) so that various melody and harmony lines are easy to follow. The website details the history of the project and offers several videos to watch.

The Music Animation Machine offers videos that visualize pitch and rhythm in a way that is easy to understand. Voices are color coded (and arranged vertically by pitch) so that various melody and harmony lines are easy to follow. The website details the history of the project and offers several videos to watch.

A blog from the Harmony Road site which provides several tips for teaching a group piano course.

This site allows teachers to print off Bach chorales to play in class. Playing chorales will help students use their ears to hear the harmonies and where they fit in the big picture.

Acapella Resource

Another helpful site for when you have to write a musical critique. I especially like there "SHMRG" acrostic: Sound, Harmony, Melody, Rhythm and Growth (texture/formal structure) Good for students when evaluating a musical performance.

"What is Jazz?" is a four-part lecture about jazz by Dr. Billy Taylor presented at the John F. Kennedy Center. Dr. Bill Taylor is a noted jazz pianist, historian, and educator. His four-part lecture dives into the history of jazz and the most important moments of jazz history. The first lecture centers around the origins of jazz in the African-American experience of slavery to the civil rights movement. This lecture explores the development of repertoire and techniques used in jazz performance. The second lecture discusses the techniques and traditions of jazz improvisation. The third lecture discusses the evolution of swing and rhythm/harmony with the inclusion of examples by a piano. The fourth lecture discusses the role of jazz in American culture and history, as well as the impact it has had on the world. 

There is a supposed "separation of church and state." However, Gospel music can be a key source for teaching elements of harmony and rhythm and can help fill in certain gaps in music history.

This website presents a colorful presentation of music theory basics including notation, rhythm, key signatures, intervals, minor scales, part writing, seventh chords, and augmented chords. Each page can be printed.

Music Theory is a topic that can often be confusing when beginning to learn.  This website does a great job of breaking down the elements of music theory for anyone who is trying to gain deeper understanding of Music Theory.

This website is great for quick music theory handouts for students. It contains PDF worksheets to print and share with students. Excellent free resource!

This could be good for small ensembles and combos. Creates a melody, harmony, and bass part customized to instrumentation needs. Also provides lyrics.

TheoryTab is an ideal resource for theory teachers who are teaching students familiar with guitar tab, but not yet ready for practical notation based music theory. The approach of this site is to integrate tablature with the functional approach to harmony, using songs from the popular music cultures of today.

Has pictures as well as audio recordings of all types of instruments around the world, including voices. Also has rhythm, harmony, melody, form, texture, tonality, signs and symbols, music technology.

This is a wonderful free book to support creative musicians. This page discusses active listening strategies. It outlines elements to listen for: sounds, harmony, melody, rhythm, and form.

A fun and interactive source or beat mixing and music making. No account needed. Free options. Allows students to create, record, and download their compositions.

Incredibox is an online and free music technology resource that has the user drag and drop icons to create different arrangements using various loops. The website also creates a game where the user must find the right combination of loops to make creative decisions that the program has pre-determined. This resource is a great tool to introduce students to the world of music technology while also teaching about form, the recording process, sharing of music, and how/why musicians makes creative decisions.

This composition website allows the composer to experiment with form, texture, harmony, and other elements of music without having to read standard notation. Instead of music notes, the music is represented by a cartoon boy in different outfits.

A compilation of play-along music recordings for students to use Boomwhackers or other similar instruments. Musication provides several free videos for elementary and middle school music students to learn to play along with the melody or chord structure of a given song. New videos are added often and students definitely enjoy playing along.

Musication has play-a-long videos for boomwhackers, hand bells, and simple percussion instruments. The videos are color coded and often have varying levels of difficulty. It provides a visual for melodic direction, durations, and harmony that helps students to see, hear, and experience music in a variety of ways.

One Size Fits All Band Books is a collection of public domain music that is arranged for instrumental groups of any size or instrumentation. Each instrument is provided with the melody and one other part (harmony, bass line, or percussion). Selections are sorted by title, genre, and difficulty.

Through this site, students can engage in a variety of music theory or aural skills activities. Using the program's interface, one can engage with activities such as melodic, harmonic, two-part, and rhythmic dictation as well as chord analysis. It uses a click-drag method to assign notes and/or pitches to an exercise.