#MusicEdLove Podcast

In this episode, I go over 8 SUPER EASY Hacks for drastically improving your virtually teaching! Like so many things in teaching, sometimes the simplest things can make the biggest difference. The hacks are listed below but listen for the full version! Show & Tell/Pregnant Angie’s “Eat & Tell” Shorter Classes! Singing & Playing with Mutes & Submitting Duets Problem Identification Practice Adjudication Student-Led Sessions Kahoot!!!! Revert to Your Problem Child! https://musicedlove.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/8-virtual-teaching-hacks-for-major-breakthroughs.mp3 P.S. – Image from April fools’ Day when I sooooo pranked my students online

In the wake of Coronavirus cancellations all over the country, #MusicEdLove is thrilled to bringing on Technology expert: John Mlynczak. “Now that our entire structure for learning has completely and suddenly changed, we need to start thinking about what we CAN create online for students instead of what we can RECREATE online of what we already do.” John Mlynczak offers an extensive range of experiences in music education and the music industry, and is a frequent national clinician. Mr. Mlynczak is Managing Director of Noteflight, a Hal Leonard company, and Past-president of the Technology Institute of Music Educators. John also teaches Graduate courses at VanderCook College and Boston University Online, and a Google Level-2 Certified Educator. Mr. Mlynczak is a passionate advocate for music education and technology, serving on the NAMM State Advocacy Coalition, the NAfME Advocacy Leadership Force, and is Advocacy Chairman for the Massachusetts Music Educators Association. Mr. Mlynczak holds degrees in music education, music performance, and educational leadership. John sifts through the Coronavirus chaos to provide us with some feasible, tried and true resources for music making in a whole new world. We hope you enjoy this episode as much as you do! Don’t forget to subscribe and leave us a review today! Thanks and Happy Musicking! https://musicedlove.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/rethinking-how-we-teach-in-an-online-world-with-john-mlynczak.mp3

Today it is our extreme pleasure to welcome Director of Music Education and Associate Professor  at George Mason University: Dr. Charles “Chuck” Ciorba. In this episode, we delve into the tricky aspects of improvisation and we ask the difficult questions. Where do we find the music? What does “Taking 4’s” mean??? How do I get everyone to solo in a class of 62? and What if I’m not good at jazz??? Dr. Ciorba will light a fire in you to incorporate jazz and improvisation into your own curriculum! I have had the pleasure of getting to know Dr. Ciorba over this past year and can attest to his passion for music education and music teacher education, his ability to light a fire under ANYONE, and his enthusiasm for jazz education.  I am extremely grateful for his mentorship and friendship and I know you will gain so much from listening to the Jazz Cat on Improvisation! Here are a few highlights from our interview today! Know your theory Pick appropriate music For students who might be afraid to solo, let them play at the same time as other students Know your students and give them music at which they can excel Improvise EVERY DAY, have your students record themselves and self-assess Listen to the great jazz musicians if you want to be great Challenge the students WITHIN their framework JUST DO IT!!! When asked “what if the students are better than the teacher at jazz?” Dr. Ciorba vehemently said “So what! You can learn from them.” Exactly the kind of teacher we want all of our music ed majors to become! Useful Links:  George Mason Music Education music.gmu.edu https://crciorba.wixsite.com/masonmusiceducation Dr. Ciorba – cciorba@gmu.edu https://musicedlove.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/the-jazz-cat-on-improvisation.mp3 P.S. – On the second listen, I realized I said that I completed my Masters degree at Mason. I have no idea why I said this! I completed my PhD at Mason, not my Masters! Just to be clear  

This week we interview Dr. Jordan Davidson from the Rappahannock Choral Society and Brooke Point High School. Enjoy this episode and don’t forget to subscribe and leave us a review today!   https://musicedlove.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/jd-interview.mp3

Welcome to EPISODE 30 of #MusicEdLove! This episode is coming out via special request for those of you preparing for Assessment! Here are our 7 tips for a SUPERIOR Assessment Season! The Mantra from this episode is listed below in red. Enjoy! https://musicedlove.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/episode-30-7-tips-for-a-superior-assessment-season.mp3 MUSIC SELECTION Now is NOT the time to pick the CHALLENGE pieces… If you can already tell that your students are not into the music, consider switching pieces NOW Do not scrimp on the warm up. This is the very first thing your judges will hear. It sets up their entire perception of you and your group   LISTEN & RECORD Recordings of great groups Recordings of not as great groups Have your students create a “listen obsessively playlist” of stellar recordings of your pieces Record your own students FROM THE VERY BEGINNING… You will not believe how helpful this will be throughout the rehearsal period… Play parts of recordings back for students at the beginning of the next class and ask them to write down what they can improve upon and what they did well     MANTRA!!! Create a mantra and say it every single day I am successful, musical, and hard working TODAY. I don’t WISH for what I want, I WORK for what I want. I ENJOY the good stuff, I CRUSH the tough stuff, and I FULLY EMBRACE my Ultra Musical Self. I play with passion, I sing with accuracy, and I practice with fury. I am a team player who LISTENS, RESPONDS, and HOLDS my end of the bargain. I am the EMBODIMENT of Music and we are the great tellers of tales. SING SING SING SING SING – Students need to get melodies into their heads and one of the best ways to do this is to SING!!! Rap tricky rhythms Create lyrics to challenging sections. WRITE THEM DOWN and do them over and over again PLAN AHEAD! In your plan book, count out how many classes you have with each ensemble before your dress rehearsal and make a note of it on every single plan. It is so easy to think that you have three months until the big day until you realize you only have x amount of classes in those three months… Remember to plan ahead for snow days! Have your students take their instruments home EVERY SINGLE DAY! Take your own technology home and be prepared to send out tutorial videos if needed. You can check out my SUPER CHEESY youtube page to see some of the videos I have used in the past. They are NOT PERFECT but they were incredibly helpful for my students. I was always amazed at how many people were watching these videos and at the time of day they were watching them!   STUDY the RUBRIC WITH your students! Students should be intimately familiar with what it is they are being graded on Have them listen to recordings of themselves and grade them (they are waaaaay harsher on themselves than you might expect… Bring in a guest judge ahead of time to get them in the right mindset. What a great way to get them prepared EARLY!   NEVER LOSE SIGHT of the REAL purpose of a musical ensemble This may differ with every teacher, but I would imagine most of you teach music because It’s FUN You get to be part of this special, all-inclusive family Please please please do not let ANYONE sit out, even for Assessment…. Even your beginners can go and WOW the judges!!!! You are ultimately a family, show that to the judges in how you present yourselves. The way you enter on stage (have a process and follow it… don’t look around like a lost puppy dog!) The way you support one another. This comes across in musical conversations, in responsive dynamics and in musical movement You LOVE music. Assessment is only a snapshot of musical performance in time… Your students will decide whether or not to continue in your class throughout the year. It is not all about the performance for most of your students. It is about the connections, the family, the love, and the sense of belonging they experience in your class. Bring them into the family and keep them there

What a pleasure it was to have Anne Marie Patterson on the #MusicEdLove Observation Series! Anne Marie Patterson received a Bachelor’s Degree in Music Performance from Washington and Lee University, and Masters Degrees in Performance and Music Education from Florida State University. Ms Patterson has shared the stage with Midori, Sarah Chang, Nadja Salerno-Sonnenberg, Branford Marsales, Leonard Slatkin and many others. She has served as President of the MD/DC Chapter of the American String Teachers Association, and has been a presenter at the national ASTA conference and most recently at the Midwest International Band and Orchestra Conference. She has taught elementary, middle and high school strings in Charles County from 2002-2005, and 2012 to the present. In 2012 she also began directing the Charles County Youth Orchestra and Encore Strings, where has doubled the number of students in the program. The recipient of the 2018 Outstanding Music Teacher Award from the Maryland Music Educators Association, Anne Marie is in high demand as an author and presenter and recently completed a chapter in the book Rehearsing the Middle School Orchestra, edited by Sandy Goldie and has a new book coming out this summer!!! You can find out so many more tips on her website:  https://stringsintheclassroom.com https://musicedlove.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/batman-baby-shark-and-bobbleheads-with-anne-marie-patterson.mp3  

We kick off our Observation Series with veteran music educator: Veronica Jackson! We hope you enjoy this look into one of her 7th grade orchestra classes as she prepares for a big concert! https://musicedlove.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/12/goin-to-nashville-with-veronica-jackson.mp3

This episode is a reminder to everyone to do what you can to get out and observe REAL teachers with “Normal” students! It is the introductory episode to a series of observation episodes in which I go out to schools and observe stellar music educators in authentic learning environments. I can’t wait for you to explore all of these episodes! https://musicedlove.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/11/observation-intro.mp3

“If you see a student in your classroom who is willing to take on a leadership position, knows how to delegate, knows how to be in front of people, send me those kids! Because I can’t teach that… Those people who are always looking out for the others in class, the really with-it kids. Send me those kids!  The musical stuff can be taught but I can’t pull out the other stuff all the time!” https://musicedlove.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/09/string-teachers-needed-with-annalisa-chang.mp3 Dr. Annalisa Chang can be reached at annalisachang@clayton.edu or you can visit her online at https://www.acchang.com .  

Welcome back to an exciting new school year! In this podcast, we aim to get you off to a great start with a few overarching goals for your best year yet! https://musicedlove.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/08/spark-some-joy-today.mp3