Curated from YAMAHA – by Stacy N. Hackett – INCORPORATE SIGHT READING INTO DAILY PRACTICE AND FOSTER SKILLS FOR A LIFETIME OF MUSICAL SUCCESS. The key to sight-reading success? Consistent daily practice. “Sight-reading is a skill any musician can acquire,” says Michael Burritt, professor of percussion and chair of the woodwinds, brass and percussion department at Eastman School of Music in Rochester, New York….
MORECurated from YAMAHA – by Don Stinson – Early in my career as a music educator, I knew I wanted a group that sounded good! However, I was unsure how to achieve it. I listened to bands with impressive tone quality, balance, intonation and style. Then there was my band. Every time we rehearsed, I couldn’t figure out all the…
MORECurated from SBO Magazine – by Harvey Rachlin – We all have had teachers we remember because they had an impact on us in some wonderful way in school. Perhaps it was a music teacher or conductor who nourished our love of music and was partly responsible for our pursuing a career in music. What teacher today (or at any time)…
MORELooking for quality Grade 2 or Grade 3 concert band pieces? Don’t overlook these “Top 10” quality pieces selected by Ray Benton, our Technology and Media Specialist, with 32 years of teaching experience. We’ve combined these two posts into one. All of the entrees feature demonstration recordings. . .
MORECurated from YAMAHA – by Mark Stanford – TRUE TEAMWORK REQUIRES ACTIVE PARTICIPATION AT YOUR SCHOOL AND WITHIN YOUR DISTRICT. HELP YOUR FELLOW MUSIC EDUCATORS AS OFTEN AS YOU CAN AND SEEK THEIR INPUT WHEN YOU NEED IT. Music education doesn’t happen in a bubble. No matter how masterful we are as music educators, we can’t do it alone. It…
MOREYour ONE-TIME registration takes less than a minute. Already registered? Access all of our webinars now. CLICK TO REVIEW THIS VIDEO PREVIEW Welcome music educators! In keeping Nottelmann Music’s 65-year-plus tradition of supporting music educators, we offer these pages to support your everyday teaching. Nottelmann Professional Development is here to instruct and provide you with OPTIONAL professional development credit, absolutely free…
MORECurated from YAMAHA – by Dr. Dave Gerhart SOLUTIONS TO COMMON TIMPANI PROBLEMS. The percussion family consists of vast number of instruments. In a standard music room, there will be timpani, marimbas, xylophones, bells, snare drum, bass drum, cymbals, tambourine, triangles and much more. All require regular care and maintenance. In this article, we’ll talk about one of the most…
MORECurated from YAMAHA – by Tyler Swick – TIRED OF SELLING COOKIE DOUGH, WRAPPING PAPER OR COUPON BOOKS? HERE ARE SOME UNCONVENTIONAL WAYS TO FUNDRAISE WITHOUT SELLING ANYTHING. Chances are high that either as a student or teacher, you’ve attempted to sell cookie dough, chocolate, wrapping paper, popcorn or coupon books in order to raise funds for your music program….
MOREAlthough Nottelmann Music receives no compensation for this post, we thought it was important for our music educator friends to know about this. Those legendary tracks that have helped thousands of musicians to learn jazz is now available as JAZZBOOKS STREAMING. Affordable access to arguably the worlds best jazz play-alongs. “Anything Abersold Anywhere.” Check it out!
MORECurated from YAMAHA – by Jarrett Lipman – KIDS ARE EXCITED TO SEE TEACHERS WHO ARE EXCITED TO SEE THEM, SO BRING YOUR A-GAME EVERY DAY. Students look forward to learning from teachers who are excited to teach them. When your students come to your class, your body language and interaction set the tone for the rehearsal. Are you starting…
MOREWith budgetary assistance from Joe Pappas and the Jeffco Viking Band Camp, Jefferson College’s music department was looking for a great sounding and versatile sound systems for the band and choir rehearsal rooms. They wanted portability, great sound, and high quality recording capability. Joel Vanderheyden contacted me with specific criteria in mind and I set out to design a system…
MORECurated from BandWorld – by Ashton Bowles – Click on the photo or link below to download a horn book for your intermediate players switching over to the horn. In addition to the horn book, students and teachers can access helpful videos via QR codes. This model project was created by 3rd year American Band College candidate, Ashton Bowles. Full…
MOREAbout this Webinar – How cool is this? TWENTY successful, veteran music teachers share what they had wish they had known BEFORE becoming a music teacher! Here’s wisdom you simply cannot buy. If you’re a music teacher, especially if you’re a young teacher or plan to teach music in the future, every word in this webinar is GOLD! Watch it,…
MORETHIS IS THE DEFINITIVE POSTING ON THE HARMONY DIRECTOR! Find out why Dr. John Zastoupil, Director of Concert Bands at Missouri State, describes the Yamaha Harmony Director as “the most important piece of equipment you can own!” View this EXCLUSIVE Podcast-Plus that takes your right into the Missouri State rehearsal room as John demonstrates how the HD works and how…
MOREWe’re passing along this great opportunity from Yamaha, a how-to on starting your a music business program in your high school. Whether you’re looking to increase recruitment, retain (or re-engage) the students you have, or help your students connect with the modern music industry, introducing a music business program at the high school level sets your program up to succeed….
MORECurated from YAMAHA – By Dr. Dave Gehart – BE A BETTER PERCUSSIONIST BY REGULARLY WORKING ON YOUR READING, ROLLS AND LISTENING SKILLS. As a percussionist, there are three things that we should always work on — reading, rolls and ear/listening. I know it is naive to believe that these are the only things to work on, but if you can continue…
MOREThe Bandmaster’s Podcast, Episode 37: Bill Jastrow, Retired, Indian Prairie School District 204, IL. Bill Jastrow discusses comprehensive musicianship, organizing a school district’s music program, and the caring and “feeding” of the young percussionist. FULL BIO Spanning 41 years, William Jastrow’s teaching experience ranges from a community high school with an enrollment of 450 students, to Neuqua Valley H.S. with an…
MORECurated from Smartmusic’s Music Educator Blog – by Elisa Janson Jones – This time of year it is crucial that we prioritize taking care of our mental and physical wellness. Most of us got into music education as a career because we are givers. We are servants of the little people. Sure we do it for ourselves, but we also can…
MOREAnn Goodwin Clark, Co-Historian for Missouri Bandmasters, had the vision to record interviews with Missouri master teachers in music education. Ann reached out to me and asked for my assistance in producing and posting these timeless videos. Below is the current library, with more additions planned for the future. I believe EVERY music educator will benefit from the wisdom brought…
MOREA warehouse of tips for you and your students. 5 top musicians present tips on 5 rhythm section instruments. Check out the previews, view the full webinars below. PIANO GUITAR DRUMS BASS LATIN PERCUSSION VIEW THE FULL WEBINARS FOR FREE
MOREA short, heart-warming, inspirational video. An answer to “Why Music?” Don’t miss this! Shared at The Nottelmann Blog! Are you a Mr. Jensen? Had your life affected by a Mr. Jensen? Want to be a Mr. Jensen? SHARE ON THIS POST!
MORECurated from Mark J. Connors’ Everything Band Podcast #84 – Steve Graves has been a middle school band director in Orange County, California for over 30 years. In this episode he shares his advice about teaching middle school including some really great advice for young band teachers. Topics: Steve’s background and his 34 year career as a middle school band…
MOREDr. Tim Lautzenhauser – Conn Selmer Division of Education – Conn-Selmer’s VP of Education, Tim Lautzenheiser, discusses the different levels of group motivation. View this short but important video for valuable insights for any music program. Tim Lautzenheiser is a widely-recognized voice advocating the importance of music education for every child. Over the last three decades, countless students have experienced…
MORECurated from The YAMAHA Educator Suite – by Jarrett Lipman – A musician’s daily diet or daily drill provides all the necessary basics for performing on an instrument successfully. While it’s not a perfect formula, at Claudia Taylor Johnson High School, we stick to our daily drill in the same way that we brush our teeth or get dressed for school…
MORECurated from Directing Band – Here’s what one Georgia band director expects of his incoming middle school students. The state standards may differ from yours, but the concepts can apply. Episode 11 is an episode based on a listener request. In this episode, Josh describes what he ideally wants every student to know when they enter the high school…
MORECurated from the YAMAHA Educator Suite -by Don Stinson – Time is a precious commodity. As music teachers, we not only have to protect classroom time, but we have to carve out a few minutes (or hours!) here and there to take care of our must-do, non-negotiable tasks. In order to be as productive as possible, you must be mindful…
MORECurated from the Yamaha Educator Suite – by Kathryn Drury Wagner – Music educators, here are 5 tools to get your motivation mojo back. Experts tell us there are strategies to get your motor running again, to feel more energized, and yes, motivated. Ah, if only motivation came in a bottle, and you could crack open the cap and chug…
MORECurated from The Yamaha Educator Suite – by Dr. Paul Buyer – Close your eyes for a moment and imagine a time when you were conducting on the podium and cued a much anticipated, exposed and important snare drum roll. What did it sound like? Perhaps it was smooth, expressive and confident — maybe the result of assigning your best snare drummer…
MORECurated from The Yamaha Educator Suite – by Domingo Pagliuca – What makes the trombone special? The sound of the trombone is one of the most profound and glorious of the brass family. As composer Hector Berlioz said, “The trombone is the true head of the family of wind instruments … it has all the serious and powerful tones of…
MORECurated from the Yamaha Educator Suite – by David Collier – As you prepare for the next musical journey with your students, here are some ideas to help your young timpanists. Timpani students need guidance as they are soloists who have a tremendous impact on both the pulse and intonation of your ensemble. Timpanists are both the “drum set player”…
MORECurated from The Alfred Blog – by Scott Watson – Every single moment with our students is precious! Whether it’s a lesson, sectional, ensemble rehearsal, there’s always so much to accomplish and no time to waste. Nonetheless, it’s worth taking the time to establish the habit of warming up at the start of all our meetings with students. Primarily, warming…
MORECurated from the Yamaha Educator Suite – by Jeff Conner – For over 30 years, I have had the tremendous privilege of playing trumpet for audiences around the world. Without the support, guidance and influence from my middle school (Mr. Kazanjian) and high school (Mr. Ezer) band directors, I would not have had the opportunity to pursue this musical passion that…
MORECurated from SmartMusic’s The Music Educator Blog – by Dave Isaacs – Every teacher knows how much we learn from our students. The act of teaching itself makes you view the music differently as you learn to communicate it more directly. Different students’ experiences teach us problem-solving on both a technical and interpersonal level. Teaching very gifted students is a…
MORECurated from Band Directors Talk Shop – Tips for Building Community & Growing Relationships with Band Parents – Readers’ Collaborative Post In our recent survey, we asked Band Directors Talk Shop readers, “How do you build community with your band parents? How do you keep open lines of communication and grow strong relationships with parents?” With hundreds of responses to the survey, we came…
MORECurated from The Yamaha Educator Suite – by Shawn Goodman-Royer – The clarinet is the coolest and perhaps most versatile instrument in the band. It has an amazing 3.5-octave range, the greatest dynamic capabilities of any band instrument, and is used in many different genres of music from jazz to klezmer to classical. But perhaps the most impressive and noteworthy…
MORECurated from the Yamaha Educator Suite – by James Campbell – I recently reached out to a small group of my University of Kentucky alumni, who teach band and orchestra in public schools. I wanted advice from educators who are in the trenches every day, so I asked them: “What are common problems that beginner and intermediate student musicians encounter regarding…
MORECurated from the Yamaha Educator Suite – by Elizabeth Geli – With so many superhero movies hitting the theaters, it’s ironic to hear ensemble directors tell their students, “Don’t be a hero,” when someone is sticking out in the overall sound. Because of the brass instruments’ powerful directional abilities, blending the sound and dynamics of an ensemble can sometimes seem…
MORECurated from the Yamaha Educator Suite – In less than three weeks, the Ralls County R-II School District in Center, Missouri, more than doubled its beginning band program. Before Director of Bands Douglas Schaffer, a 2021 Yamaha 40 Under 40 music educator, joined the district in 2019, only 24% of 6th graders signed up for band at Ralls County Elementary. Though they were required to participate…
MORECurated from the Yamaha Educator Suite – by Cody Newman – Our students are only limited by the constraints we place on them, so let’s all choose opportunity and choose to excel! Here’s my story – On a muggy Texas evening in May 2020 during the height of the pandemic, I sat in the Diffee family’s driveway out in the…
MORECurated from The YAMAHA Educator Suite – by Steve Graves – We’ve all seen it happen and have even felt it ourselves — that feeling in the pit of your stomach, the shakiness, the nerves. As directors, we have learned to live with performance anxiety, but what can we do to help our students deal with it? What is Musical…
MORECurated from the Yamaha Educator Suite, by Dr. Dave Gerhart – Over the past two months, it feels like I have watched more webinars than I have in the last two years. I am sure that is the case for many of you. There have been many educational and informative webinars that are sharing advocacy resources. These resources are so…
MORECurated from Bandworld – by Russell G. McCutcheon – Managing the percussion inventory Every conductor has experienced it: rehearsal is progressing smoothly, then the triangle part is missing. “Who is playing the triangle?” “Umm…we didn’t know we needed it.” Or “We can’t find it,” your percussionists reply. There are three keys to solving this dilemma: Students must be able to…
MORECurated from Bandworld – Setting up the percussion section Every conductor has experienced it: rehearsal is progressing smoothly, then the triangle part is missing. “Who is playing the triangle?” “Umm…we didn’t know we needed it.” Or “We can’t find it,” your percussionists reply. There are three keys to solving this dilemma: Students must be able to quickly and easily locate…
MORECurated from The Bandmasters Podcast – Bob Mecozzi, band director at Amos Alonzo Stagg High School in Palos Hills, IL, talks about the Getting Things Done system and how we can reduce stress by managing our tasks. For more content related to music education, visit www.thebandmasters.com, Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and Sticher Audio. Sidenote Series: Bob Mecozzi on Getting Things Done…
MORECurated from Bandmasters Podcast – Bobby is Director of Bands at Wando High School in Mount Pleasant, South Carolina. Originally from Cherokee, North Carolina, Mr. Lambert attended Western Carolina University to obtain his Bachelors Degree in music education and then the University of Massachusetts to receive a graduate assistantship and a Masters of Music Degree in saxophone performance. From 2001…
MORECurated from Band Directors Talk Shop – Advice about clarinet embouchure in the clarinet pedagogy literature is fairly consistent no matter where one looks. Keep the chin flat and pointed, corners of the mouth to the center, touch the reed with the tip of the tongue, angle of the instrument between 30 and 45 degrees. If everyone does this, why…
MORECurated from BandWorld – by Dr. Tracy Heavner – Introduction There are many brands of saxophones currently being produced varying greatly in quality and price. Within their brand, most saxophone manufacturers also produce several different models in order to meet the needs of performers at various stages of development. Student models, designed for beginning saxophonists, are the least expensive but…
MORECurated from Band Directors Talk Shop – by Erin Kendall Murphy – Does your flute section play at a mezzo forte dynamic most of the time? Are you constantly asking them to play out more or play much less for balance in your ensemble? Are your flutists only able to play loud in the high register and soft in the low register?…
MORECurated from D’Addario – By Andrea Harrell – Parents of beginning band students often ask me how they can help their kids with practicing their new instrument. While many parents don’t hesitate to step in and help their kids with subjects like math or English, I have spoken to many parents who feel uncomfortable stepping in to help their kids…
MORECurated from Band Directors Talk Shop – For those of you that prepare music-ed students to go out and teach band or find yourself in an advising role to young prospectives, here’s a short but eye-opening article. It’s hard to disagree with anything on these lists, resulting from a recent survey of band directors in the field. In our recent…
MORECurated from ChoralNet.org by Developing Voices Author Jennifer Berroth, Choral Director at Leawood Middle School, Leawood, Kansas. I’ve heard it said that teaching middle school puts one at the front of the line for sainthood. We’ve all had days on which we have earned that status. I have been teaching middle school choir for seven years, and in that time I have…
MORECurated from 4themusiceducator.com – by Bill Stevens – Musicians who require the use of their air to perform will benefit from “Starting Breathing Exercises to Encourage Air Capacity Growth.” Whether you are a brass, woodwind or even a vocalist musician, breathing, and effective airflow, is an absolute necessity to perform. In addition, increasing your knowledgebase is a great way to…
MOREIn this exclusive Nottelmann Blog Podcast, Joe Simino, Director of Bands at Seckman Middle School in the Fox C-6 School District and Ray Benton discuss this important topic for music educators in great detail. How do you handle changes to your lesson plan, your school schedule, that out-of-town trip, or when you’re so tired you can’t do what you did…
MORECurated from YAMAHA – by Dr. Justin Antos YOUR BAND’S BRAND SHOULD TRANSCEND THE WALLS OF YOUR MUSIC CLASSROOM AND LET THE GREATER COMMUNITY IN ON THE MAGIC YOU AND YOUR STUDENTS CREATE ON A DAILY BASIS. Many professionals in the business world would agree that a company’s logo is one of the most important facets of its brand. Not…
MORECurated from YAMAHA – by Johanna M. Kitchell – RECRUITMENT IS A BIG PART OF ENSEMBLE DIRECTORS’ JOBS. DON’T LOOK AT IT AS A BURDEN, BUT RATHER AS A WAY OF TURNING POTENTIAL STUDENTS INTO “OUR KIDS.” The summer before I started 4th grade, I attended a week-long instrument camp, where we spent an hour each day learning about and…
MORECurated from YAMAHA – by Matt Kerns – STUDENTS SHOULD KNOW HOW TO PROPERLY OIL PISTON VALVES TO SOLVE STICKY VALVE PROBLEMS. It’s the night of the beginning band concert, and the curtain will go up soon. You’re back stage shepherding all of your students, who are bubbling with nervous excitement, to their chairs. Then, from the rear of the…
MORECurated from YAMAHA – by Austin Snowden – THERE ARE LOTS OF SIMILARITIES, BUT THEY ARE FAR FROM THE SAME. Early versions of the saxophone first appeared in 1840, followed by a number of variations. However, it wasn’t until the 1930s that the world saw what is now considered the modern saxophone. Advances in digital technology have allowed Yamaha to…
MORECurated from KHS Academic Alliance – by Peter Boonshaft – Many years ago, the legendary W. Francis McBeth wrote an article entitled, “It’s A Hard Life” that sticks (pun intended, as you’ll see!) with me every time I rehearse an ensemble. The essence of this article was his opinion that all too often percussionists are told by their conductors to…
MORECurated from YAMAHA – by Katheryn Drury Wagner – Writers are famously good at procrastinating. Just how good? While working on this article, I found myself shopping for a dog bandanna … and I don’t have a dog. Many creative and artistic personality types, including music educators, struggle with procrastination, which affects up to 20% of adults. Interestingly, some parts…
MORECurated from YAMAHA – by Jayme K. Hayes – ACCEPTING FAILURE IS CRUCIAL TO HELPING STUDENTS BECOME LIFELONG LEARNERS WHO ARE SELF-MOTIVATED TO SUCCEED. We all fear the horrible F word — failure. Who wants to fail at something? How often do people purposefully put effort into failing? It is something we avoid at all costs, are ashamed of, or…
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