Long and Overdue

It's been quite a while since this site has been updated, and I apologize for that. Being a music major means you have very little time on your hands, and what little time I had was spent on facebook. Go me!

This is just an update to show the world that yes, I am alive and many new postings will be happening, especially since I will be finishing up student teaching in a couple of weeks. I'll have some tips on Music Major Dos and Donts, Student Teaching Dos and Donts and many strategies that I have learned throughout the years.

I've learned a great deal from student teaching, and I want to share my good and bad days with those who are terrified of that part of their education. I might even upload some easy lesson plan guides for those who are struggling with the idea of creating lesson plans.

Hope everyone is doing well and I'll report back soon!

Trick for teaching

Here's a trick for teaching: Instead of forcing music on the students, choose two or three pieces that could work in the concert/festival/etc. and have the students vote on which one they like the best. Not only will they be more receptive to the piece, but they will also have more respect for you because they'll feel like you have more respect for their opinion!

Strong Advice for music teachers of all grades:

I would HIGHLY recommend teaching your students to read music. In my school’s music program this semester, there was a vocal student in Music Theory I who, as well as learning basic theory, had to learn how to read music. This was highly disappointing that a music teacher did not take the time to teach his or her students to read music.
Also, please teach the students that a quarter note is not always the beat. Students tend to have this mindset that a quarter note is always constant. For example, if a student sees a rhythm with quarter notes as the beat, they usually can sight-read it without much difficulty. If the student sees the same rhythm with the 8th note as the beat, the student will usually either take the passage twice as fast or will tap their foot to what they believe the quarter note to be. Either way, the student usually has a very difficult time with the latter scenario.
There are many methods out there for teaching music reading and rhythm, each with their pros and cons, but please: teach them to you students.

Improving Tone for Instrumentalists

Two very good ways to improve tone efficiently and in a shorter amount of time:

1.          Sing: If you as a teacher have your students sing their parts, they are more likely to produce a better tone. Singing and playing instruments use the same muscles, and in consequence, produces a similar tone. If the students do not have good tone while singing, chances are they will not have good tone while playing. If the students question why they are singing when they are instrumentalists (as teens and pre-teens are famous for asking), tell them that singing and playing are directly related. Then if able, give them an anatomy lesson on how the muscles in the lower abdomen, the larynx and the oral cavity produce sound and transfer air.

If you are a soloist, sing your solo. If some pitches are out of tune when you sing them, or if you can’t sing your part, continue working on this. This will teach you how to have good air support and to hear “tendency” pitches (pitches that are constantly sharp or flat). Make sure to have a well-tuned piano near you!

2.     Record: Record yourself. You don’t know how you really sound until you record yourself! As a soloist, this should be done at least twice a week (every day at the beginning and ending of a practice time to compare improvement is ideal) and you should record what improved, what didn’t and how to fix it for next time. As a teacher, record your students at least two weeks before a performance and at least twice a week. Have them compare the recordings of themselves to professionals if a recording of the song exists. This will do wonders to your players!

If you can record your students singing, that’s a real eye opener to them. It can fix tone in a very short amount of time and with little effort on the teacher’s part. The  students will take charge when they actually know how they sound, trust me!

Music

Music is found everywhere in the world. It is safe to say that music has an important part of almost every person's life, no matter if they love or hate it.
It is amazing how diverse music is, and yet no matter the culture, it brings people together. It's also a wonder that even though music is vastly different through out the world, regions and even within the cultures, it still is the language that every person understands.
This is why I became a music major: to understand how the sizes and colors of music thread themselves together into a beautiful masterpeice that all people can understand and enjoy.
I hope to write posts that will be beneficial to any music majors with questions who stumble upon this blog. I will try to update as often as I can on observations in classes on content, tips and tricks and positive/negative teaching strategies.
Wishing you all a wonderful day,

~Saturn Fulcrum