When the Well Runs Dry

Where will the profession of music education be when school systems no longer support K-12 general ed. programs? Are band, orchestra and choir programs next on the chopping block?

I just read an interesting post from an English teacher in the Bronx who has been told he will be teaching music this coming fall. There's just one problem; he has never played an instrument and knows nothing about music, let alone how to teach it. If this is the type of solution that school boards and administrators are proposing, how long will it be until traditional music programs simply give way to attrition altogether? What state will the profession be left in when the well runs dry?

This is not a new or recent problem. Music programs in schools have been on the decline for 25 years yet our college educational systems continue to groom future teachers for these ever dwindling positions. This is the 'elephant in the room' for the profession of music education but current curricula rarely if ever offer any alternatives to traditional academic teaching.

Many of the universities I researched employ a standard mantra within their core curriculum that goes something like this; '..our goal is to help the student become eligible for licensing to teach in a public school..'. They of course omit the rest of the sentence...'of which fewer and fewer jobs are currently available'.

Perhaps the opportunity that the internet provides as a delivery system for information and real time communication will create a stronger market for music education in the private sector. And if the old adage proves true that 'success breeds success', maybe more universities will begin to include business oriented courses into their degree programs. Then future educators will not only be well prepared for these options but they may begin to embrace them as an equal or even more enticing opportunity.

Nomad With Glassware: 2 Summer Wrongs

This is quite an enjoyable and well written post. I think we'd agree there has been a Mrs. Rust and Mrs. Bell in all of our lives.

Nomad With Glassware: 2 Summer Wrongs: "Of all the things I've forgotten from elementary school, like basic math and how to avoid girl bullies, I've never forgotten music education."

If You Build It...

There is an old marketing adage that says 'If your idea is great, people will find you'. Thanks go out to Seth Godin for that one. We have always believed the internet could be a terrific vehicle to deliver music education. Hopefully the fruits of this labor are paying off as more and more people learn about the product and services we can provide at MusickEd.com....but I digress.
















Our resident composer/arranger Mike Finkel has an encyclopedic-like knowledge of musical artists, band members and genres. He pulls from all areas of his own personal I-pod of a brain and creates amazing orchestrations. I know because he works right across the hall in office 210... (that's Mike on the left and yours truly on the right).

I asked Mike to give our readers a sneak peek at some of his latest work for the Jazz Series. He says this little beauty is 'drum 'n bass' influenced in a British dance style. Discerning ears may notice a little Weather Report flavored funk as well. We hope you enjoy the track and we welcome your comments. And by the way, feel free to test Mike's music trivia knowledge anytime!

CLICK HERE FOR THE JAZZ SERIES SAMPLE

Embrace the Process, Beware the Shortcut

I have visited many music education related blogs over the past few weeks and have thoroughly enjoyed reading the opinions of my colleagues across the country and the world. We are an amazing group of thoughtful and intelligent professionals! Among the plethora of sites I visited however, there were a number that make fantastic and sometimes outlandish claims:

Cut 'your learning time in half' boasts one, offering 'tons of shortcuts' that evidently have never before been revealed. Another site has this bold and amazing statement; 'YOU DO NOT HAVE TO KNOW ANYTHING ABOUT MUSIC' and after just 30 minutes you'll be playing 'DOZENS OF SONGS WITHOUT STRUGGLING, WITHOUT BORING EXERCISES AND YOU DO NOT EVEN HAVE TO READ MUSIC'!

Now I am all about entrepreneurship, especially in our profession - believe me, but I am just as passionate about promoting quality music education throughout our communities. So rather than name names, I thought I'd cast this sobering thought out to the blogosphere; embrace the process, beware the shortcut. Remember, this goes for both the learner and the teacher.

I hope that teachers with passion will encourage learners to embrace the process of discovering musical concepts and manage the challenges that come with applying those concepts to any instrument. And I hope that music enthusiasts choose to embrace their amazing journey with excitement, optimism and realistic expectations.

Christopher Small, a very wise music philosopher once said that 'music should be viewed as an act instead of a thing'. He called the act musicking and claimed it to be valid at every level. Rather than searching for shortcuts, let's all remember that the connections formed around the act of hearing, learning and making music are what really matters.

So to teachers and students alike I say, choose your materials wisely and enjoy the process!

15 Years In the Business of Music Education

Today I worked with a 4 year old piano student, a 12 year old beginning guitarist, a 45 year old electrical engineer, a 13 year old saxophonist (via web-cam from Texas to Iowa!), and an advanced 40 year old guitarist... to name just a few. Between sessions I monitored my favorite blogs and posted a few comments. I also did some research on two new 'education' websites (they shall remain nameless) and managed to have a bite of yummy pasta for lunch. This is a typical day for me and many of my colleagues at The Dallas School of Music, Inc. and MusickEd.com.

We are fortunate to have been serving our community for over 15 years. It's a vibrant, growing area full of avid music enthusiasts and parents who value music education for their children. I often wonder how many other communities across the country might be able to sustain a for-profit school such as ours?

The dynamics involved in this venture are more than just choosing a culturally friendly and/or affluent location. There has to be a core team of passionate, dedicated visionaries willing to work for the greater good. And there needs to be the right mix of educators who think like entrepreneurs (this is an amazingly small pool of people by the way). These key members must be dependable, flexible and talented. It helps to be in close proximity to universities and our ties with the amazing school of music at the University of North Texas has provided a wealth of quality faculty leads. Still, it has taken nearly all of the first 15 years to assemble our current team.

The entire process of building a school has not been without sacrifice but we have always felt it to be a struggle worth pursuing. From the beginning we hoped to provide a model for music education outside of academia. We believe strongly that our noble and important profession can stand next to other disciplines such as medicine, law or accounting in communities across the country (and indeed the world!). If successful, we hope more music educators in training will become aware of this option and college curricula will begin to include course options for more business minded music educators.

Wish us luck as we venture on toward our 20th year!