September 20, 2014
I’m pursuing music and music education because it’s something I enjoy doing day in and day out, and I want to use the talents and knowledge I’ve been blessed with to help enrich the lives of others. Music is a field in which I will never stop learning or growing, and some of the most influential people in my life have been introduced to me through music. I hope to I inspire others to keep learning and growing as well, and I strive to leave a positive impact on my students, peers, and colleagues. As a teacher, I wish to instill a life-long appreciation for music and the arts in my students. I want to provide a positive environment that promotes learning in and outside of the classroom. Furthermore, I believe music is one of the few disciplines that is absolutely accessible for anyone, providing an environment that breeds success, fosters self-discovery, and allows students to apply knowledge and experiences from both in and outside the classroom. Music is universal language that transcends time and provides a means for people to truly experience and appreciate culture from around the world, and I hope to create a positive atmosphere in my classroom that encourages others to explore music.
I believe that a student-centered learning environment is one of the most important opportunities a teacher can provide. While lecture-style learning formats may be effective in certain disciplines, music is most effective when the teacher facilitates learning in a way that is focused on the students and fosters conversation, community, and camaraderie. Traditional instrumental and choral ensembles can sometimes become too stale and impersonal, so I believe that a mixture of rehearsal strategies will be necessary to keep content relevant and engaging for my students. Peer evaluations of performances, encouraging musical decision-making in both performance and practice, and alternative rehearsal strategies (such as mixed seating, pod rehearsals, and rotating parts) are just a few ways I hope to keep my classroom rehearsals educational and exciting. Additionally, I believe that a sound-before-sight approach is the best way to teach music, especially at the earlier stages of learning. Note-before-rote approaches produce musicians who struggle with aspects of music such as intonation, tuning, musicianship, balance and blend, etc. On the other hand, teaching with a sound-before-sight approach promotes good intonation, appropriate and characteristic timbres, mature and creative musical decisions, consistent inner pulse, balance and blend with other musicians, healthy practice habits, more focused learning, better retention of information and much more.
Comprehensive musicianship is one of the most important aspects for a music educator to be aware of. By consistently maintaining my skills on my instruments through performance, I can help set a strong example of professional musicianship for my students. Professional development is just as important as comprehensive musicianship for the music educator. In order to stay relevant and become the greatest teacher and musician I can be, I will join and participate regularly in professional organizations such as the National Association for Music Education (NAfME), the National Band Association (NBA), and the International Trumpet Guild (ITG). I vow to never stop searching for opportunities to learn, perform, and grow, and I hope that my endeavors will inspire my students to become fantastic musicians and make a positive impact on the world.
MUSED 150
As music educators, the ability to play social instruments such as guitar and piano and being able to sing reasonably well are just as essential to practical musicianship as any other musical aspect. Though maintaining and developing these skills are essential, they should not detract from our true focus: our students. Therefore, we should retain these skills at a high enough level that it comes naturally, limiting any attention that may be taken away from our students. Students and peers may not be able to take a teacher seriously if he’s stumbling around on the piano, which is why confidence and proper development of these skills is so vital. All in all, general music is the heart of everything we as music educators will be teaching.
Many music educators, including myself, have our own niche; whether it’s marching band, orchestra, or even choir, the truth is we will most likely need to be able to teach, or have knowledge in, a combination of specialties. For that reason, our knowledge in general music will need to be just as strong so that we can adapt to anything we have to teach. In order to be successful at teaching general music and general music classes, we must have good vocal and social instrumental skills which, in turn, we can apply to more specialized classes.
As Ball State has taught me, “sound before sight” is crucial in teaching music of any kind, so aural development should be the basis of our studies. Whether voice is your primary instrument or not, growth in vocal skill and knowledge is especially important. Teaching without a voice, as one can imagine, is terribly difficult, so it is imperative that we keep our voices healthy and use them efficiently. Furthermore, being able to match pitch is not enough; a music educator should have a well-developed ear and internal sense of pitch so that they can remain consistent when modeling and sight singing for his students. We as teachers must be able to produce examples of proficient vocal technique and knowledge in order for our students to develop their own voices. There is no better way to internalize and develop practical musicianship than being able to express it without some sort of medium, which is why vocal skills are so important.
While internalizing basic music skills is vital, there are steps that must be taken before students can begin formal training. Many people are used to hearing music and reacting to it on an emotional plane of some level. There is something inside everyone that lets them explore and express music in their own way, regardless of their skill or knowledge of music. However, to fully understand why music makes us feel the way we do, I believe that we need to be able to engage with music intellectually as well. Feeling music is important, “sound before sight” is important, but after these have been tapped into we must help students think, talk, and write about music in a way that’s objective and meaningful. Music theory, form and analysis, and music history are just a few subjects that we as educators, and musicians, can use achieve this. The technical, visual, and rote aspects of music are wonderful tools to fully understand and develop practical, personal musicianship.
Whether an educator, professional musician, music student, casual listener, or any variation of music consumer, there is value in understanding the mechanics behind the magic. Individual, basic concepts such as scales and triads are useful stepping-stones to more complex ideas. However, students can lose interest quickly with such abstractions, myself included, so it’s important to surround each concept with relevant musical examples. Though it can be difficult finding examples that are wholly applicable, the difficulty is worth it to help keep students engaged.
Strong vocal ability and well-practiced skill on social instruments, such as guitar or piano, are crucial tools in teaching general music. Despite what we as educators want to teach, are teaching, or will teach, the reality is that we will have to adapt in a way that doesn’t change what we teach, but how we approach what we teach. The final goal of any music class, whether it’s band, theory, or what-have-you, is to equip students with the critical thinking skills they need to deal intellectually with music. I hope to instill my own knowledge and experience in developing a well-rounded sense of personal musicianship in my students so that they may become accomplished performers, composers, educators, and listeners of music themselves.
I’m pursuing music and music education because it’s something I enjoy doing day in and day out, and I want to use the talents and knowledge I’ve been blessed with to help enrich the lives of others. Music is a field in which I will never stop learning or growing, and some of the most influential people in my life have been introduced to me through music. I hope to I inspire others to keep learning and growing as well, and I strive to leave a positive impact on my students, peers, and colleagues. As a teacher, I wish to instill a life-long appreciation for music and the arts in my students. I want to provide a positive environment that promotes learning in and outside of the classroom. Furthermore, I believe music is one of the few disciplines that is absolutely accessible for anyone, providing an environment that breeds success, fosters self-discovery, and allows students to apply knowledge and experiences from both in and outside the classroom. Music is universal language that transcends time and provides a means for people to truly experience and appreciate culture from around the world, and I hope to create a positive atmosphere in my classroom that encourages others to explore music.
I believe that a student-centered learning environment is one of the most important opportunities a teacher can provide. While lecture-style learning formats may be effective in certain disciplines, music is most effective when the teacher facilitates learning in a way that is focused on the students and fosters conversation, community, and camaraderie. Traditional instrumental and choral ensembles can sometimes become too stale and impersonal, so I believe that a mixture of rehearsal strategies will be necessary to keep content relevant and engaging for my students. Peer evaluations of performances, encouraging musical decision-making in both performance and practice, and alternative rehearsal strategies (such as mixed seating, pod rehearsals, and rotating parts) are just a few ways I hope to keep my classroom rehearsals educational and exciting. Additionally, I believe that a sound-before-sight approach is the best way to teach music, especially at the earlier stages of learning. Note-before-rote approaches produce musicians who struggle with aspects of music such as intonation, tuning, musicianship, balance and blend, etc. On the other hand, teaching with a sound-before-sight approach promotes good intonation, appropriate and characteristic timbres, mature and creative musical decisions, consistent inner pulse, balance and blend with other musicians, healthy practice habits, more focused learning, better retention of information and much more.
Comprehensive musicianship is one of the most important aspects for a music educator to be aware of. By consistently maintaining my skills on my instruments through performance, I can help set a strong example of professional musicianship for my students. Professional development is just as important as comprehensive musicianship for the music educator. In order to stay relevant and become the greatest teacher and musician I can be, I will join and participate regularly in professional organizations such as the National Association for Music Education (NAfME), the National Band Association (NBA), and the International Trumpet Guild (ITG). I vow to never stop searching for opportunities to learn, perform, and grow, and I hope that my endeavors will inspire my students to become fantastic musicians and make a positive impact on the world.
MUSED 150
As music educators, the ability to play social instruments such as guitar and piano and being able to sing reasonably well are just as essential to practical musicianship as any other musical aspect. Though maintaining and developing these skills are essential, they should not detract from our true focus: our students. Therefore, we should retain these skills at a high enough level that it comes naturally, limiting any attention that may be taken away from our students. Students and peers may not be able to take a teacher seriously if he’s stumbling around on the piano, which is why confidence and proper development of these skills is so vital. All in all, general music is the heart of everything we as music educators will be teaching.
Many music educators, including myself, have our own niche; whether it’s marching band, orchestra, or even choir, the truth is we will most likely need to be able to teach, or have knowledge in, a combination of specialties. For that reason, our knowledge in general music will need to be just as strong so that we can adapt to anything we have to teach. In order to be successful at teaching general music and general music classes, we must have good vocal and social instrumental skills which, in turn, we can apply to more specialized classes.
As Ball State has taught me, “sound before sight” is crucial in teaching music of any kind, so aural development should be the basis of our studies. Whether voice is your primary instrument or not, growth in vocal skill and knowledge is especially important. Teaching without a voice, as one can imagine, is terribly difficult, so it is imperative that we keep our voices healthy and use them efficiently. Furthermore, being able to match pitch is not enough; a music educator should have a well-developed ear and internal sense of pitch so that they can remain consistent when modeling and sight singing for his students. We as teachers must be able to produce examples of proficient vocal technique and knowledge in order for our students to develop their own voices. There is no better way to internalize and develop practical musicianship than being able to express it without some sort of medium, which is why vocal skills are so important.
While internalizing basic music skills is vital, there are steps that must be taken before students can begin formal training. Many people are used to hearing music and reacting to it on an emotional plane of some level. There is something inside everyone that lets them explore and express music in their own way, regardless of their skill or knowledge of music. However, to fully understand why music makes us feel the way we do, I believe that we need to be able to engage with music intellectually as well. Feeling music is important, “sound before sight” is important, but after these have been tapped into we must help students think, talk, and write about music in a way that’s objective and meaningful. Music theory, form and analysis, and music history are just a few subjects that we as educators, and musicians, can use achieve this. The technical, visual, and rote aspects of music are wonderful tools to fully understand and develop practical, personal musicianship.
Whether an educator, professional musician, music student, casual listener, or any variation of music consumer, there is value in understanding the mechanics behind the magic. Individual, basic concepts such as scales and triads are useful stepping-stones to more complex ideas. However, students can lose interest quickly with such abstractions, myself included, so it’s important to surround each concept with relevant musical examples. Though it can be difficult finding examples that are wholly applicable, the difficulty is worth it to help keep students engaged.
Strong vocal ability and well-practiced skill on social instruments, such as guitar or piano, are crucial tools in teaching general music. Despite what we as educators want to teach, are teaching, or will teach, the reality is that we will have to adapt in a way that doesn’t change what we teach, but how we approach what we teach. The final goal of any music class, whether it’s band, theory, or what-have-you, is to equip students with the critical thinking skills they need to deal intellectually with music. I hope to instill my own knowledge and experience in developing a well-rounded sense of personal musicianship in my students so that they may become accomplished performers, composers, educators, and listeners of music themselves.
