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http://www.kodaly.org.au/index.php/autumn-seminar

Read article here

2Simple Software – Interactive software for teaching basic music understanding (rhythm, pitch, harmony

ABODA Victoria presents:

Beyond Recruitment – the Journey Continues

2 – 5pm, Friday 9 September

Camberwell High School

With Sue Arney, Jemima Bunn and ABODA Committee, this clinic will present ideas to maximise the potential of your students, and band and/or string program; strategies to introduce and develop understanding of ensemble concepts; and activities to use up to the first concert and beyond.

Contact vice.president.vic@aboda.org.au

Piano Accompanist Summer School

Monday 16 – Thursday 19 January 2012

Venue: Xavier College, Barkers Rd, Kew

Run in conjunction with the ACCET conductor school, this is a morning school of lectures, masterclasses and group tuition in  which to refine piano accompanying skills, under the guidance of expert musicians. Vocal and instrumental performers will have prepared a range of selected works for participants to accompany.

For more information visit the ACCET web site at www.choralconductors.org.au and go to the piano accompanist page.

RAMEAU Dances from Dardanus, Les Boréades, Castor et Pollux and others

*Richard Tognetti Artistic Director and Lead Violin*
*Rafael Bonachela Artistic Director and Choreographer*
*Sydney Dance Company
*Australian Chamber Orchestra

Wed 31 Oct 12pm-2pm 2012
Sydney Theatre

A mutual passion for Rameau’s perfumed and powerful French Baroque dance
music sparks this new production by Rafael Bonachela and Richard Tognetti.
Rameau’s flair for rhythm and melody, and feeling for choreography, leads
many to name him the greatest-ever ballet composer, certainly the most
influential. Bonachela’s dynamic choreography, innate musicality and
theatricality serve to illuminate this brilliant music, performed live by
the ACO.

This performance will feature and introduction and behind-the-scenes
discussion by Richard Tognetti and Rafael Bonachela, and a question and
answer session at the end of the performance.

Tickets $30. Teachers may book online www.aco.com.au/Default.aspx?url=/matinee
or phone 1800 444 444.

Questions? Please contact Sarah Conolan on (02) 8274 3871 or at
sarah.conolan@aco.com.au

Open Rehearsal for School Students
Thurs 2 Aug

Students sit within metres of the musicians while they rehearse, getting a behind-the-scenes look at how the Orchestra prepares for concerts. After the rehearsal, students are invited to meet the ACO players. Register your students.

NSW VIC WA ACT QLD SA

Above are the links to the Australian Chamber Orchestra’s FREE teaching notes and lesson ideas for their 2012 Tour 2 (TWO). Lesson content is designed for Secondary students.

Nominations for the 2011 Awards for Excellence in School Music Education are due to close on Friday, 1st April, 2011. The awards aim to recognise music teachers and school leaders for their exceptional contribution to enhancing the status and quality of music education in their schools.

There will be up to eleven teacher Awards and up to two school leader Awards. Each recipient of an Award will receive a certificate and a cheque for $5,000, which is intended to be used to further their professional learning related to music education.

All details about the 2011 Awards, including Guidelines, and nomination forms are available on the website at:

http://musicawards.asme.edu.au/

Through unforeseen circumstances, Ben wishes to postpone the workshop. A new date will be posted as soon as arrangements can be made. It will be sometime next semester.

——————————————–

There are still three openings for full conductor participants for this professional development opportunity for conductors. There is no restriction on the number of observers. Perhaps you are ahead enough with your school report writing?

The Ben Northey Conductors Seminar, Master Class and Video Workshop is being hosted at Carey Baptist Grammar School, 349 Barkers Road, Kew, Wednesday 13 June 5.15pm – 10.00pm.

Please remember that all workshop attendees are invited to see Ben Northey conduct the MSO at ‘Meet The Music Concert as part of MSO’s Education Week in the Melbourne Town Hall, concert starting at 6.30pm Tuesday 5 June. Details about how to get the discount are on the Conductors Workshop application form which can be downloaded on the GWS website, ABODA FaceBook page and the GWS Facebook Page.

This event is organised by The Grainger Wind Symphony in partnership with the Australian Band and Orchestra Directors Association Victoria Branch.

Queries: Roland Yeung 0432 445577

http://musicteachntech.com/

An Australian Music & Technology Educator keeps notes and ideas on this blog.

HERE is a blog with a few suggestions re. removing scratches from CDs.

http://www.classicsforkids.com/activitysheets/

Dozens of free, colourful worksheets on well-known Classical / Romantic / 20th century works. Most include pictorial listening guides.

Watch 20 mins worth of ColdPlay performing live on YouTube. Take notes on stage-craft (actions, moves and dress), how they engage the crowd, what percussion is played, and what makes this live performance so exciting. Suggest students incorporate some of these ideas into their own band performances.

Collarts PD Program for 2011

The Australian College of the Arts | Ausmusic College is pleased to announce its 2011 PD program commencing from Tuesday April 5th. Each of the PD Days are focused on providing hands-on opportunities for music teachers, especially teachers of VCE and VET.

Term 1

Tuesday April 5th 2011 Check 1, 2 – Live Sound
Term 2
Friday June 10th - Recording techniques
Friday Jun 17th - Songwriting and stagecraft

Term 3
Friday August 5th - Post production
Friday August 12th - Using technology in performance

Term 4
Friday December 9th - Education Partners 2012 Preview – see what’s new from Collarts in 2012

Check 1, 2 – Live Sound Workshop kicks off the 2011 PD program

Join our Collarts education team and two industry experts – production manager and front-of-house audio engineer Glenn Helmot (John Farnham, James Morrison, Deborah Conway etc) along with leading session guitarist Simon Patterson (Hey, Hey Band, Lou Rawls, Kate Ceberano, Bonnie Raitt, James Morrison etc) to get the knowledge, tricks and tips on how to create and produce a great performance. With a combined 50 years of industry experience Glenn and Simon can show you how to get the best out of your production gear – whether in front of, or behind the microphone.

Teachers will leave with:

• Knowledge, tips and tricks on how to maximise your schools music production equipment to create a a great sound

• Tools and activities to develop your performance and production students skills and get them working together

• Performance tips on getting your sound off stage and to the audience

Being part of the Collarts PD program for 2011 is simple:

To register visit http://www.collarts.edu.au/education-partners/professional-development

or email info@collarts.edu.au

or call 03 9281 8898

Bookings are essential.

Cost: $99 for teachers (no charge for Collarts Education partner schools) – lunch is included

The Collarts PD Day program takes place at Collarts, 55 Brady Street, South Melbourne commencing at 10am and finishing at 3pm.

–
Monique Boggia
Education Manager
Australian College of the Arts | Ausmusic College
55 Brady St., South Melbourne
Email mboggia@collarts.edu.au
Ph +613 9281 8898

Did you know all "Crescendo Music" Newsletters, going back over two years, are available HERE.
Another great resource at your finger tips, including free lesson plans.

www.emusictheory.com/practice.html

Check out this website for free online aural music skill drills and notation practice for students.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/schools/gcsebitesize/music/elements_of_music/texture1.shtml

This free website explains many different textures in music, all with YouTube clips to offer examples.

http://www.alfred.com/SC/BandResources.aspx

Free fingering charts for band instruments are found here.

A Secondary Music & Technology teacher is here sharing resources with the rest of us

http://musicteachntech.com/resources-and-lesson-plans/

Care of Crescendo Music’s website:

Funny Answers from Students on Music Exams

The principal singer of nineteenth-century opera was called pre-Madonna.

It is easy to teach anyone to play the maracas. Just grip the neck and shake him in rhythm.

Gregorian chant has no music, just singers singing the same lines. Sherbet composed the Unfinished Symphony.

All female parts were sung by castrati. We don’t know exactly what they sounded like because there are no known descendants.

Music sung by two people at the same time is called a duel; if they sing without music it is called Acapulco.

A virtuoso is a musician with real high morals.

Contralto is a low sort of music that only ladies sing.

A harp is a nude piano.

The main trouble with a French Horn is that it is too tangled up.

An interval in music is the distance from one piano to the next.

The correct way to find the key to a piece of music is to use a pitchfork.

Agitato is a state of mind when one’s finger slips in the middle of playing a piece.

Refrain means don’t do it. A refrain in music is the part you’d better not try to sing.

I know what a sextet is but I’d rather not say.

Most authorities agree that music of antiquity was written long ago.

My favorite composer was Opus. Agnus Dei was a woman composer famous for her church music.

Henry Purcell was a well-known composer few people have ever heard of.

Johann Sebastian Bach wrote a great many musical compositions and had a large number of children. In between he practiced on an old spinster which he kept up in his attic.

There’s a wacky, catchy kids song on YouTube – in English, he is “Gummy Bear” … in French he is “Funny Bear”. The first half of the song is in C major, and the melody uses A, C, D & E, so it suits glockenspiels or beginner keyboards.

Lesson idea: Practise alternate hand slapping on thighs: 6 taps starting on left … short rest … 6 taps starting on left … 14 taps starting on right. Play the YouTube clip to Middle School students. Get the kids singing the chorus. Add in the ‘hand slapping on thighs’ pattern during the chorus (it fits with the chorus rhythm). Ask students to figure out the melody, which starts on A.

Extension: see if students can alternate their glockenspiel mallet hands (as per the hand slapping warm-up).

Melody: A A A C A A – - A A A C E E – - E E E D D D D D D D E D C A – -

Further extension: Write the chorus melody on the board as a row of quavers and quaver rests. Ask students to help put in the bar-lines and time signature.

THIS primary school unit on rock and guitar used the video game “Guitar Hero” to inspire a cross-curricular unit of learning. Navigate using the sub-headings at the top of page.

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/01/11/us/music-lessons-on-webcams-grow-in-popularity.html?_r=2&ref=technology

In USA and UK, a growing number of students are getting lessons from instrumental experts over the internet (using webcams, Skype, etc). Read the article at the link above.

Cavallo Capers – a newly released  CD BUONGIORNO SIGNORA, containing 13 original songs, a song book, lyric charts and an activity book for beginner Italian language (LOTE).

dozens of interviews with Jazz musicians

http://www.jazzandbeyond.com.au/interview.html

Do you have some excellent Instrumentalists in your State School that would like to be involved in the Victorian State Schools Spectacular this year?

There is an exciting opportunity for some of these students who would like to do more playing outside of school.

Auditions are now open for students who would like to be a part of the Orchestra for the Victorian State Schools Spectacular in 2011. This group will rehearse on occasional Sundays throughout Terms 2 and 3, according to a schedule that will be distributed before the audition. Rehearsals are at the DEECD Performing Arts Unit (102 Rupert St, Collingwood).

Orchestra auditions are being held on Sunday 13 March at the Performing Arts Unit and can be booked by phoning 9415 1700 or email: jtc@edumail.vic.gov.au. Other times are available outside of this date by appointment.

Students will need to present 2 contrasting pieces that they have prepared. There may be some sightreading in the audition. Students should be at Grade 5 AMEB standard or higher. An accompanist will be provided and students will need to come with clear sheet music for the accompanist in the correct key.

Please pass on this information to any students you feel may be interested and suitable.

Sunday 15 January 10 am – 4 pm at Hawthorn Town Hall and Tuesday 17 January from 7 – 9.30 pm in Xavier College Chapel (2012)

Fred Sjoberg will conduct this gathering of singers for a day and an evenijng, giving all choristers the experience of learning from an international expert. This is great for teachers, who may not often get a good vocal work-out themselves; and also, as Fred is an energetic conductor of youth, a good opportunity for sight-reading senior students to enjoy singing under his leadership.

For more information www.choralconductors.org.au and go to the Sing for Life Choir.

www.lenmus.org

LenMus is a FREE music education software that you can use to practice your music reading skills, improve your aural recognition abilities, or just learn the fundamental principles of music theory and language. It also includes a score editor, so you can write your own basic scores.

This software is already installed on NSW DET DERvices (little student laptops).

CLICK HERE to make your own bingo cards (using musical instruments and/or symbols)

or CLICK HERE to print off a set of bingo cards, ready-to-go, using instrument pictures.

Lesson idea: the caller will mix up the actual names of the instruments / symbols with descriptions (eg. 1 beat note, saxophone, largest stringed instrument, triangle …)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0hR6O7VxKaQ

investigate the emotion that is so evident in this song … sung by military wives

Monbulk Primary School in Victoria unveiled its new BER-funded Arts Centre last Thursday, 10th November. The super-creative building façade represents a pianola roll for Advance Australia Fair! Arts Minister, Simon Crean, opened the new building with lots of inspiring words about the fundamental role of the arts and music to Australia’s social and economic development and said he’s working hard to get more federal support for The Arts. Monbulk’s new building also houses the Dandenong Ranges Music Council. Congrats to its founder, Bev McAlister, after whom the building’s new music centre has been named.

See photo here

Watch this YOUTUBE CLIP of the MozART Group from Poland. It is an entertaining collage of Classical String Quartets re-interpreted

Now choose a Classical piece of music (Google search for the Classical Top 100) or nursery rhyme and change it drastically … into pop, funk, country, metal, etc. You may wish to write lyrics to go with the Classical melody.       OR

Choose a piece of pop music and arrange it for a classical ensemble. Start by putting the vocal line into an instrument, then find chords to go underneath.

HINT: Google search for the song name + free + midi. You may well be able to save a midi file from the internet, which will open in Finale / Audacity / Sibelius, etc.

SMH article

YouTube link

A resource site explaining the mathematics behind music

http://plus.maths.org/content/os/issue35/features/rosenthal/index

Music and NAPLAN go hand in hand: A workshop for primary teachers

Presented by Dr Ros McMillan

Enlightened music teachers in primary schools know that their teaching often involves literacy in a variety of forms.

This workshop, led by one of Australia’s most experienced teacher educators, will build on the skills and knowledge of specialist music teachers through enjoyable and stimulating ideas that ‘tick the boxes’ of both VELS and NAPLAN.

Participants will be involved in a range of hands-on activities using poems, stories, songs and chants with creativity as a major focus.

DATE Wednesday 17 April 2013

TIME 10.00am – 3.30pm

COST $150.00 (members) $220.00 (non-members)

VENUE Statewide Resources Centre

150 Palmerston Street, Carlton

Melway reference — Map 2B:H6

Google Map

Booking essential

Lunch is provided

(please advise any special dietary requirements)

http://amuse.vic.edu.au/PL2013/musicandnaplan.htm

Kevin Kelley

Executive Officer

Association of Music Educators

150 Palmerston Street.  Carlton 3053

P 03 9349 1048

F 03 9349 1052

Kevin.kelley@amuse.vic.edu.au

Www.amuse.vic.edu.au

The Music in Australia Knowledge Base website has been re-presented and is
much more user-friendly. Check out www.musicinaustralia.org.au

http://musicalxchange.com.au/

website for musicians to swap and sell instruments in Australia

Musiclopedia – an A to Z directory of websites re. Music Genres, Recording Artists, Orchestras etc.

MELBOURNE FESTIVAL OF CHOIRS Youth/School Choir Program

Friday 10th June 2011 9.30am – 3.30pm

Dr Jonathon Welch AM (best known as the Founding Director of the ARIA, Helpmann and Logie winning Choir of Hard Knocks, ABC TV’s Jail Birds and Channel 7’s Battle of the Choirs), is inviting schools and students to participate in the first National Melbourne Festival of Choirs to be held on the Queen’s Birthday weekend of 10 – 13 June 2011.

Following the stunning success of the inaugural 2010 Melbourne Festival of Choirs, with over 400 participants, we are conducting a dedicated Youth/Schools Festival Program on Friday 10th June offering the opportunity for students from Grade 4 upwards to collaborate and workshop with some of Australia’s best music directors, and to perform in the magnificent BMW Edge Theatre in Federation Square.

For all the latest information on the festival, including program outline and registration – Email Jan Hamilton, Manager, Melbourne Festival of choirs - choirfest@hotmail.com or www.festivalofchoirs.com.au

Music: Count Us In resources include (free) braille music charts and videos of kids signing Auslan while singing the annual song. www.musiccountusin.org.au You may need to sign up (for free).

There’s a deaf percussionist who feels the music through her feet (YouTube)
- she even appeared on Sesame St playing mallet percussion.

Show YouTube clips of kids playing music who are of a similar age or younger (4 year djembe player, 3 year old conducting Beethoven, suzuki violinists, etc). Ask a student to stand up and mime as if doing karaoke.

Brainstorm on ways to communicate, and what we communicate (including mime, car horns and sirens). Make some car horn and sirens with voices. Get into pairs and do a miming
game (person A mimes while person B is the mirror). Give them instruments and try the same game. Grab instruments / chop sticks / pencils and try to communicate different emotions or messages.

“Whoever You Are” by Mem Fox (nothing to do with music, but an awesome bok
about multiculturalism!!!)

I am interested in starting a peer support group for music teachers in the north who are the only music teacher at their school and especially for those in challenging school environments. It would be great to meet teachers in a similar situation once every couple of months and discuss problems/solutions in the music classroom/with school structures. Basically to gain support from each other to do the sometimes tough job we do and not feel so isolated! Please email me at pringle.erica.e@edumail.vic.gov.au if you’re interested.

Annual New Zealand Choir Tour and Festival

July 7-9, 2011 in New Zealand

www.SingDownunder.com

http://www.flashmusicgames.com/
scroll down the screen, then try recording a simple song using the on-screen keyboard

8 July 2011 = Percy Grainger’s 129th birthday

Website for skill drill practice in reading rhythms

Select level of difficult – from exercise 1 to 21.

Show your students the YouTube clip of Tim Minchin’s “Canvas Bags” song (NB it contains a few profanities). Discuss the damage done by plastic bags to our environment. Ask students to form song-writing groups & create their own protest song or rap. Also highlight the contrast of styles featured in Minchin’s song.

Richard Gill was on the panel for ABC’s Q& A on 31/10/2011.

Read the transcript here (scroll 2/3 of the way down for the music-education-related discussions). You can also watch the episode online here (start at the link for 39′ 30).

Read the informal audience question and answers on the FaceBook page here.

we are hoping you will help us to choose songs for the Best of The ABC Sing Book.

The 2014 Sing Book will be a compilation of the best 50 songs from 1970 to 2010 and we would like to invite you to vote for your favourites.

The process is very simple and we hope you can spare a few minutes to help make the collection a true reflection of the best songs.

1.     Vote for your favourite 20 songs by filling in the numbers 1 to 20 on our attached excel document (1 being your most favoured)

OR

1b. Choose up to 50 songs and no need to put them in order. Just put

“X” next to the songs you choose and return the spreadsheet.

2. Return this to the following email address: johnkane@bigpond.net.au

by Monday 27^th August

3. Send this on to any of your colleagues who also love SING. Give them a chance to take part and help us to create a more representative collection.

Many thanks

Rhonda Macken (Sing Co-ordinator) and John Kane (Sing Music Producer).

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oatiGFBkz1Q

A UK project of training students singing mentors, who then teach playground singing games!

Songsmith generates musical accompaniment to match a singer’s voice. Just choose a musical style, sing into your PC’s microphone, and Songsmith will create backing music for you. Then share your songs with your friends and family, post your songs online, or create your own music videos.

http://research.microsoft.com/en-us/um/redmond/projects/songsmith/

This year the State Music Camp celebrates its 50^th year. To mark this special milestone we will be hosting an alumni orchestra at our annual gala concert in the Robert Blackwood Hall on Saturday 9 July. Every past ‘camper’ is warmly encouraged to be part of this unique occasion.

Expressions of interest or queries can be sent to info@statemusiccamp.com.au. You may also like to visit our website at www.statemusiccamp.com.au

“The Deadlys” showcase the outstanding achievements of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders and provides identifiable national and local role models to inspire all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders, particularly young people.

The 2011 Deadly Awards were held on September 27, 2011 at the Sydney Opera House.  Here is the winners’ list.

Starting a new Music group – Bucket loads of advice to help you start up a new Music group (at school or in the community) – thanks to the ‘Music in Communities’ network at ‘Music. Play for Life’

musiced.nafme.org/resources/national-standards-for-music-education

1. Singing, alone and with others, a varied repertoire of music.

2. Performing on instruments, alone and with others, a varied repertoire of music.

3. Improvising melodies, variations, and accompaniments.

4. Composing and arranging music within specified guidelines.

5. Reading and notating music.

6. Listening to, analyzing, and describing music.

7. Evaluating music and music performances.

8. Understanding relationships between music, the other arts, and disciplines outside the arts.

9. Understanding music in relation to history and culture.

Give student the following chords and ask them to figure out (in groups) the order of the chords in Coldplay’s “Viva la Vida”: C major, D major, E minor, G major.

If you transpose the original song MP3 by one semitone (using Audacity software or similar), students can play along with keyboards, guitars and ukuleles.

http://simonpurcell.wordpress.com/2010/09/02/robert-duke-why-students-dont-learn-what-we-think-we-teach/

This interesting online lecture is aimed at Tertiary (Music) educators, spoken by US educator Robert Duke.

Deep Blue Orchestra is a new style of energetic orchestral performance. Towns can request a concert (via Deep Blue’s website), and audience members can ask for copies of sheet music in order to participate in one song during the concert.

Deep Blue also promotes young musicians through workshops and their Young Blue program.

Special Invitation to Youth Band Program

OPEN DAY     June 25th

Call to all junior Wind, Percussion and Brass musicians

1.30pm – 5.00pm

OPEN DAY 2011

We welcome everybody to the launch of the magnificent Wilf Dyason Wind Ensemble and further recruitment day for John Mallinson Youth Band.

Band Members: Invite all of your music friends. Bring them along to have a BBQ, jam with the band, a play and a cake.

This is your invitation to our OPEN REHEARSAL DAY for ALL members and guests of our current Youth Band Program (YBP). The band members will introduce you to the most exciting time of your life.
Our conductors and team members, tutors and leaders will help you to become the best musicians and performers in Australia.

Program for OPEN DAY Saturday June 25th 2011        Time: 1.30pm – 5.00pm
1:30 p.m. – 2:00 p.m.  2:00 p.m. – 2:10 p.m.  2:10 p.m. – 2:30 p.m.  2:30 p.m. – 3:00 p.m.    3:00 p.m. – 4:00 p.m.  4:00 p.m. – 4:45 p.m. welcome guests and band members / sign guests in welcoming speech by the YBP presidentperformance by JMYB brief introduction of the bands by the conductors of the Wilf Dyason Wind Ensemble (WDWE ) and the John Mallinson Youth Band (JMYB) open rehearsals for both WDWE  and JMYB bands BBQ – meet and discussion with parents – membership acceptance

Venue:                   Mount Waverley Secondary College  MUSIC CENTRE
Corner of Lechte Road and Beaufort Street, Mount Waverley

Contact: David Singh 0400 133 242