Featuring the music of Maine composers/arrangers Terry White, Craig Skeffington, and others, as well as the premier of a piece that Terry and the Gifted and Talented students of RSU40 district helped compose.
Archive for the ‘Music’ Category
Another Teacher’s Story: Sue Barre
March 4, 2014Featuring one teacher’s journey as an arts educator
This is the first for 2014 and the third phase of the Maine Arts Assessment Initiative of this series of blog posts telling arts teachers’ stories. This series contains a set of questions to provide the opportunity for you to read the stories and to learn from others.
Sue Barre teaches students in Grades 5-12 at Waterville High School and Junior High School and the Albert S. Hall School. She has been the Band Director since 2007 and was the Chorus Director from 2007 – 2007. Sue also teaches Band and HS Music Theory. Sue has been a teacher leader with the Maine Arts Assessment Initiative (MAAI) during the last year. She took a graduate course with the New England Teacher Institute for Teacher Education 2 years ago and she was “hooked”. The rest is history as Sue is committed to the MAAI and the quality of work she is doing.
Her student breakdown includes the following:
- Grade 5 band – 38 students
- Grade 6 band – 30 students
- Grade 7/8 band – 55 students
- HS Band – 58 students
- JH and SH Jazz Bands
- HS Pep Band
Sue was the Director of the Pit Orchestra for fall musical, has worked in public schools for 19 years, teaching instrumental and choral music. She is the owner of Music Together, a preschool music program, for 5 years.
What do you like best about being a music/art/drama/dance educator?
I most enjoy watching the light bulbs go on for students, those “aha” moments. The sense of accomplishment when an ensemble performs a piece effectively is priceless. In my current position I truly enjoy watching the students grow and mature from fifth graders until they are heading off to college.
What do you believe are three keys to ANY successful visual and performing arts education?
- Support of Administration in word and action.
- Passion for teaching by the educator.
- A “glass is half full” attitude by the educator.
How have you found assessment to be helpful to you in your classroom?
Assessments have allowed me to converse with my students in a meaningful manner using a common language. Assessments have also required me to assess my own teaching and learning. I am constantly learning what works for students and what does not.
What have been the benefits in becoming involved in the arts assessment initiative?
To be in a room with educators who share a passion for quality education and assessment is invigorating. The Arts Initiative has given me what seems to be bottomless supply of resources for teaching and learning, assessing and reporting and a place where others feel as passionately as I do about arts education!
What are you most proud of in your career?
That I have made a difference in students lives. Facebook has afforded me the opportunity to hear from former students and I am often amazed what affected them the most in the classroom and beyond.
What gets in the way of being a better teacher or doing a better job as a teacher?
At this point in my life it is time, much time is dedicated to motherhood (that I would not trade for the world). If I could add eight hours a day for prep for school that would be ideal.
What have you accomplished through hard work and determination that might otherwise appear at first glance to be due to “luck” or circumstances?
The improvement of my jazz band programs over the last nine years has been hard work. As a french horn player this is not a genre of music that I studied a lot or performed often. I need to work for every point we earn.
Look into your crystal ball: what advice would you give to teachers?
Remember that no matter how big they appear, all of the students (even those seniors) are children. They need structure and guidance and to know you care. You need to be their teacher and not their friend. If you are honest and hardworking and show that you care success will find you.
If you were given a $500,000.00 to do with whatever you please, what would it be?
10% to charity to repay the help that we have received over the years and then I would take my family to Disney and let them do anything they want!
Imagine you are 94 years old. You’re looking back. Do you have any regrets?
No I do not. I have my faith, I have my beautiful family and I have a job that I find rewarding and truly love. I tell my students that I have never heard anyone say later in life that they wished they had spent more time at work and I try hard to model the importance of family each and every day.
Opps for Students
March 1, 2014Three opportunities for students
- Yamaha: Young Performing Artists program
The Yamaha Young Performing Artists Program (YYPA) recognizes outstanding young musicians from the world of classical, jazz and contemporary music. Each year, the YYPA Finalists are invited to perform at the Music for All Summer Symposium held in late June. Maximum award: $5,000 in retail credit towards a professional model Yamaha instrument, as well as a series of clinics and master classes with renowned artists, designed to help winners launch their music career. Finalists will also receive a professional recording of their performances and national press coverage. Eligibility: musicians ages 16-21. Deadline: March 31, 2014 - Google: Doodle4Google
One talented young artist will see his or her artwork on the Google homepage and receive a college scholarship and a Google for Education technology grant for his or her school. Students should create their doodles based on the theme “If I Could Invent One Thing to Make the World a Better Place…” Maximum award: $30,000 college scholarship; $50,000 Google for Education technology grant for his or her school. Eligibility: students grades K-12. Deadline: March 20, 2014. - Writers in the Schools: Sarah Mook Memorial Poetry Contest
The Sarah Mook Memorial Poetry Contest acknowledges, encourages, and rewards the efforts of student poets. Maximum award: $100. Eligibility: students K-12. Deadline: March 31, 2014.
University Singers
February 28, 2014Unique student opportunity
Invitation to a Free Lunch Time Concert. The University of Maine Singers under the direction of Dr. Dennis Cox and accompanied by Dr. Laura Artesani will visit the Camden Hills Regional High School for a short concert on Tuesday, March 11th at 12:15 – 1:00 PM. There is plenty of space in the Strom auditorium, please attend and hear this excellent college ensemble!
There is also a chance that there will be a short male a cappella workshop from 1 – 1:30, if there is enough interest from area middle school/high schools. If interested, please contact Kim Murphy at Kim_Murphy@fivetowns.net ASAP and let her know.
The University Singers will be on tour during this time. The locations where they will be performing are listed below. All concerts are scheduled to begin at 7:00 PM, free and open to the public.
- March 10, First Baptist Church, Bar Harbor
- March 11, Owls Head Transportation Museum, Owls Head
- March 12, First Parish Church of Christ, Saco
- March 12, Winnisquam Regional High School, Tilton, NH
- March 14, Lasell College, Newton, MA
Portland Symphony Orchestra
February 16, 2014Coming in March
Jamie Bernstein and the Impact of Music Education: On March 17, we’ll be hosting a free event at Merrill Auditorium celebrating music education and ‘Music in Our Schools Month’ featuring Jamie Bernstein. Jamie is the daughter of the Leonard Bernstein and will be narrating the PSO’s performance of ’Bernstein by Bernstein’. From 6pm – 7pm, music and arts educators are encouraged to join us in Merrill Auditorium’s Rehearsal Hall for a celebration of recent music education achievements from throughout the state. From 7pm – 8pm, everyone is invited to join us in the main hall for a conversation between Music Director Robert Moody and Jamie Bernstein about the impact that music education has had in their lives. This event is free although registration is required: https://portsymph.wufoo.com/forms/jamie-bernstein-and-the-impact-of-music-education/.
Additionally, we’re happy to announce that our Spring KinderKonzerts have been posted to our website. KinderKonzerts are a fun, interactive introduction to live orchestral music for children ages 3-7. Through instrument demonstration, active listening, and narrative story-telling, audience members learn all about the families of instruments that make up an orchestra. Concerts last about 40 minutes. A partial schedule is currently available on our website. We will be adding more dates soon for Portland, Kennebunk, Waldoboro, Lewiston, and Fryeburg. Visit http://www.portlandsymphony.org to learn more.
Music in Waterville
February 13, 2014Program receives big boost
From Waterville Jr. and Sr. High Schools music teacher and District IV chair and MAAI teacher leader, Sue Barre:
We had some fun in our corner of the music world tonight. What a gift! Tonight our program received 21 new instruments, 4 trumpets, 4 trombones, 4 flutes, 4 clarinets, 3 alto saxophones, 1 tenor saxophone and a electric guitar – FOR FREE!!!! The Galen Cole Foundation whose philosophy is to “pay it forward” – so the high school students are to learn secondary instruments and then work with the younger students in trade for these instruments that the school will have use of forever! There is much good in the world – and tonight we got a piece of it :-)!
Jim Neville of the Galen Cole Foundation
LearnNow
February 10, 2014The importance of Arts education
LearnNow has a series on arts and learning which takes a detailed looking at the benefits of teaching the arts to children. There are 10 articles in the series that are presented by two arts education experts. You can access them by clicking here. There are core questions that the articles address including:
- How does instrumental music learning affect children?
- How does involvement in theatre affect children?
- Why study the visual arts?
- Should the arts be integrated with other academic subjects?
- How can healing happen through engagement with the arts?
There are two articles included on each topic that you won’t want to miss. I suggest that you share the information with your colleagues and community members.
Music History Site
February 3, 2014A timeline of six decades
Recently Google released an music timeline that documents variations of the music industry from the last six decades. Thanks to Arts educator, Charlie Johnson for sharing this link: http://www.educatorstechnology.com/2014/01/google-just-released-interesting-music.html. In Charlie’s own words: “It is a very visually organized site.”
Summer Youth Music Camp
January 31, 2014UMaine program
Orono, Maine — Registration is underway for Maine Summer Youth Music (MSYM) Camp at the University of Maine.
Junior Camp, for students in grades 5-8, is July 13-18 and Senior Camp, for students in grades 8-12, is July 19-27. Eighth-grade students may attend either or both camps.
Campers study with UMaine faculty and public school music teachers while staying in a residence hall on the Orono campus. Vocal and instrumental opportunities include symphonic band, jazz band, string ensemble, chorus, and musical theater, along with master classes and evening concerts. Senior campers may work with Joan deAlbuquerque, guest conductor from Luther College in Decorah, Iowa.
Registration may be done online with a debit card, credit card or electronic check, or through the mail. For more information about the camp, as well as the cost and scholarships, visit http://umaine.edu/spa/summer-music-camp-msym/.
About the University of Maine
The University of Maine, founded in Orono in 1865, is the state’s premier public university. It is among the most comprehensive higher education institutions in the Northeast and attracts students from across the U.S. and more than 65 countries. It currently enrolls 11,247 total undergraduate and graduate students who can directly participate in groundbreaking research working with world-class scholars. The University of Maine offers doctoral degrees in 35 fields, representing the humanities, sciences, engineering and education; master’s degrees in roughly 70 disciplines; 90 undergraduate majors and academic programs; and one of the oldest and most prestigious honors programs in the U.S. The university promotes environmental stewardship on its campus, with substantial efforts aimed at conserving energy, recycling and adhering to green building standards in new construction. For more information about UMaine, visit umaine.edu.
Contact
For more information and application – Monique Hashey, 207.581.4721, Monique.Hashey@umit.maine.edu
Grammy Music Educator Award
January 30, 2014Recipient announced
NAfME is pleased to announce that the recipient of the inaugural GRAMMY Music Educator Award is Kent Knappenberger. Knappenberger teaches grades 6-12 at Westfield (New York) Academy and Central School. He was one of more than 30,000 music teachers from throughout the United States who had been nominated. He was chosen from a group of 10 finalists, all of whom are or have been members of the National Association for Music Education (NAfME).
Knappenberger has been a music teacher and choir director at Westfield Academy and Central School for 25 years. He holds a bachelor’s degree from the State University of New York at Fredonia and a master’s degree in music education, harp performance and literature from Eastman School of Music. You can read more about Kent and see a video of him at this link http://musiced.nafme.org/news/kent-knappenberger-new-york-music-teacher-and-nafme-member-named-the-first-grammy-music-educator/?utm_source=GRAMMY+educator+email&utm_campaign=grammy+educator+award&utm_medium=email and see him in action on this YouTube video at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ADzRzixsI2Y
You can learn how to nominate someone for 2014 at this link – the deadline is March 31 http://www.grammyintheschools.com/programs/grammy-music-educator-award/apply?utm_source=GRAMMY+educator+email&utm_campaign=grammy+educator+award&utm_medium=email
