Feb 2010
Dead White Men
February 03, 2010 Filed in: Thoughts | Compositions
(This is a repost from my Prescott High School Wind Ensemble residency blog)
I teach piano, and just about all of the music my students are expected to learn are written by dead white men. When the listen to the radio, they hear music written by people living very far away from them. We live in the world where composing music is very distant from your average student.
This is one of the reasons that I teach all of my piano students to compose. Among other reasons – its fun, it helps us learn how music is constructed (thus, making it easier to learn), and, like all creative endeavors, it validates our existence on this planet. (OK – maybe that’s a bit existential ... )
So, while chatting with the band members of my residency this Monday, I mentioned that one of the reasons I compose is that I get tired of playing (or, more accurately, teaching) only music that is written by dead or far away people.
And then, a lone voice came up from the flute section in front of me. ”I wish we played more music by dead people.”
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I teach piano, and just about all of the music my students are expected to learn are written by dead white men. When the listen to the radio, they hear music written by people living very far away from them. We live in the world where composing music is very distant from your average student.
This is one of the reasons that I teach all of my piano students to compose. Among other reasons – its fun, it helps us learn how music is constructed (thus, making it easier to learn), and, like all creative endeavors, it validates our existence on this planet. (OK – maybe that’s a bit existential ... )
So, while chatting with the band members of my residency this Monday, I mentioned that one of the reasons I compose is that I get tired of playing (or, more accurately, teaching) only music that is written by dead or far away people.
And then, a lone voice came up from the flute section in front of me. ”I wish we played more music by dead people.”
Read More...
Getting the Text Message to Blog Working
February 03, 2010 Filed in: Web Technology
(This is a repost from my Prescott High School Wind Ensemble residency blog)
I visited the PHS Wind Ensemble on Monday to introduce the residency. Cool bunch! I’m looking forward to this. Last few days have been spent getting the technology working for this residency. On February 27, each of the students in the PHSWE are asked to document what they do during the whole day by texting or emailing the blog http://1dayphsband.wordpress.com/. Then, on March 1, the residency begins, and I work with the band to craft a new piece for them, based upon the events of the day that they documented.
Getting the technology to work took some time. The trick is – how do I get a phone number to which folks can text that will automatically go to the blog? It turns out that there are some services which will email you your texts.
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I visited the PHS Wind Ensemble on Monday to introduce the residency. Cool bunch! I’m looking forward to this. Last few days have been spent getting the technology working for this residency. On February 27, each of the students in the PHSWE are asked to document what they do during the whole day by texting or emailing the blog http://1dayphsband.wordpress.com/. Then, on March 1, the residency begins, and I work with the band to craft a new piece for them, based upon the events of the day that they documented.
Getting the technology to work took some time. The trick is – how do I get a phone number to which folks can text that will automatically go to the blog? It turns out that there are some services which will email you your texts.
Read More...
High School Band Residency Starting
February 01, 2010 Filed in: Compositions
At the end of this month, I start a residency with the Prescott High School Wind Ensemble. The residency lasts about 7 weeks, during which time I visit the high school 5 times (plus once at the beginning of this month).
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