The number of professional ensembles and organizations with dedicated outreach concerts has been steadily increasing over the past decade. More recently, educational concerts pairing chamber music with young children have been documented. The work presented in this article is a study in the efficacy and feasibility of this format. Various music…

Poems are filled with musicality. Poetry and music are often described using similar terms: meter, cadence, phrase, form, and more. Poetry also has physical qualities recognized ever since the Greeks classified poetic meter in feet. In this article, the author presents a project that works well across the age spectrum: recording expressive poetry…

This article reports research conducted in the northeastern corner of Egypt's Nile Delta during an excavation at the Mendes archeological dig site in July-August, 2007. Donald Redford, Professor at Pennsylvania State University, accepted the author as the only nonarcheologist that year. In addition to duties of measuring, registering, and storing…

Video connects sight and sound, creating a composite experience greater than either alone. More than any other single technology, video is the most powerful way to communicate with others--and an ideal medium for sharing with others the vital learning occurring in music classrooms. In this article, the author leads readers through the process of…

In many schools, classroom teachers are responsible for the music experiences of young children. Children may learn songs, but may not learn "how" to sing. This article outlines simple teaching strategies to help young children develop listening and vocal habits leading to beautiful singing. The article discusses how the kindergarten classes at…

In this article, the authors share their recent experiences with a fourth grade general music classroom in China as members of the "People-to-People Ambassador Program". They provide a description of the types of musical activities they observed at Aiju Primary School in Shanghai in December 2009 by sharing the content of one specific lesson. The…

The banjo is an instrument of unique image and sound. It has a long history in North America from its arrival on slave ships from North Africa to its contemporary use in jazz and popular music. Adding the instrument to the general music classroom can open new realms of timbre and new avenues of exploration into the instruments of cultures around…

In addition to examining musical practices of students' cultural heritages, general music educators can teach the value and meaning of music in their own lives by finding ways to integrate a particular "foreign" music into their own experience. Moving from a cultural outsider to more of an insider is illustrated through tales of the journey of a…

Jean Marzollo creates two beautiful texts using a child's first words, "Mama, Mama" and "Papa, Papa" as a recurring theme. Wildlife artist, Laura Regan, illustrates Marzollo's poetry with loving images of parents and children in the animal kingdom. Poetry and illustrations highlight the tenderness and care of Mama and Papa as they bond with their…

The Tanglewood and Housewright Symposia concluded that music programs should include music from other cultures, as well as teach students of all abilities. Yet teachers sometimes feel uncomfortable attending to both of these values. Some music teachers have found creative solutions to incorporating world music into their curriculum for students…

Teaching songs from a wide variety of cultures is commonplace in music classrooms around the United States. Students gain understanding of and insight into a wide range of cultures by singing their songs and listening to their music. The Afghan Children's Songbook Project is a project focused on preserving and returning traditional songs,…

This article details the use of multimedia spectrogram displays for visualizing and understanding music. A section on foundational considerations presents similarities and differences between Western musical scores and spectrograms, in particular the benefit in avoiding Western notation when using music from a culture where representation through…

Listening to music from a variety of national, ethnic, and historical traditions may help adolescents develop respect for individual differences, particularly when they are challenged to confront music that has little immediate musical appeal for them. This article outlines strategies for two sample listening lessons, using Serbo-Croatian gusle…

A feature-laden software program such as "Finale" is an overwhelming tool to master--if one hopes to master many features in a short amount of time. Believing that working with a fewer number of features can be a helpful approach, this article looks at a select number of features in "Finale 2011" of obvious use to music educators. These features…

This article reports on a learner-centered kindergarten music program at Gan Michael Kindergarten in Israel. Actual experiences with stories and pictures provide examples of young children engaged in music making as performers, composers, and analytical listeners. The stories include teacher thoughts and reflections, providing a model of teacher…