Prior to participating in the 2012 TI:ME Leadership Academy, I was skeptical about technology’s applications in music education.  I thought it was a gimmick.  I thought it was overcomplicating education, and made teachers teach their students about technology, not music.  After attending the Academy, I am a believer.  I believe that it is truly possible to do as Barb Freedman says: “Teach music.  The technology will follow.”   I now realize that technology is the future of music education.  We as educators can use it as a tool to make music accessible to more students than ever before.  Non-traditional music students have so many musical outlets and tools available to them on the computer, and educators have a responsibility to learn about them in order to reach as many students as possible.  If music is important to study, it’s important for everyone to learn about, not just those in band, orchestra, and choir!  We are on the forefront of a movement.  I can’t wait to help shape it!

Matt Ercolani is in his third year as an undergraduate music education major at Rowan University in Glassboro, New Jersey.  At Rowan University, he is the Vice-President of the Rowan chapter of Collegiate NAfME (National Association for Music Education), and helps lead the most active collegiate chapter in the state.  He is also in the process of starting a collegiate chapter of TI:ME (Technology Institute for Music Educators) at Rowan.  Mr. Ercolani has taught at music camps across the country, including as a member of the all-volunteer SWAG Team at the 2010 Music-For-All Summer Symposium in Normal, Illinois.  He has attended numerous regional and national music education conferences.  Most recently, he was selected for participation in the first-ever TI:ME Leadership Academy at the 2012 TI:ME National Conference in Louisville, Kentucky.  Mr. Ercolani is an active freelance private teacher and musician in the South Jersey area.  His research and teaching interests include early childhood music education and utilizing technology to teach non-traditional music students. You can find more about him at http://mattercolani.wordpress.com.

Related posts:

1. 2012 TI:ME Leadership Academy
2. Collegiate Leadership Academy at MENC’s Music Ed Week
3. 2012 TI:ME/JEN Annual National Conference

Special thanks to Dr. David Williams for the Leadership Academy photos! See more at the bottom of the page!

Last week, I had the opportunity to attend the TI:ME National Conference in Louisville, Kentucky as a part of the first-ever TI:ME Leadership Academy. I was chosen as one of eight music education students to participate in this academy, and was blown away by the incredible ideas and conversations generated by participants and instructors alike.

Participants

• Ann Dorgan, Senior Music Education Major, University of Massachusetts at Amherst
• Matt Ercolani, Junior Music Education Major, Rowan University
• Brian Rivers, Junior Music Education Major, University of Cincinnati College – Conservatory of Music
• Alyssa Hoffert, Senior Music Education Major, Case Western Reserve University/ Cleveland Institute of Music
• T.J. Wolfgram, Senior Music Education Major, University of Michigan
• Sophie Taft, Senior Music Education Major, Northwestern University
• Camden Ritchie, Master’s Student/Graduate Assistant, Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music
• Andrew Ritenour, Senior Music Education Major, Grove City College

Instructors

• Rick Dammers, Chair of the Music Department, Rowan University
• Dave Williams, Professor Emeritus of Music and Arts Technology, Illinois State University
• V.J. Manzo, Music Technology Director, Montclair State University

The Other 80%

The participants and instructors of the 2012 TI:ME Leadership Academy discussed the research done concerning music education at the high school level referred to as The Other 80%. The research shows a pyramid effect, where there is a large number of students receiving a music education at the elementary grades. As grade levels increase, a smaller number of students are reached by music education with the largest drop occurring around the high school grades. This leaves the percentage of high school students receiving some kind of music instruction during the school day around 20%. Much of our discussion used this research as a starting point, exploring both the positive effects and concerns about changing curriculum to include these students. One of the biggest fears often expressed by teachers is that offering courses in music technology would take students away from traditional ensembles, causing numbers to drop. But research actually shows that this does not usually happen and in many cases, music technology courses recruit students to participate in traditional performing ensembles.

The Non-Traditional Music Student

Many great thoughts were shared on how to engage and reach this other 80% of students in high schools, referred to as the non-traditional music student. Making up the large majority of the student body, this student is not the typical band/chorus/orchestra/music theory student. Rather they are the students involved in rock bands or audio recording. The leadership academy discussed the fact that these students are at a severe disadvantage in our music education curriculum today as there are often no courses offered to help them create and perform music.

TI:ME Leadership Academy

The Leadership Academy brainstormed ways  to reach the non-traditional music student using music technology. The participants were assigned the task to create a 3-lesson unit plan using music technology that would engage non-traditional music students and reach out to the other 80% of students who don’t participate in traditional performing ensembles. This task required quite a bit of out-of-the-box thinking and consideration of new software, hardware and web-based resources.  Using software including GarageBand and Mixcraft, Audacity, Ableton Live, hardware like the Blue Snowball Mics and  Zoom H4N Handheld Audio Recorders, and online resources like Aviary’s Myna, Tone Mantrix and Noteflight, the Leadership Academy participants created several effective plans to reach these students. Since non-traditional music students often can’t read music, notate rhythm or have basic music theory knowledge, these lesson plans involved quite a bit of differentiated instruction designed to scaffold each student from their individual level of understanding, to a platform where they could make and understand music.

Overall, the TI:ME Leadership Academy discussed and agreed upon the need for current music curriculum to be expanded to include music technology.  Society and times are constantly changing. In order for music education to remain relevant to our society and to our students, our instruction must change and our curriculums must expand. While the core aspects and standards of our curriculum will remain the same, we must find a way to not only change the way we teach this curriculum, but broaden its to reach as many students as we can. Music technology offers many opportunities for music education to remain relevant in our students’ lives.

Matt Ercolani
 

Related posts:

1. 2012 TI:ME Leadership Academy Reflection
2. Collegiate Leadership Academy at MENC’s Music Ed Week
3. 2012 TI:ME/JEN Annual National Conference

After a 6.5 hour drive with Dr. Joseph Pisano, I am finally here! This year, the TI:ME (Technology Institute for Music Educators) Conference, held in conjunction with JEN (Jazz Education Network) is taking place in Louisville, Kentucky.

TI:ME Leadership Academy

I have the privilege to attend the conference as a part of the  TI:ME Leadership Academy. I am very excited to be participating in this way, and look forward to collaborating and working with the other participants of this academy. The participants all look to be very qualified, which should make for some really interesting discussion. Stay tuned, as I will be sharing my thoughts and lessons right here on MusicEdMajor.Net!

Follow Along!

To find out more about TI:ME and the conference, visit the TI:ME homepage. To follow along with my experiences, follow the hashtag #timejen12!

If you are attending this conference, I would love to meet up with you! Send me a Tweet @andrewritenour, or email andrewritenour@gmail.com!

Related posts:

1. 2012 TI:ME Leadership Academy
2. 2012 TI:ME Leadership Academy Reflection
3. MENC’s Biennial Conference Approaching

Musicians and singers face extremely strong competition for jobs. On top of that, education budget cuts from elementary schools to PhD programs often hit music departments the hardest. Music education majors should plan on having a backup career choice, and maybe even earn a double major or a minor in another field to ensure their career prospects will be solid upon graduation. Most musicians have day jobs, since few musicians and singers can support themselves on performance alone.

Music Teachers

Many musicians and singers choose to supplement their income by becoming music teachers. For those who want to teach music in public elementary or secondary schools a degree in music will qualify graduates for a state certificate to teach. Elementary and secondary school teachers earn a median salary of $47,000 to $52,000.

For those who want to become college music instructors, a master’s degree in music will likely be required. College-level music instructors earn a median salary of $59,000. Another option for music graduates is to offer private lessons at local music stores, through local Parks and Recreation, or even online.

Recreational Therapists

Some music majors choose to diversify their studies to become recreational therapists. Recreational therapists use music, games, dance, and arts and crafts to improve the well-being of their patients. The median annual salary of recreational therapists is $38,000.

Musicians and Singers

For those who want to pursue careers in popular musical performance, it’s best to look for jobs in cities where recording studios and the entertainment industry are concentrated. Las Vegas, Los Angeles, New York, Nashville, and Chicago are the best places to find work in the music industry. Musicians and singers may also find salaried work with performing art companies, religious organizations, or in the US Armed Forces. Full-time musicians earn a median wage of $21.00 an hour.

Most musicians work part-time and are self-employed. The hours are typically evenings and weekends. Since the competition for long-term jobs is high, few popular performing musicians and singers have guaranteed full-time, long-term employment. For students of music education, performance is probably best left a supplement to a music teaching or other career.

Music-Related Professions

The following are other music-related professions music education students may be interested in pursuing:

 Elaine Hirsch is a jack-of-all-interests, from education and history to medicine and videogames. She is currently working as a writer for various education-related websites and writing about relevant education-related issues.

Related posts:

1. What type of Grad Program is Right for Me?
2. Majoring in Music Education: Graduate vs Undergraduate
3. Music Education Professional Learning Network Opens to Public

Categories

Bloggers can submit articles of a variety of concentrations including:

• Music Advocacy
• Music Pedagogy
• Music Education
• Music Performance
• Music Software/Hardware
• Music Technology
• Music Tips

Don’t Miss Your Chance!

To submit an article to the November Music Education Blog Carnival, just click this link. All you have to provide is a link to your post, your name and e-mail, and a short description of your post. It’s that easy!

Articles will be accepted through Monday, October 31st. Are you a teacher, musician, or music lover? Please consider contributing to this awesome music resource. If you have any questions regarding the blog carnival, you can Tweet me or contact me through the “Contact” page above.

Happy Blogging!

Related posts:

1. Hosting the Music Education Blog Carnival
2. November 2010 Music Education Blog Carnival
3. REMINDER: Last Week for Blog Carnival Submissions

I had the opportunity to speak with NAfME representative Elizabeth Lasko about this transition and other exciting development in the national organization. Check out the interview below!

What Is NAfME?

NAfME Website

NAfME Press Release: Building on the Past to Shape the Future of Music Education

Follow @NAfME on Twitter!

If you were part of the MENC Facebook group, be sure to “like” the new NAfME and NAfME Collegiate pages!

MENC Changes Name to NAfME

 

Special Thanks to Elizabeth Lasko for taking the time to do this interview with us!

Related posts:

1. MENC’s Biennial Conference Approaching
2. America’s Giving Challenge-Help Win $50,000 for Music Education
3. Collegiate Leadership Academy at MENC’s Music Ed Week

New Editors

In the beginning of the summer, I had the honor of taking over as Editor in Chief of MusicEdMajor.Net. In doing so I not only wanted to continue the mission of MusicEdMajor.Net, to be a great resource for undergraduate music education majors, but expand to become a resource for high school students considering Music Education as a career path, and also graduate students building upon their undergraduate education. With this thought, I quickly realized that I needed help. While I can easily write and discuss issues dealing with undergraduate music education, I have no experience as a graduate student, and it’s been four years since I was a senior in high school. That being said, I would like to introduce the new additions to the MusicEdMajor.Net blogging team!

Sari Feinstein will serve as the High School editor for MusicEdMajor.Net. Sari comes to us from Commack High School and has had experience as an author of quite a few guest posts right here on MusicEdMajor.Net. Sari will be attending the University of North Texas as an incoming freshman Music Education Major in the fall. We have seen many great posts from Sari already on the process of applying, auditioning and choosing the right music school. We certainly look forward to many new posts from her on making the transition from high school student to music major and tips for living life as a music ed major.

Kyle Freesen will serve MusicEdMajor.Net as a Graduate Editor. Kyle is currently a graduate wind conducting student at Wright State University. At Wright State, Kyle serves as a graduate teaching assistant, teaching Brass Methods and serving as an assitant to conductor Dr. David Booth. He also has much experience blogging at his own site, The Virtual Podium. Prior to attending Wright State University, Kyle graduated from Western Illinois University and has taught as a band director at all levels of public school. We look forward to many blog posts from Kyle regarding a wide array of aspects from the graduate music major perspective.

MusicEdMajor.Net Reading List

One of the best ways to continue learning about a particular subject is to dig in to a good book. The big question is where to start? MusicEdMajor.Net is making this process a little bit easier for you with our interactive reading list. Just head over to this page to find a list of books that deal with music, education and technology uses in music education. If you find a book that’s intriguing, just click on it to be taken to Amazon for ordering! We would love your input on this list! If you have read a book that belongs on this list, let us know via the contact page, or Tweet us (@MusicEdMajor)!

Stay Tuned

These are just some of the great changes coming to MusicEdMajor.Net. With the addition of the specialized editors, we hope to have current and relevant information being regularly written for the site for every type of Music Ed Major. Get the RSS feed to stay updated with the latest posts! And as always, we value any input to the articles posted here. Just leave us a comment with your thoughts!

Related posts:

1. Should I or Shouldn’t I? Things to Think About for Graduate School
2. Majoring in Music Education: Graduate vs Undergraduate
3. Year in Review: 2009-2010

It’s time for… your final decision! Where will you be in the next few months? Time to weigh the options.

After hearing back from your schools you must lay out the following:

1. Money
Unfortunately, in today’s society, money has become a major factor when choosing a school. For me, I fell in love with every school and let the money decide. Some things to keep in mind- financial aid are loans you have to pay back. Scholarships and grants are free money- you do not have to pay them back. When receiving money from schools factor in what you must pay back and what you don’t. Will you spend the rest of your life paying off student loans?
Also, if you did not receive money or as much as you wished for, feel free to email the school. Send an email to the director of financial aid and scholarships and your professor. The professor, if he or she really feels strongly about you attending, will fight for you. Many times, certain negotiations can be made, depending on the school.
Factor in some future possibilities. Do I plan on studying abroad? Will I have enough in my budget if I attend this school over that school? How many credits am I walking in with? Could I possibly graduate early and save myself a year’s worth of tuition? Do I plan on going to graduate school immediately after I receive my bachelor’s degree? These are things you must consider.
Check out if any ensembles will pay you. With some schools, if you play in their basketball or marching bands, will give you a stipend for books and other expenses. You can even travel with the team for some away games! Playing in ensembles is a great way to meet people and spend your time (if you have any free time that is!), and you may even get free books!

2. Professors
Can you see yourself working with the professors for four years? Did you have a connection during your audition? Do you feel comfortable talking to them, emailing them, etc? Do you feel like it will be worth your while?
You have to trust your professor(s) completely. If any or all have written any books, which many have…read them! You’ll definitely have a brownie point for it over the rest of your studio, but more importantly you’ll learn their style before you even begin with them!
If you took a lesson with a professor, how’d it go? Try to go off of those teaching styles and the connection you experienced in the lesson. Could you do that every week for the next four years? Will you be bored? Constantly intrigued? You definitely want to have a great relationship with your professor(s). Make sure you are 100% content with who you’ll be learning from in the coming years.

3. Social Life
Can you see yourself easily making friends and having a great time? Is there life outside of the music school (if a university) where you can maybe meet non-music majors? Sometimes, we have to step outside a music- contained environment, even if it’s just for five minutes, to just escape for a short period.
College can be stressful. Are there ways to release that stress in a healthy way? Can you get involved in any non-music extra activities?
How is the dorm life? Do all the music majors live together? How are the dorms set up? These are other considerations. You will be living here for a while, and will you be okay with these living conditions.

4. Distance
How far is the school from your home? Will traveling there and back be more of a strain? Are flights the only option and would that fit in your budget? If you want to go home for a weekend, is it possible? Are you normally homesick?
These are things to factor in as well. If you are in dire need of momma’s apple pie, can you get home for it? Or are you waiting until Thanksgiving? Is this okay with you?
Going to a school that is close could also have a lot from your area attending. Do you want to be around the same people or experience a completely different culture? How many hours can you remain inside of a car before aliens attack your body and you completely lose it? This is all up to you.

All of these significant categories will help you lead to your final decision. But in the end, it is where your heart is. What can you call “home” for the next four years? Where can you see yourself truly succeeding? You know best. Go with your gut, because that’s always your best bet. And good luck, music majors. I’ve thoroughly enjoyed advising, and hope I helped you with your college process in some small way!

Related posts:

1. Choosing Audition Repertoire
2. #MusEdChat Recap – Time Savers (12-6-10)
3. College Shopping- School Visits!

Step 1: Take a look at that chart you’ve made. When looking at every school’s audition rep list- Is there an overlap for any of these pieces?
Now, I most likely guarantee that you won’t be playing the same program for every school but if you could possibly find a program that you could play at more than one school, you are in good shape my friend.

Step 2: Take a look at the dates for auditions. Do you think you are going to be able to play this music at the same caliber, three months apart? You must look realistically at the big picture here. If you are a disciplined practicing musician, then I definitely say you’ll be fine but if you know after the first audition you won’t want to pick up the piece again, then maybe it’s not so smart to choose the same program.
Step 3: This is massively important I tell you. Do you like the music? If you don’t like the music, and it shows when you play it, don’t choose it. Times spent trying to make yourself love something you simply are sick and tired of, may not pay off as much as you would think. Make sure you’re excited and eager. Go to YouTube right now and check the pieces out! Find ones that you love.
Step 4: Which pieces that you have narrowed this down to, really show your strengths as a musician? You want to show off what you got in a sense. You want to have a well- balanced offering of pieces and a strong and equal stance on all. These pieces need to help you, not hurt you. So choose wisely! And make sure you like them. Trust me, you don’t want to be stuck drawing hearts on your sheet music to make you play with joy. Have fun with it!

New music, get excited. And break a leg!!!

Related posts:

1. #MusEdChat Recap- Connecting With Repertoire (11-29-10)
2. #MusEdChat Recap – Repertoire (4/26/10)
3. The Big Fat Scary Mean College Audition… (I’m Kidding!)

• Live-Blogging Music Education Week in June 2010
• Midwest Clinic 2010 Review
• The 100 Music Education Majors on Twitter Project
• The continuation of #MusEdChat, including Transcripts and Recaps
• Numerous Guest Posts by current students and professionals
• Live-Blogging METOS 2010
• Being listed on eCollegeFinder’s list of 75 top Music and Arts Enthusiast Websites.

Also, here are some of the top posts from the last year:

• Music Education Week 2010 Live-Blog
• Hire Me! Tips for Finding Your First Music Teaching Job After Graduation (guest post by Thomas J. West)

In addition to these many accomplishments and projects, MusicEdMajor.Net has experienced some other changes. With the graduation of Andy Zweibel, I was given the opportunity to fill his position as Editor-In-Chief. Andy has founded and grown a fantastic resource for music students everywhere. While he will still be helping us with some of the technical aspects of the site and writing some guest posts, Andy truly believes that the day-to-day responsibilities and content of MusicEdMajor.Net needs to be run by music majors. I am very excited for the opportunity to do this and continue the growth of this site that Andy has started.

Please continue to check back to MusicEdMajor.Net as some more great changes will be occurring! Also be sure to follow @MusicEdMajor on Twitter, and like us on Facebook to stay updated! If you would like to contribute to MusicEdMajor.Net, let us know via the contact page!

Related posts:

1. Happy Birthday Andy!
2. Happy Birthday!
3. MusicEdMajor.net Welcomes a New Editor