To arrange a visit, email music@uab.edu or call 205 934-7376
President Susan Smith 104 Smith Hall Troy, AL 36082 (334) 670-3322 president@myamea.org
Immediate Past President Carl Hancock University of Alabama Box 870366 Tuscaloosa, AL 35487 (205) 348-6335 past_president@myamea.org
President, AOA
Samuel Nordlund 405 Buchanan Hall Samford University 800 Lakeshore Dr. Birmingham, AL 35229 snordlun@samford.edu
President, AMEACollegiate
Jordan Hare jhare1@forum.montevallo.edu
President-Elect
Greg Gumina Shades Valley High School 6100 Old Leeds Road Irondale, AL 35210 (205) 956-4638 president_elect@myamea.org
RecordingSecretary
CarlaGallahan
113 Long Hall
TroyUniversity Troy, AL36082 (334) 670-3502 recording_secretary@myamea.org
President, AVA
Ginny Coleman Tuscaloosa County High School 12500 Wildcat Drive Northport, AL 35475 (205) 342 2670 gcoleman@tcss.net
AMEACollegiateAdvisor
Treasurer/Registrar
PatStegall AMEARegistration
POBox3385
MuscleShoals, AL35661 treasurer_registrar@myamea.org
President, ABA
Doug Farris Brewer High School 59 Eva Road Somerville, AL 35670 (256) 621-0540 djfarris@morgank12.org
President, Elem/Gen
Phil Wilson Ogletree Elementary School 737 Ogletree Road Auburn, AL 36830 prwilson@auburnschools.org
IndustryRepresentative
BeckyLightfoot ArtsMusicShop 3030 EastBlvd. Montgomery, AL36116 334/271-2787
beckyl@artsmusicshop.com
ExecutiveDirector Editor, AlaBreve
GarryTaylor 1600 ManorDr. NE Cullman, AL35055 (256) 636-2754 amea@bellsouth.net
GarryTaylor, Editor& AdvertisingManager 1600 ManorDr. NE Cullman, AL35055 (256) 636-2754
amea@bellsouth.net
Edward (Ted) Hoffman UniversityofMontevallo Station6670 DavisMusicBuilding308 Montevallo, AL35115 (205) 665-6668 ehoffman@montevallo.edu
Assistant ExecutiveDirector
Rusty Logan 2020 Janabrooke Lane Auburn, AL 36830 (334) 663-1702 rlogan9853@gmail.com
ADVERTISING& COPYDEADLINES
Fall- August/September(BacktoSchool) issue: July15
Winter- October/November(Conference) issue: September15
Spring- February/March(All-State) issue: January15
Summer- May/June(DigitalOnly) issue: April15
President, HigherEducation
Becky Halliday
University of Montevallo Department of Music Davis 317 Montevallo, AL 35115 (205) 665-6666
AHalliday@montevallo.edu
Alabama Department of Education Arts Education Specialist
Andy Meadows 50 North Ripley Street Montgomery, Alabama 36104 (334) 353-1191
ameadows@ALSDE.edu
Unless otherwise indicated, permission is granted to NAfME members to reprint articles for educational purposes. Opinions expressed in this publication are not necessarily those of AMEA or the Editor. All announcements & submissions are subject to editorial judgement/revision.The Alabama Music Educators Association is a state unit of NAfME: The National Association for Music Education, a voluntary, nonprofit organization representing all phases of music education in schools, colleges, universities, and teacher-education institutions. Active NAfME/AMEA membership is open to all persons engaged in music teaching or other music education work.
Friday, February 2, 2018
Saturday, February 3, 2018
Friday, February 9, 2018
Saturday, February 10, 2018
There are times in life that the stars seem to align, and we experience music making at a level that affects us. As educators, we are trained to spend much of our days looking for mistakes to correct… making it difficult to enjoy music. But sometimes we experience musical performances that allow us to transcend that role of mistake fixers to actually enjoy listening to music. We had several moments like that at the 2018 AMEA Professional Development Conference.
When reaching out to artists for the 2018 conference I had a goal to highlight parts of our organization that might not always have the focused attention of our membership and would be a draw for all to enjoy. I believe we can all have an appreciation for our differences and will be better musicians and teachers if we are more empathetic to our colleagues as we all TEACH MUSIC!
The Alabama Symphony performance was fantastic and to experience this concert in their home hall was even more enjoyable. The programming,
facility and musicianship displayed were all excellent. The management team from the orchestra was very hands on and even had a booth in the exhibits. They are dedicated to supporting music education in our state and have education concerts scheduled for rural and urban students who might not have the chance to hear a live orchestra.
When I made the connection with Voctave about performing at AMEA, I knew it would be a difficult sell for those who had not heard of them or experienced the original ensemble all of them have performed with - the Voices of Liberty at Epcot. As I sat in the concert with tears streaming down my face and the third spontaneous standing ovation was happening, I knew that we had experienced something very special and had breathed rare air. Representatives from all divisions told me how much they enjoyed both concerts. As President of AMEA it is not always clear the path to take - but I have never been more sure after these concerts and moments of cohesion between the divisions of AMEA. This coupled with the Peter Boonshaft Keynote and the Honor Choir and All State Jazz Band concerts, I was thrilled with what we were able to bring to the membership
this year.
I was amazed at the resilience and fortitude of our organization, presenters and vendors in the wake of frigid temperatures and icy conditions. As the AMEA Board met via multiple conference calls before the conference to discuss how to handle the weather issues - our concern for members and students were always at the forefront of our minds. If at all possible, we wanted the performing groups to be able to perform after all their preparations and for our membership to benefit from the clinicians and sessions offered. Though some members were not able to attend, the show did go on and with a few schedule modifications - all student
“Any great art work … revives and readapts time and space, and the measure of its success is the extent to which it makes you an inhabitant of that world - the extent to which it invites you in and lets you breathe its strange, special air.”
― Leonard Bernstein
groups were able to perform. It is my hope that every educator came away from the conference with a new idea or technique that will guide their teaching in the future or make them feel refreshed and rejuvenated for the second half of the year.
Thank you!
Before my time on the AMEA Board I had had no idea how integral each board member is to the conference. Each division president is the point person for their portion of the conference and basically run a conference within a conference. I want to take a moment to thank them and highlight the portions of the conference they oversee.
Garry Taylor and Rusty Logan are our Executive Director and Assistant Director. They oversaw communication with each ensemble, clinician, vendor and the venue. From awards given to the food at luncheons to the projectors in each presentation room - they are working to make the conference happen for the entire previous year.
Carl Hancock, our Immediate Past President, Media Specialist, and Photographer, oversaw the FAME program and the Past Presidents luncheon.
Greg Gumina, our President-elect, helped facilitate registration and assisted with the conference as needed
Pat Stegall, our Registrar and Treasurer, worked with NAFME to move our registration process forward.
Doug Farris, ABA President, facilitated the division meetings and sessions.
Kim Bain, Jazz Chair, facilitated the four All-State Jazz Bands rehearsals and performances.
Sam Norlund, AOA President, facilitated the division meetings and sessions.
Ginny Coleman , AVA President, facilitated the division meetings and sessions, the Honor Choir, and the moving of risers.
Phil Wilson, Elem/General President, facilitated the division meetings and sessions, and the moving of many classroom instruments.
Ted Hoffman, Collegiate Advisor, facilitated all collegiate sessions and the collegiate luncheon and reception.
Madison Baldwin, Collegiate President, facilitated the division meeting and the collegiate luncheon and reception.
Becky Halliday, Higher Education President, facilitated the division meeting, sessions, reception and HED recital.
Carla Gallahan, Recording Secretary, recorded all meeting minutes and reported to the membership.
Becky Lightfoot, Industry Representative, made many suggestions that are current policy and continues to guide our path
The AMEA Board knew moving to a new venue would have some challenges and opportunities. The BJCC and the Sheraton complex offer the AMEA Professional Development Conference more space and room to grow. Many of you have made suggestions and these were discussed at our post conference meeting. While there were some rough edges we encountered, we have already started adjusting the schedule, flow and placements of portions of the conference for next year.
AMEA is only as strong as its members and leadership and your experience with the organization is what you make of it. I encourage each of you to get involved in your divisions and volunteer to help with the AMEA as you can. It is certainly fulfilling to be an advocate for music education in Alabama and the conference is the embodiment of the organization’s impact on the arts.
Thank you again for all you do each day in the classroom. Music is our subject, but teaching is our passion and calling. Don't let the ups and down of the school day rob you of remembering that YOU make an impact on the future of children. While they might not remember every detail taught - they will remember how they felt about music in your class.
Susan
Right now it doesn’t really feel like it, but Spring is right around the corner. What better way to launch us toward warmer weather than a fantastic AMEA Professional Development Conference in the middle of a polar vortex! Despite typical first-year obstacles presented by the move to Birmingham, AOA’s clinicians and performers were first-rate. Although we missed the intimacy of Montgomery, the Birmingham Sheraton and BJCC offer the potential for our division to grow significantly.
Dr. Bob Gillespie, our headline clinician, presented three outstanding sessions. As a co-author of the Essential Elements method books, his introduction into the new technology options was extremely informative. Likewise, his demonstration of teaching bowing, from the basics to more advanced techniques, was spot-on, and demonstrated his decades of experience as a leading pedagogue. What was most exciting to me, though, was his session on motivating students. Unfortunately, I didn’t hear a word of it, because our session room became so packed that I was unable to even crane my neck through the door. But I could hear the excited response from the standing room only crowd. I heard from AOA members who have been involved much longer than me that this was by far the highest attendance at an AOA specific session. The reason we drew so many from across the other divisions (especially collegiate) is that the session title was not string or orchestra specific. It didn’t hurt that we had a world-class clinician who has been a keynote speaker at conferences around the world.
I should not neglect the other AOA clinicians, as Joe Brennan,
Travis Baird, and Anne Witt all presented fascinating sessions. Besides his session on technology in the classroom, Brennan also gave a public masterclass with performers from the Alabama School of Fine Arts. The involvement of performing groups from ASFA was a welcome addition, and the AOA will involve more student groups at future conferences, both as chamber groups and orchestras. Speaking of orchestras, I was thrilled to present the outstanding performance of the Alabama Symphony Orchestra. As the only premier, full-time orchestras in the state, they really do represent us well, and give inspiration to students all over Alabama.
The first four months of the calendar year are incredibly eventful for AOA. By the time this is published, we will have (hopefully) wrapped up another highly successful All-State Orchestra Festival at UA, February 8-11. We had the largest number of auditions ever, and the largest number of accepted students. All-State Orchestra is consistently improving in not only quantity, but quality, thanks to music educators all over Alabama.
On April 6, AOA will hold our 3rd annual Orchestra MPA at Samford University in Birmingham. Registration forms and information are available at www.alabamaorchestraassociation.org. We hope to grow this event, supporting the visibility and viability of orchestra programs across our state. After this busy Spring, I will hand off the Presidency of our organization to Dr. Guy Harrison on June 1. His vision and experience will lead to continued growth, and take the AOA to even greater heights. Orchestra in Alabama is trending upward, and I like it!
PatStegall, AMEATreasurer/Registrar
Thank you to everyone that pre-registered for the 2018 AMEA Professional Development Conference. In spite of the weather issues, we were able to see a great number of members in attendance. We had over 1000 attendees (780 pre-registered and over 220 on site). Being in a new venue, we experienced some technical issues regarding the internet wifi that I hope will be resolved before next year’s conference. If you did not pre-register, you should. It is easy with the online payment method and I want to be able to process the Check Ins as fast as possible so that you may spend your time enjoying the conference instead of waiting in line to register. I am working to make sure that no one has to wait very long. I may ask for some help from our members to open more stations next year, but you can help speed up the process by making sure your NAFME membership is current prior to the conference and by registering online.
On another note, some of you are experiencing issues with your pre-registration checks being returned because of the wrong address on the checks. Some schools have a program that defaults to a Sheffield, Alabama PO Box when the Zip Code 35661 is entered. Please have your bookkeepers check on this if your check was returned and have them make a note of it for the future. The correct address for mailing preregistration forms is: AMEA Registrar, PO Box 3385, Muscle Shoals, AL 35661
Thank you all for contributing to a great conference at our new location in Birmingham! This event is always energizing and informative, and this year was no exception.
The HED invited presenters from across the state, most of whom were able to come despite the icy weather to the south. In those sessions, we gained insight into topics such as EdTPA, non-traditional pedagogy, Universal Design, the 2017 Alabama Course of Studies, and social media marketing. Our music teacher educator roundtable highlighted topics related to the Praxis exams, the new Alabama Course of Studies, and culturally responsive pedagogy. In addition, the HED recital featured students from the University of Alabama at Birmingham and the University of
Becky Halliday - President, HigherEducationDivision
Montevallo. At the HED luncheon, we elected a new slate of officers: Mildred Lanier, President; Michael Zelenak, Secretary/Treasurer; and Katrina Phillips, President-Elect. In addition, the HED and the Collegiate Division hosted a combined mixture for the second year, allowing students and faculty the opportunity to interact in a more relaxed setting. Moving forward, we hope that this collaboration between divisions will continue to grow as we explore our concurrent interests.
As always, please feel free to contact me if you have any suggestions, questions, or concerns about the happenings of the Higher Education Division. With that said, I wish you a wonderful spring semester!
1946YaleH. Ellis
1948WalterA. Mason
1950VernonSkoog
1952JohnJ. Hoover
1954LamarTriplett
1956CarletonK. Butler
1958MortGlosser
1960WilburHinton
1962LaceyPowell, Jr.
1964G. TrumanWelch
1966JerryCountryman
1968FloydC. McClure
1970JerryBobo
1972FrancesP. Moss
1974GeorgeHammett
1975FrancesP. Moss
1976S. J. Allen
The 2018 AMEA Professional Development Conference was a great success for the Collegiate Division. The conference kicked off with the first-ever Collegiate Orientation for the conference on Thursday, and it served as a gateway for preprofessional music educators to make the most of their conference. Guest speakers – including AMEA President Susan Smith, Collegiate Secretary Tyler Jones, first year teacher Savannah Smith, and second year teacher Stacy Daniels – discussed how the conference is the perfect opportunity for collegiate members to build their professional network with their peers, veteran educators, and individuals in the music industry; to gain new ideas, strategies, and resources on music education from phenomenal presenters and clinicians; and to get out of their comfort zone and experience professional growth outside of the classroom. The orientation was very beneficial and we hope for it to be successful and useful for years to come.
Collegiates benefited from numerous sessions on topics ranging from edTPA to how to interview for your first teaching job. The Collegiate Division/Higher Education Division mixer was held on Thursday night and helped strengthen the organic partnership between these two divisions and allowed teacher and students to engage outside
of the classroom. The collegiate luncheon was held on Friday. We had representation from 14 collegiate chapters from across the state. We had a successful lunch and business meeting, where we began planning a state Hill Day where we can lobby for music education on the state level. We held successful elections and the four Executive Board members from 2017 rolled off after a year of service (Madison Baldwin, President, Jacksonville State University; Tyler Jones, Secretary, University of Montevallo; Brenton Nash, Treasurer, University of Alabama) and Jordan Banks, VP/President-Elect, assumed the office of President. The new Collegiate Executive Board for the 2018-2019 year is as follows:
President: Jordan Hare Banks, University of Montevallo
VP/President-Elect: DeLee Benton, University of Montevallo
Secretary: Kylee Berggren, Samford University
Treasurer: DeShawn Sewer, Alabama A&M University
Scholar Jean Piaget once said, “The goal of education is not to increase the amount of the knowledge but to create the possibilities for a child to invent and discover, to create men who are capable of doing new things.” During the 2018 AMEA Professional Development Conference, we hope you gained possibilities to take back to your students for them to invent and discover new music- making opportunities. This year we discovered unique music opportunities with Valerie Diaz Leroy and Quaver, drummed on buckets with
please contact us at elementaryAMEA@gmail.com. Remember to follow and post pictures and videos of things you are doing in your classrooms to our AMEA Elementary Facebook group page.
Respectfully Submitted, Phil Wilson, Elementary/General President
Alabama Chapter of AOSA Spring Workshop, Jim Solomon, Clinician
March 10, 2018, Samford University Band Room 9-3
Sweet Home Alabama Kodály Educators (SHAKE) Free Spring Workshop
Jeremy Howard, “Happy Endings and New Beginnings”
April 14, 2018, Vestavia Hills Elementary East, 9-3
Viktoria Truesdail, learned about the magic of stories and traveled around the world with recorders courtesy of Darla Meek. We discovered more stories that sing with Jeanette Shorey, learned about more modern ways to compose with our students with Adriana van Rensburg and learned how to utilize the Chord Buddy apparatus with Deanna Bell, her students and Chord Buddy. Lorelei Batisalong taught us wonderful new ways to use our ukuleles, Steve Campbell lead us in drumming and Roger Sams inspired us to sing, play and dance with our students. We also heard an outstanding performance by the Mitchell Elementary Honor Chorus directed by Doris Day. This spectacular event occurred in the midst of an uncommon Southern snow storm, which did not stop or deter us.
Thank you elementary division for your positive enthusiasm as we charted new territory at the BJCC. A very special thank you to Garry Taylor and the elementary board for your hard work in making this conference a success! We will be back at the BJCC next year and look forward to new opportunities to bring learning to our students. If you have further suggestions to improve our experiences, please let us know.
There are great things happening in your classrooms every day that need to be shared with the division. Please consider applying for the 2019 conference to share those ideas. Also, consider applying for your choirs to perform at next year’s conference. If you have questions or concerns,
2018 Young Voices Festival
April 27-28, 2018
University of Alabama
Kodály Levels 1 and 2
University of Montevallo
July 9-20, 2018
See the SHAKE Facebook page for updated information
Orff Levels I and II
Samford University
July 18-29
See the Alabama Chapter of AOSA’s Facebook page for more information
East Alabama Music Workshop
Grace United Methodist Church, Auburn
August 25, 2018
Music Festival
Friday, October 12, 2018
Samford University
Joint Fall Workshop
Saturday, October 13, 2018
Time and place to be determined.
Phil Wilson - President, Elementary/GeneralDivision
There are great things happening in your classrooms every day...
In spite of the weather, what a great conference in a new location. As with anything new, there were some hiccups but the positives very much outweighed the negatives or newness.
I would like to thank all the performing groups; Southside HS, Jacksonville State University, Thompson Jazz Band, Hoover First Edition, Hillcrest HS, Pelham HS, the ASO, the All State Jazz Bands and Vocatve. Music education is alive and well in our state. The clinics were on great topics and gave new information for directors of all levels. The state of Alabama has some phenomenal programs and directors that have great talents to share. As you come away from the conference, be inspired to apply for next year. Come up with the next outstanding inspirational clinic, sharing your ideas and techniques that make your programs great.
Your ABA board is striving to make the organization more sound and stronger for the years to come. The board has adopted a four year self study that will be collecting data over the next four years to be studied by a committee outside the board and make recommendations on improvement. We hope this is a great first step in bringing our organization forward and more equitable for all.
As we have just finished the All-State auditions, there were over 4500 students to register for All-State. This is a daunting task for everyone involved. I would like to thank the board
for their organization, our members for the work in judging, tabulations and running, but most of all, our students for preparing and auditioning. This year, All-State will have some great clinicians; Red Band, Retired Colonel Timothy Holtan; White Band, Julie Giroux; Blue Band Rick Good; Middle School Band Cheryl Floyd. We will also be offering the second edition to the Coffee Shop, a middle school band chat with Brandon Peters, Leah Seng, and David Caddell on Friday. The Friday night concert will be the Alabama A&M Wind Ensemble, under the direction of Carlton Wright.
Before we set our eyes on All-State, there is a small hurdle of Music Performance Assessment. Let me encourage you to make sure you understand the new classification system as you register and prepare your groups. Call you colleagues and ask them to come listen, make recordings and share with mentors for advice on how to make your band better. Take every advantage to make your band the best they can be. While another director was in front of my band, a young director asked, “Are you worried that another person can get more music out of the group?” I said, “No, because sometimes hearing the same words from someone else is all it takes. The bottom line is the band is better and in the end, isn’t that what we want?” So remember, it doesn’t make you a bad director if someone else can spark a flame in your students. It is then your job to nurture the spark into a flame and passion that will always burn for music and excellence.
Legislation 2018-1
Music Performance Assessment Band Classifications
The following legislation will be voted on at the ABA All-State Festival in April
Rationale: To clarify band classifications and add stipulations for 7-12 bands, 8-12 bands, and middle school and 9th grade bands
Article XVI. Alabama Bandmasters Music Performance Assessment – currently reads
Section 2. Classification of Bands
a. For the purposes of the ABA Music Performance Assessment, bands will be classified according to the following criteria:
i. Classifications:
AA Bands will play a composition off the AA ABA Cumulative Music List
A Bands will play a composition off the A ABA Cumulative Music List
BB Bands will play a composition off the BB ABA Cumulative Music List
B Bands will play a composition off the B ABA Cumulative Music List
CC Bands will play a composition off the CC ABA Cumulative Music List
C Bands will play a composition off the C ABA Cumulative Music List
D Bands will play a composition off the D ABA Cumulative Music List
ii. Sight Reading:
Bands Classified as AA will sight read from the level VI sight reading list
Bands Classified as A will sight read from the level V sight reading list
Bands Classified as B and BB will sight read from the level IV sight reading list
Bands Classified as C and CC will sight read from the level III sight reading list
Bands Classified as D including 9th grade students will sight read from the level II sight reading list
Bands Classified as D with no 9th grade will sight read from the level I sight reading list
b. From the pieces chosen by the director for performance at Music Performance Assessment, ONE COMPOSITION must be from the approved Alabama Bandmasters Association (ABA) Cumulative Music List.
c. If a band plays more than one composition off the ABA Cumulative Music Lists, bands will be classified by the director’s chosen selection.
d. Middle school and junior high bands with no 9th grade students will sight read at no higher than Level I and middle school and junior high bands including 9th grade students will sight read at no higher than level II. This request must be made at the MPA check-in table before their scheduled warm-up time.
e. Band programs where schools mandates junior high and senior high students are in the same concert band class (7th-12th grades or 8th-12th grades) will sight read at no higher than level III. Directors of these bands may request to sight read at a higher level. This request must be made at the MPA check-in table before their scheduled warm-up time.
f. NO STUDENT MAY PARTICIPATE IN MULTIPLE BANDS. If a director has a special need for a student playing in a second band, that director shall then appear before the Board of Directors at the AMEA In-Service meeting. The director shall present the facts and circumstances prompting the request to the Board at that time. The Board will decide whether to grant the request. The Board shall notify the director immediately after the meeting if possible, but if the situation warrants further study, the director shall be notified within seven (7) days. For any student to qualify to play in a second band, he or she must perform on a second instrument.
Change section 2 to read
Section 2. Classification of Bands
a. For the purposes of the ABA Music Performance Assessment, bands
will be classified according to the following criteria:
iii. Classifications:
AA Bands will play a composition off the AA ABA Cumulative Music List
A Bands will play a composition off the A ABA Cumulative Music List
BB Bands will play a composition off the BB ABA Cumulative Music List
B Bands will play a composition off the B ABA Cumulative Music List
CC Bands will play a composition off the CC ABA Cumulative Music List
C Bands will play a composition off the C ABA Cumulative Music List
DD Bands will play a composition off the C/CC ABA Cumulative Music List
E Bands will play a composition off of the D ABA Cumulative Music List
F Bands will play a composition off of the D ABA Cumulative Music List
G Bands will play a composition off of the D ABA Cumulative Music List
iv. Sight Reading:
Bands Classified as AA will sight read from the level VI sight reading list
Bands Classified as A will sight read from the level V sight reading list
Bands Classified as B and BB will sight read from the level IV sight reading list
Bands Classified as C and CC will sight read from the level III sight reading list
Bands Classified as DD will sight read from the level III sight reading list
Bands Classified as E including 9th grade students will sight read from the level II sight reading list
Bands Classified as F and G with no 9th grade will sight read from the level I sight reading list
Delete current letters D, E and F and replace with:
b. From the pieces chosen by the director for performance at Music Performance Assessment, ONE COMPOSITION must be from the approved Alabama Bandmasters Association (ABA) Cumulative Music List.
c. If a band plays more than one composition off the ABA Cumulative Music Lists, bands will be classified by the director’s chosen selection.
d. Any band can choose to sight read at a higher level. This request must be made at the MPA check-in table before their scheduled warm-up time.
e. Class DD Bands are those whose school mandates that students enrolled in grades 6-12, 7-12 or 8-12 are in the same band class and will play according to the following guideline:
i. Band Programs that have 6th-12th or 7th-12th grade students enrolled in the band class will select a piece from the ABA Class C Cumulative list and sight read at Level III.
ii. Band Programs that have 8th-12th grade students enrolled in the band class will select a piece from the ABA Class CC Cumulative list and sight read at Level III.
f. Class E bands are those bands that are any middle school/junior high bands that include 9th graders, or stand alone 9th grade bands.
g. Class F bands are middle school bands with 2nd and 3rd year players
h. Class G bands are middle school bands with 1st and 2nd year players, or the 2nd band in a middle school band program.
i. NO STUDENT MAY PARTICIPATE IN MULTIPLE BANDS. If a director has a special need for a student playing in a second band, that director shall then appear before the Board of Directors at the AMEA In-Service meeting. The director shall present the facts and circumstances prompting the request to the Board at that time. The Board will decide whether to grant the request. The Board shall notify the director immediately after the meeting if possible, but if the situation warrants further study, the director shall be notified within seven (7) days. For any student to qualify to play in a second band, he or she must perform on a second instrument.
2018 ABA All-State Schedule - April 18-21, 2018
Wednesday All-State Solo Festival- Huntingdon College
10:00 A.M. Registration and check-in
10:30 A.M.-6:00 P.M.Preliminary Competition
7:30 P.M. State Solo Festival Finals Concert-Ligon Chapel
9:00 P.M. Band Hosts meeting
Thursday Auditions, Meetings, Rehearsals – Renaissance Montgomery Hotel and Convention Center
12:00 P.M.-7:00 P.M.Exhibits Open Exhibit Hall B
12:00 P.M.Directors Meeting (Directors with students must attend)
1:00 P.M. Auditions begin
5:30 P.M. Auditions results posted at each rehearsal location
6:30 P.M.-9:30 P.M.All-State Band rehearsals
Red Band – Retired Colonel Timothy J. Holtan, Conductor
White Band – Julie Giroux, Conductor
Blue Band – Rick Good, Conductor
Middle School Band-Cheryl Floyd, Conductor
7:00 P.M.-9:00 P.M.Alabama Bandmasters Association Executive Board Meeting
11:00 P.M.Curfew for all participants
Friday Clinics, Meetings, Rehearsals – Renaissance Montgomery Hotel and Convention Center
8:30-11:30 A.M.Exhibits Open – Exhibit Hall B (Exhibits will close for lunch from 11:30-12:00)
8:30-9:30 A.M.Exclusive time for directors to visit exhibits
8:30 A.M.-5:30 P.M.Rehearsals
9:30 -10:30 A.M.ABA General Business Meeting – Exhibit Hall B
10:30-11:30 A.M.The Coffee Shop: Middle School Band Chat Second Cup
12:00-1:15 P.M.Phi Beta Mu Luncheon
12:00-5:00 P.M.Exhibits Open –Exhibit Hall B
1:30 -2:30 P.M.Possible clinic
2:30-3:30 P.M.Clinic: Audition manager procedure: Chairman, Vice Chairman and Tabulation room workers
8:00 P.M. Alabama A&M Wind Ensemble, Carlton Wright, Conductor-Davis Theatre
11:00 P.M.Curfew for all participants
Saturday Rehearsals – Alabama State University
8:00-8:45 A.M.Middle School Band Rehearsal
8:45-9:30 A.M.Blue Band Rehearsal
9:00-9:30 A.M.ABA Board Meeting-Hotel
9:30-10:15 A.M.White Band Rehearsal
9:45-10:15 A.M.ABA General Business Meeting- Renaissance, Alabama Ballroom B
10:15-11:00 A.M.Red Band Rehearsal
1:00 P.M. All-State Band Concert-Alabama State University-Dunn Oliver Adadome
915 S Jackson Street, Montgomery, AL 36104
Hotel – Renaissance Montgomery Hotel at the Convention Center
Thursday & Friday rehearsals – Renaissance Montgomery
Saturday morning rehearsals – Alabama State Acadome
Saturday afternoon concert – Alabama State University Acadome
Colonel Timothy J. Holtan was appointed Leader and Commander of The U.S. Army Band “Pershing’s Own” in December 2014 until his retirement in February 2017. He holds the distinction of being the first officer to command all three of the Army’s premier bands. He is a native of Bismarck, North Dakota, and a former school music educator in Montana. An active conductor, adjudicator and clinician, Col. Holtan has presented concerts and clinics in all 50 states, Canada, Japan, the U.S. Virgin Islands and Europe. In 2000, Col. Holtan was selected for the Army’s “Training with Industry” program. He served as the Director of Operations and Associate Conductor of the Dallas Winds, while concurrently pursuing doctoral studies at the University of North Texas. Col. Holtan holds music education degrees from Montana State University and the University of Montana, and has pursued additional conducting studies with Elizabeth Green, H. Robert Reynolds, John Paynter, Larry Rachleff, Jerry Junkin and Eugene Corporon. Col. Holtan has been honored as Alumnus of the Year by Bismarck (North Dakota) State College, and was inducted into the Bismarck High School Hall of Fame. Col. Holtan served for twelve years on the National Band Association Board of Directors and has received multiple Citations of Excellence. In 2011, he was the University of Montana’s School of Visual and Performing Arts “Odyssey of the Stars” honoree, and was inducted into their Hall of Honor. Col. Holtan also holds membership in the prestigious American Bandsmasters Association and serves on the Advisory Committee to the Midwest Clinic. He is married to Laurie Matheson Holtan and they have two daughters, Elizabeth and Katherine.
Julie Ann Giroux was born in Fairhaven, Massachusetts on December 12, 1961. She graduated from Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge LA in 1984. She started playing piano at 3 years of age and began composing at the age of 8 and has been composing ever since. Her first published work for concert band, published by Southern Music Company was composed at the age of 13. Julie began composing commercially in 1984. She was hired by Oscar winning composer Bill Conti as an orchestrator, her first project with Conti being “North & South” the mini-series. With over 100 film, television and video game credits, Giroux collaborated with dozens of film composers, producers, and celebrities including Samuel Goldwyn, Martin Scorsese, Clint Eastwood, Madonna, Liza Minnelli, Celene Dion, Paula Abdul, Michael Jackson, Paul Newman, Harry Connick Jr. and
many others. Projects she has worked on have been nominated for Oscars, Emmys, Grammys and Golden Globe awards. She has won individual Emmy Awards in the field of “Outstanding Individual Achievement in Music Direction”. When She won her first Emmy Award, she was the first woman and the youngest person to ever win that award. Giroux has also published a large category of classical works with emphasis on original compositions for Wind Band which are published by Musica Propria and distributed internationally. She is greatly sought after as a composer and recently completing her 5th Symphony “Sun, Rain & Wind” which premiers in June, 2018. Her music has been recorded and reviewed internationally receiving rave reviews and has been performed at major music festivals the world over. Giroux has been a true force in a male dominated field and has accrued many previously male only awards. She is a member of ASCAP, The Film Musicians Fund, Kappa Kappa PSI, Tau Beta Sigma and a member of the American Bandmasters Association. She is a recipient of the Distinguished Service to Music Medal Award, The Emmy Awards and was the first female composer inducted into the American Bandmasters Association in 2009.
Dr. Rick Good has served as the Director of Bands at Auburn University since 2007, earning rank of Professor of Music in 2009. His current duties include conducting the Auburn University Symphonic Band and Symphonic Winds, the university’s top, premiere wind and percussion ensemble; overseeing the development of all Auburn University bands; and teaching both graduate and undergraduate conducting and wind literature courses. Under his direction, the AU Symphonic Winds have been invited to perform at the College Band Directors National Association Southern Conference in February 2014. Dr. Good received his Doctor of Musical Arts degree in Euphonium Performance at Arizona State University in 1997 and served as the Acting Associate Director of Bands during the 1994-1995 academic year. He earned his Master of Music Degree in Wind Conducting from Louisiana State University and his Bachelor of Music Education degree from Mansfield University in Pennsylvania. Prior to his appointment as Director of Bands, Dr. Good served as the Auburn University Marching Band Director from 1995 through 2006. Under his direction, the AU Marching Band received the Sudler Trophy Award in 2004, the nation's most coveted award for college and university marching bands, and was selected to perform at the St. Patrick’s Day Parade in Dublin, Ireland. The marching band grew in membership from 275 to 375 during his tenure as director, marking the largest increase in size under one director in the band’s history. Dr. Good has had an
accomplished and productive career that has been marked with numerous honors and awards. Most recently, he was elected into membership into the American Bandmasters Association, a prestigious organization, founded in 1929 by John Philip Sousa, with only 300 conductors and composers in the United States and Canada. He has served as the Director of the Macy’s AllAmerican Marching Band since November 2006. He also currently serves as the President-Elect of the National Band Association. During his career, he has been an invited lecturer or presenter at dozens of professional meetings and conferences, an invited guest conductor of AllState bands across the country, and an invited adjudicator and performer, enabling him to work throughout the United States, Mexico, the Caribbean, and Europe.
Cheryl Floyd is in her twentyfourth year as Director of Bands at Hill Country Middle School in Austin, Texas. Prior to her tenure at Hill Country, she served as Director of Bands at Murchison Middle School, also in Austin, for eight years. Musical organizations under her leadership have consistently been sited for musical excellence at both local contests and national invitational festivals. Mrs. Floyd is recognized nationally for her educational and musical achievements at the middle school level. In 1990 her Murchison program was the recipient of the coveted Sudler Cup Award presented to exemplary middle school band programs by the John Philip Sousa Foundation. The Hill Country Middle School Band has performed at the Midwest Band and Orchestra Clinic in 1998 and again in 2006 as well as Music for All’s National Concert Band Festival in Indianapolis (March 2012) under Mrs. Floyd’s direction. Most recently, the HCMS Symphonic Band performed at the Western International Band Clinic in Seattle in November 2014. Mrs. Floyd routinely serves as a conductor on the University of Texas at Austin band camp faculty and has been a member of summer music faculties at Arkansas Tech University, Baylor University, Texas Lutheran University, Stephen F. Austin University, University of Colorado at Boulder, and the University of Minnesota in Minneapolis. She enjoys an active schedule as an adjudicator, clinician, author and guest conductor throughout the United States, having served as one of the first women guest conductors of the United States Navy Band in Washington, D.C. in September, 1998. In 2003, Mrs. Floyd was elected to the American Bandmasters’ Association. She is the fifth female member of this 225 member organization and the first middle school band director to be chosen for ABA membership. She is a member of ABA, TMEA, TBA, and Phi Beta Mu. Paramount in her life is her twenty one year old son, Richard Weston, who is a 2012 Westlake High School graduate and a senior trombone performance major at the University of Texas.
It was so nice to see many of you at our conference last month. Despite the winter weather and the move to a new venue, we had a great turnout! I appreciate all those who worked to be sure that everything ran smoothly. Those who were in attendance enjoyed re-connecting with each other, sharing information, and attending sessions and concerts. If you did not attend the AMEA conference this year, I encourage you to go ahead and make plans to do so next year. The conference will be held January 17-19, 2019 at the BJCC.
I certainly enjoyed my interaction with Dan Davison at the AMEA conference. I particularly appreciated his session on teaching the changing male voice. I thought his reading session addressed content for various levels and included repertoire appropriate for our singers. I encourage you to contact JW Pepper any time that you need literature as they provided the reading session booklets at no cost to AVA. Other sessions covered a range of topics from sightreading to authentic assessment. If you have something new or interesting that you would like to share, I encourage you to submit to present at AMEA next year.
Congratulations to the students and directors who provided performances at the conference, including the AVA Honor Choir. We encourage you to submit an application to perform. Like last year, we will provide you with a recording of your SCPA performance as a part of your SCPA registration cost. Our hope is that the recording will make it a little easier for you gather the materials needed for your application.
We are looking forward to seeing you and your students who were chosen to be a member of an All-State Choir in March. By the time that you read this article your All-State correspondence packet will be available on the AVA website from our presidentelect Meg Jones.
We appreciate Samford University for once again hosting All-State. Kenny Gannon, Tim Banks, and the staff at Samford have already begun working to be sure that our event is a success. Thanks to everyone who has agreed to serve as a choir coordinator, assistant coordinator, or attendance monitor. Your service is appreciated.
In an effort to connect with our colleagues who are not plugged in with AVA, we are again offering a free registration initiative for State Choral Performance Assessment. Directors may register one
choir for free (school fee and student fees waived) if their school has not participated in SCPA in the past three years. Please share with your colleagues who may be interested in taking advantage of this offer.
We are also pleased to be able to provide additional services this year during our SCPA event. Each district chair will contract a recording engineer to record all choirs that perform at SCPA. After SCPA is complete, each director will receive a copy of his/her ensemble’s recordings at no additional cost.
The AVA Board is continually striving to 1) maintain adherence to our mission statement and 2) improve our functionality. Along those lines, we have begun discussion about the following: Streamlining the All-State audition process using available recording technology rather than sending 5 judges on a tour around the state
Modifying the All-State audition form to a rubric-style adjudication form
Modifying the sight-reading portion of SCPA to allow directors to choose an appropriate sight-reading example for their students based on students’ ability
The future of All-State Show Choir and how it fits into the structure of AVA
The future of Honor Choir and how it fits into the structure of AVA
We sent a survey at the end of the AVA Membership meeting on January 19th. If you did not already complete the survey, please do. We will use the information gathered from the survey when scheduling AVA event dates for the 2018-2019 school year. We are also interested in thoughtful, written feedback in the form of an email to me or anyone else on the AVA Board. Please let us know if you have anything you would like to add to the conversation. Your thoughts are welcome and appreciated.
Thank you for taking to the time to read about your professional association. Please send questions, suggestions, or ideas to me at presidentofava@gmail.com. I am looking forward to seeing you in March!
GinnyJefferson Johnson is Director of Choral Activities at the University of Kentucky where he conducts the University Chorale and Men’s Chorus. He also teaches advanced choral conducting, choral methods and literature, and directs the graduate program (MM and DMA degrees) in choral music.
University of Kentucky choirs under Johnson’s direction have performed at over twenty conventions of choral music educators, including national conventions of the American Choral Directors Association (ACDA), National Collegiate Choral Organization (NCCO), Music Educators National Conference (MENC), and Intercollegiate Male Choruses (IMC).Most recently the UK Chorale performed at the 2016 ACDA Southern Division Convention in Chattanooga; the UK Men’s Chorus was featured in performance at the 2015 ACDA National Convention in Salt Lake City, the 2013 NCCO National Convention in Charleston, SC, the 2012 ACDA Southern Division Convention in Winston-Salem, and the 2011 ACDA National Convention in Chicago.In 2015 the UK Chorale became the first university choral ensemble in the world to perform the soundtrack for the ground-breaking film 2001: A Space Odyssey with music by Gyorgy Ligeti.In December of 2013 the acoUstiKats, a select ensemble from the UK Men’s Chorus, were chosen as finalists on NBC’s a cappella competition “The Sing Off.”Johnson has an editorial series with Hinshaw Music and National Music Publishers.His article The What, Why, and How of Young Adult Male Choirs appeared in the Choral Journal in 2012.In 2017 he was the third recipient of the “Distinguished Choral Alumnus Award” from the University of Colorado.He resides in Lexington, KY with his wife Karina and sons Kyler and Evan.
Alison Mann is Associate
Foundations of Music Education, and Vocal Pedagogy for Ensemble Singing. Mann also supervises student teachers, coordinates edTPA, and serves as Conductor of the KSU Women’s Choir. Additionally, she is a founding singer and personnel manager for Atlanta based professional chamber choir, Coro Vocati. A native of Florida, Mann taught in the Orlando public schools as director of choral activities at William R. Boone High School and was also the assistant conductor of the Orlando Chorale. Dr. Mann received her Ph.D. in Music Education and Choral Conducting from the University of Oregon, and a Masters of Choral Music Education and Bachelors of Choral Music Education from Florida State University. Dr. Mann has studied conducting and music education with André Thomas, Kevin Fenton, Sharon J. Paul, and Judy Bowers. Dr. Mann is currently the Southern Division ACDA Women’s Choir Repertoire and Standards chair, and the Georgia state ACDA Membership Chair. She serves on the executive planning committee for the Southern Division American Choral Directors Association. Additionally, Mann has served as the ACDA Multicultural and Ethics Repertoire and Standards Chair for the states of Georgia and Oregon and the Georgia Women’s Choir Repertoire and Standards Chair. The KSU Women’s Choir has performed on numerous occasions with the KSU Symphony Orchestra, and performed the world premiere of Nico Muhly’s composition, “How Soon” with Grammy award-winning ensemble, eighth blackbird. Additionally, they have participated in the ACDA Women’s Choir Consortium and premiered new works for the past five seasons. In 2014, they were selected to perform at theGMEA In-Service Conference in Savannah. Dr. Mann is an active conductor, clinician, and adjudicator, and has conducted state ACDA honor choir, and All State choruses in multiple states.
Michigan State University in East Lansing, his B.M. in Voice Performance from St. Olaf. Christopher has served on the faculties of St. Olaf College in Northfield, Minnesota, Central Washington University in Ellensburg, Washington and Mount Holyoke College in South
Hadley, Massachusetts. At TCU, Christopher leads the Concert Chorale, TCU’s flagship mixed ensemble as well as the FrogCorps, TCU’s premier male vocal ensemble. He also teaches coursework in basic conducting, choral conducting, choral literature, advanced choral conducting and oversees the graduate choral conducting program. He has conducted All-State Choruses in Alabama, Colorado, Florida, Kentucky, Minnesota, North Dakota, Oregon, South Carolina, South Dakota, Virginia and Wisconsin as well as the British Columbia and Manitoba All-Province Honour Choirs. Additionally, Christopher led the AllNorthwest Mixed Choir in 2015 and ACDA Southern Division Men’s Honor Choir in 2016. Most recently, Christopher travelled to South Korea to headline the 35th Annual International Symposium on Choral Music. Christopher has produced more than forty arrangements and compositions for mixed, men’s and women’s choirs. His works are published by Augsburg Fortress, earthsongs, Hal Leonard, and Aspen Hill Music, a publishing house Christopher co-founded with his wife Nancy in 2013. His latest commission premiered at the 2017 National Conference of the American Choral Directors Association in Minneapolis, Minnesota.
Professorof Choral Music Education and Program
Coordinatorfor Music
Education at Kennesaw State University, where she teaches coursework in Choral Methods,
Christopher Aspaas serves as Director of Choral Activities and Associate Professor of Music at TCU. Christopher received his Ph.D. in Choral Music Education at The Florida State University in Tallahassee, his M.M. in Choral Conducting from
David L. Brunner is Professor of Music and Director of Choral Activities at the University of Central Florida in Orlando where he conducts the University Chorus and Chamber Singers, and teaches courses in undergraduate and graduate conducting. He has twice received a College of Arts and Sciences Excellence in Undergraduate Teaching Award and in 1995 the University Excellence in Teaching Award, UCF’s highest teaching honor. He is also the recipient two major research awards: the College of Arts and Humanities Excellence in Research Award and the College of Arts and Sciences
Distinguished Researcher Award, two Research Incentive Awards and four Teaching Incentive Awards. In 1996 he received a National Award for College Teaching from the Center for the Advancement of Teaching and Learning. In 2011 he was the recipient of Florida ACDA’s prestigious Wayne Hugoboom Distinguished Service Award for “dedicated service, leadership and consistent examples of excellence in choral music in Florida”. Dr. Brunner is a PastPresident of the Florida chapter of the American Choral Directors Association. This year David conducts the Oklahoma AllState Children’s Chorus, the Alabama All-State Middle School Chorus, and the Adventures in Harmony Men’s Choir at Hope College (MI), adjudicates choral festivals in New York, Tennessee and Florida, works with choirs in Illinois and Florida, and teaches at the Choral Music Experience (CME) Institute at Michigan State University.
Laura Farnell has a passion for making music with singers, working with educators, andcreating accessible andartistic choral compositions. After graduating summa cum laude from Baylor University with her BME in Choral Music (with a piano emphasis), Laura taught public school for ten years at the elementary andjunior high levels. She was honored by her schools with Teacher of the Year awards in 2000 and2003, andshe received an Excellence in Education Award in 2004 as the Arlington ISD’s outstanding junior high teacher of the year. Laura presently lives in Arlington, Texas, and serves as an invited clinician for district, region, andstate honor choirs across the country. She also presents workshops and reading sessions for choir directors at both district andstate levels. She has served as a clinician and/or presented at music conferences in Arkansas, Colorado, Illinois,
Iowa, Kansas, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Nebraska, Nevada, North Carolina, Oklahoma, Texas, andWisconsin. As a composer, she especially enjoys writing andarranging music for developing choirs. She is represented by several music publishers, such as Alliance, BriLee, Carl Fischer, andHal Leonard, which features the Laura Farnell Choral series. She has approximately eighty choral compositions, including many commissioned pieces, as well as a co-authored beginning sightsinging method book in publication. She is a member of the Texas Music Educators Association, Texas Choral Directors Association, the Texas Music Adjudicators’ Association, andThe American Society of Composers, Authors andPublishers.She andher husband, Russell, andtheir sons Ryan (10) andWill (6), attend First Presbyterian Church of Arlington where Russell serves as Minister of Music and Laura directs the children’s choirs.
Wednesday, March 7, 2018-
2:00 PMRegistration for OCS /OA, Lobby of Brock Recital Hall
2:45 PMMale OCS Competition, Brock Recital Hall
4:30 PM OCS/OA Picture, Lobby of Brock Recital Hall
5:00 PM Female OCS Competition, Brock Recital Hall Outstanding Accompanist Competition, Buchannan Hall 109
Thursday, March 8, 2018
8:00-11:30 AMASSC Rehearsal, Wright Performance Center
10:00-1:00 PMRegistration, Wright Basement
1:00-1:45 PMGeneral Assembly – ASSC Performance, Wright Performance Center
2:00-5:30 PMHS SATB, Wright Performance Center
HS SSA, Brock Recital Hall
HS TTBB, Bolding Studio
MS Mixed, Harrison Theatre
MS Treble, Cassese Band Hall
5:30-7:30 PMDinner Break
7:30-9:30 PMRehearsals, Same sites as first rehearsal
11:00 PMCurfew
Friday, March 9, 2018
MIDDLE SCHOOL –
8:30-9:45 AM MS Mixed Rehearsal, Cassese Band Hall
MS Treble Dress Rehearsal, Wright Performance Center
9:00 AMGeneral Membership Meeting, Brooks Hall Auditorium
10:00-11:30 AMMS Mixed Dress Rehearsal, Wright Performance Center
MS Treble Rehearsal, Cassese Band Hall
11:30-1:30 PMLUNCH
1:30-3:30 PMMS Mixed, Harrison Theatre
MS Treble, Cassese Band Hall
6:30 PMCall Time for Concert
7:00 PMMS Concert, Wright Performance Center
HIGH SCHOOL –
8:30-11:00 AMHS SATB, Brock Recital Hall
HS SSA, Harrison Theatre
HS TTBB, Bolding Studio
9:00 AMGeneral Membership Meeting, Brooks Hall Auditorium
11:00-1:00 PMLUNCH
1:00-2:30 PM HS SATB Dress Rehearsal, Wright Performance Center
HS SSA, Brock Recital Hall
HS TTBB, Bolding Studio
2:45-4:00 PMHS SATB, Brock Recital Hall
HS SSA Dress Rehearsal, Wright Performance Center
HS TTBB, Bolding Studio
4:15-5:30 PMHS SATB, Brock Recital Hall
HS SSA, Harrison Theatre
HS TTBB Dress Rehearsal, Wright Performance Center
Saturday, March 10, 2018
11:00 AMHS SATB Warm-Up, Brock Recital Hall
HS SSA Warm-Up, Harrison Theatre
HS TTBB Warm-Up, Bolding Studio
11:30 AMCall Time for HS Concert, Wright Performance Center
All Performers Seated
12:00 PMHS Concert
THREE TRACKS: Choral, Elementary and Instrumental
MSU’s Master of Music Education program is both unique and practical, designed to t into the busy lives of current music teachers. It is a hybrid program (a combination of summer and online courses) designed to support music professionals in the advancement of both their pedagogical and musical skills. Included in the degree is performance practice, conducting, pedagogy, curriculum, music theory, history, and the essentials of research in music education.
THREE SUMMERS: Complete the MME with a Combination of Summer and Online Courses
Ted Hoffman is Associate Professor and Director of Music Education at the University of Montevallo where he coordinates the undergraduate music education programs, teaches graduate coursework in the Master of Education program, supervises field placements, directs the summer Young Musicians Camps, and is faculty advisor to the Montevallo collegiate chapter of NAfME/AMEA. Before coming to Montevallo, he taught prekindergarten through grade eight general music and directed a variety of elementary, middle, and high school vocal and instrumental ensembles.
Ted is currently serving on the AMEA Governing Board as advisor to the Collegiate Division and in the AMEA President’s Cabinet as Teacher Education Chair and State Representative to the Society for Music Teacher Education (SMTE). During his advisory appointment, Collegiate student attendance at statewide AMEA activities has increased substantially and the number of participating college and university campus chapters of NAfME/AMEA has grown from four to thirteen. As Teacher Education Chair, Hoffman established and continues to organize biennial roundtable meetings of music teacher educators and K-12 cooperating teachers, while also representing the State of Alabama at national assemblies of SMTE. Most recently, he served on the Arts Education Course of Study Revision Committee and Taskforce and participated in the subsequent unpacking of the music standards in the Alabama Insight Tool.
Hoffman maintains active membership in a number of other state, national, and international associations, and is presently webmaster and Executive Director for the National Association of College Wind and Percussion Instructors (NACWPI), publisher of the NACWPI Journal, and founding past-president of SHAKE, the Alabama chapter of the Organization of American Kodály Educators (OAKE).
His advocacy agenda focuses on equitable support for underrepresented small, rural, and urban school music programs and for the inclusion of students with exceptionalities in secondary school ensembles. Additional research interests include music teacher recruitment and mentoring, innovative curricular initiatives, and student assessment in PreK-12 and teacher preparation programs. He has published more than a dozen articles and text chapters on these topics and has presented related research and clinics in 23 states.
Dr. Hoffman holds degrees in music performance, education, and educational administration from Auburn, Montevallo, Nebraska, and Southern Miss. Additionally, he earned the National Certified Teacher of Music designation from the Music Teachers National Association (MTNA), holds multiple endorsements in music technology from
the Technology Institute for Music Educators (TI:ME), certification in World Music Pedagogy from the Smithsonian Folkways Institute, and is trained in both Orff-Schulwerk and Kodály methodologies.
Ted resides in the Birmingham area with his college sweetheart Nicole, an elementary gifted education specialist and amateur flautist and vocalist, and their two young children.
David Raney received his Bachelor of Music in Music Education degree from the University of North Alabama. He is completing his twentieth year as a music educator and is currently serving his eighth year as the Director of Bands at Sparkman High School in Harvest, Alabama.
The Sparkman Band program offers a wide range of musical opportunities including Competition Band, Marching Band, three concert bands, Jazz Band, Indoor Percussion and Varsity and JV Winter Guard.Under Mr. Raney’s direction the Marching Band has participated in Bands of America Regional and Super Regionals, USBands Southeastern Championships and earned 9 grand champion awards within the state. Under his direction the concert bands have consistently scored superior rating at MPA and the Sparkman Wind Ensemble performed at the 2015 AMEA Conference.
As a member of the Alabama Bandmasters Association, Mr. Raney has served as the ABA District 1 Chairman and a member of the ABA Music Selection Committee.In 2015 he was inducted into the Alabama Phi Beta Mu International Bandmasters Fraternity and was awarded the Rho Chapter Outstanding Bandmaster Award in 2016.
Mr. Raney is responsible for the creation, design and maintenance of ABAfest.com.This website provides band directors the official registration for All-State and MPA events and provides document storage, email distribution and contains the official directory for the ABA.
Mr. Raney has served as a clinician for multiple University, District and area Honor Bands throughout the southeast and has served as a marching band adjudicator in Alabama, Tennessee and Mississippi. He continues to play his trombone in numerous ensembles throughout North Alabama.
He is married with two children, Allison and Ashley, and currently resides in Athens, Alabama with Regina Raney.Regina is the band director at Cedar Ridge Middle School and is currently serving as ABA District 1 Chairman.
Everything is set and prepared, you have worked out your financial situation so you can spend 2-3 years without a substantive income, and your family is supportive and agreeable to moving. The university has accepted you into their program, and the assistantship came through. Your school administrators have secured a replacement, and your students many tears have long since dried. The decision was not easy and yet you know that it is time to put on your “student hat” and explore your own growth as a professional and human being. A long summer awaits without your normal “getting ready for the next school year” routine to keep you occupied. Now what do you do? How do you prepare for graduate school?
Reading newspapers and magazines, such as the New York Times and The New Yorker,provide several important windows into the current state of arts events and news that can serve as topics of intellectual exchange with your future colleagues and professors. The issue here is to be able to converse and
think about matters that reflect a global perspective and understanding versus a detailed account of where you were teaching before. Your colleagues will include persons from all areas in the world with differing musical tastes and interests. Concert and program reviews will help keep you up to date with the latest music and performers as well as develop an awareness of the larger music scene beyond your area of expertise.
Read a great book and start reading continuously. What is on your bedside table? One important aspect of graduate school education is evidence of a continuous process of expanding one’s awareness of the world of ideas. What you read says a lot about who you are and what you are doing with your life. All of the great conductors were avid readers seeking “inspiration” from reading about the lives of great composers, artists, musicians, poets, and authors.
Write a reflective journal containing your thoughts on teaching and music. This summer is a perfect time to reflect on your career as a music teacher. Your journal should include stories about specific students and how their lives were changed with music participation. Consider the dilemmas you faced as a
teacher especially during your early years overcoming the tremendous learning curve involved. Write about your specific performance or education triumphs and do not neglect to document your moments of weakness. These experiences may form the basis of what you want to get out of your graduate school experience. Ask specific questions about who you are and why you are the way you are. If answers come quickly, wait, these questions are deceptively simple. Many layers of preconceived answers must be peeled away in order to penetrate the veneer and plumb the depths of these questions. Typically, it is not until we sit down and attempt to commit our thoughts to paper that we find out what we are really about.
Perform for enjoyment. Reacquaint yourself with your performing instrument if it has been sitting for an extended period. For many music educators our major instrument became the baton or teaching once we entered public school education. When returning to graduate school the entire field of ensembles is once again available to you. The opportunity to revisit the other side of the podium should not be passed by, explore this side of your musicianship. The daily practice - instead of a routine - it is a time for you to “play” with your
musicianship. For teachers returning to work on a PhD or DMA this may be your last opportunity to perform in an ensemble with this caliber of musician. In addition to ensembles in your area, explore non western (e.g., gamelan) or other unique ensembles (e.g., gospel choir, mariachi, steel drum), this will be your opportunity to explore music anew. Plan to take required courses for your degree program, but also permit yourself to indulge in classes that you never considered.
Listen to music outside your specialty area. Expand your listening habits to include a variety of genres and styles. As a musician, you are the sum total of all of your music experiences. Continue to broaden your music listening by including more music from other areas and styles. As a graduate student you will be in the company of scholars with myriad interests and preferences, to be master of one area is commendable, however the diversity that exists on contemporary campuses requires an open mind with a base from which to relate. When was the last time you attended a live professional concert for your own enjoyment? If you only have heard public school music in the last month purchase tickets and attend a professional concert event.
Consider this rhetorical question: Are you returning to higher education to teach
or to learn? This question can be disconcerting, especially given the number of years we have been reinforced as teachers and because the very nature of our decision to return to graduate school is linked to our successful identification and performance in the role of teacher. Only you can answer this question and it is best to know this about yourself before beginning your studies.
Explore the world around you with childlike wonder. Do you remember what it was like to truly appreciate a beautiful sunset, wonder about the number of stars in the night sky, watch in amazement at the flight of a bird, or think about how a simple seed grows into a mature plant? Rediscovering our innate childlike wonder allows us to make connections and see things that perhaps were not obvious before. It is like being an adult of many years having to perform a piece you studied in youth, you could react with disdain for preparing the elementary composition again or you may discover it as if it was placed before you for the first time - fresh and new. This is the beginning of a scholarly mindset, to be like a child again, to have a “wow” event, and to ask “why” without reverting to prior knowledge and experience for the answer. Give yourself permission to walk outside your life for 20 minutes a day and examine the world around you, put away your judgmental hat and put on your little child cap, be amazed again at the world around you. Ask why.
Celebrate your decision to grow and reinforce this process with your (soon to be former) students. Your former students and their parents will continue to contact and question you about the music program throughout the summer as a new music teacher transitions into the job. Take this opportunity to share with your students and music parents your excitement about upcoming professional and personal development.
Through your modeling, others may be encouraged to follow your dream to go to college and grow. The process of education should create eternal students who pursue a lifelong process of learning, when returning to graduate school you are the embodiment of this ideal. This should be a period of rejoicing as you have made a public decision to grow. Share your enthusiasm and rejoice!
The temptation will be great to try to find out as much information as possible about what you need to do before showing up on campus and many of these logistical tasks are important. When speaking with others who have gone to graduate school before you, it would appear that there are many things you should decide before you go. Wait, avoid making too many decisions too early. The difficulty in the transition from public school teaching to being a graduate school student is learning how to deal with a tremendous amount of ambiguity, instead give yourself permission to focus on yourself during the summer so that you can arrive open to exploration and discovery! Graduate school can be one of the most rewarding experiences an educator can go through, given the many opportunities for growth combined with a substantial base of past experiences developed during inservice teaching. If you approach your next level of education as an experiment where you get to try on many hats (performing musician, conductor, composer, historian, student, teacher, counselor, colleague, educator, and researcher) the experience will be more than just a culmination of grades and coursework. It will yield an enriching learning experience where you get to interact with new and exciting people who are all deeply committed to the music profession and their individual specialties!
For the past 50 years or more, we music educators have been involved with one initiative or another aimed at advancing the cause of music in our schools. We, and our faithful parent partners, have continually felt a need to advocate for the place and priority of music instruction at all levels of K-12 schooling. Additional allies in this endeavor have been those in the business community who have a vested financial interest in music activity and instruction. All three of those groups, and others, have produced an impressive variety of statistics, philosophical statements, scientific studies, historical research, anecdotal observations, and just plain common sense that work together to support the notion that offering music in school settings is a good idea – that is, it is somehow beneficial to the education of school children. What follows is a brief review of the major elements of recent advances in this area of work.
As good a place as any to start is a statement on this topic by our national organization. The list of “20 Important Benefits of Music In Our Schools” was
published by NAfME (the National Association for Music Education) in 2014 as a compilation of ideas from many sources (see photo insert). As we look through this list, we see some familiar ideas, a few new ideas, and maybe even some that are a bit controversial, depending on where you stand with aesthetic concept philosophy, neuromusical research, and the arguments, pro or con, regarding the so-called “Mozart Effect.” Nevertheless, the NAfME list offers important insights into what professionals in our field think about this topic. It also guides us in how we should develop our rationales for music study, and how we might best position ourselves in approaching the critical topic of music advocacy. Another thing the NAfME list does is to remind us that before we attempt to convince others of the need for music in the schools, we should clarify in our own minds why we think music study is a valid area of study for school curricula.
National Association for Music Education
1. Musical training helps develop language and reasoning: Students who have early musical training will develop the areas of the brain related to language and reasoning. The left side of the brain is
better developed with music and songs that can help imprint information on young minds.
2. A mastery of memorization: Even when performing with sheet music, student musicians are constantly using their memory to perform. The skill of memorization can serve students well in all fields of education and beyond.
3. Students learn to improve their work: Learning music promotes craftsmanship, and students learn to want to create good work instead of mediocre work. This desire can be applied to all subjects of study.
4. Increased coordination: Students who practice with musical instruments can improve their hand-eye coordination. Just like playing sports, children can develop motor skills when playing music.
5. A sense of achievement: Learning to play pieces of music on a new instrument can be a challenging, but achievable goal. Students who master even the smallest goal in music will be able to feel proud of their achievement.
6. Kids stay engaged in school: An enjoyable subject like music can keep kids interested and engaged in school. Student musicians are likely to stay in school to
achieve in other subjects.
7. Success in society: Music is the fabric of our society, and music can shape abilities and character. Students in band or orchestra are less likely to abuse substances over their lifetime. Musical education can greatly contribute to children’s intellectual development as well.
8. Emotional development: Students of music tend to be more emotionally developed and intellectually mature, demonstrating more empathy toward other cultures. They also tend to have higher self-esteem and are better at coping with anxiety.
9. Students learn pattern recognition: Music learning experiences aid in developing children’s math and patternrecognition skills. Playing music offers repetition in a fun format.
10. Better SAT scores: Students who have experience with music performance or music appreciation score higher on the SAT. One report indicates 63 points higher on verbal and 44 points higher on math for students in music appreciation courses.
11. Fine-tuned auditory skills: Musicians can better detect meaningful, information-bearing elements in sounds, like the emotional meaning in a baby’s cry.
Students who practice music can have better auditory attention, and pick out predictable patterns from surrounding noise.
12. Music builds imagination and intellectual curiosity: Introducing music in the early childhood years can help foster a positive attitude toward learning and curiosity. Artistic education develops the whole brain and develops a child’s imagination.
13. Music can be relaxing: Students can fight stress by learning to play music. Soothing music is especially helpful in helping kids to relax.
14. Musical instruments can teach discipline: Kids who learn to play an instrument receive a valuable lesson in discipline. They will have to set aside time to practice and rise to the challenge of learning with discipline to master playing their instrument.
15. Preparation for the creative economy: Investing in creative education can prepare students for the 21st century workforce. The new economy has created more careers that call for job skills enhanced by artistic study and experiences.
16. Development in creative thinking: Kids who study the arts learn to think creatively. This kind of education can help them solve problems by thinking “outside the box” and realizing that there may be more than one right answer.
17. Music can develop spatial intelligence: Students who study music can improve the development of spatial intelligence, which allows them to perceive the world accurately and form mental pictures. Spatial intelligence is helpful for advanced mathematics and more.
18. Kids learn teamwork: Many music education programs require teamwork as part of a band, choir or orchestra. In these groups, students will learn how to work together and build camaraderie.
19. Responsible risk-taking: Performing a musical piece can help students to learn how to deal with fear and anxiety, which
will help them in reaching their potentials in all areas of life.
20. Better self-confidence: With encouragement from teachers and parents, performing in a musical event can build pride and confidence in students, as well as developing their ability to communicate and collaborate with others in a joint endeavor.
One view of the over-arching purpose of public education might be that schools exist to provide systematic and formalized instruction in areas of learning valued by society. If one accepts that definition as our beginning premise, advocacy for music in the schools is on solid footing. After all, it seems clear to even the most casual observer that music is almost as ubiquitous as the air we breathe. In contemporary American society, enormous resources are expended on a daily basis in pursuit of music making, music listening, and the general enjoyment and consumption of music. Of course, it goes even deeper than that.
As Clifford Madsen and Terry Lee Kuhn observed in their book Contemporary Music Education, music is “universal” – “found in all cultures.” We might add that it is also found to serve a wide variety of purposes, including the contexts of entertainment, ceremony, artistic expression, and religious worship that principally define music’s role in contemporary American culture. It follows, then, that the intracultural and intercultural pervasiveness of music as an art form implies this necessary distinction of value; and, therefore, establishes a legitimate place for music in school curricula.
The basic question of “why teach music” may be further answered by considering a more specific question: What human attributes and/or characteristics of learning may be addressed in a significant and effective way through the study of music?
In describing how humans learn, Charles Hoffer, in his book Teaching Music in the Secondary Schools, alludes to the widely accepted three domains of learning: “cognitive domain,” “affective domain, ” “psychomotor domain”
In this book, Hoffer draws upon the work of Benjamin Bloom and his colleagues who are credited with constructing hierarchies or “taxonomies” for two types of learning, or what they referred to as domains. They described the cognitive domain as the domain of “information and understanding, ” and the affective domain as the domain of “feelings and attitudes.” A taxonomy for the third domain, the psychomotor domain, was developed later by Elizabeth Simpson who described it as the domain “that deals with physical skills.”
Even a brief perusal of these three domains of learning reveals the obvious ways that music study connects with the processes of learning. Considering all of the other subjects taught in schools, if we follow the average student through his/her average school day, I think we would find that it is the music courses that offer the most connections for not just one, or two; but for all three domains of learning.
If we accept the arguments in favor of inclusion of music in school curricula, we then could proceed to additional questions that help us to build confidence in the general, as well as specific, benefits of the study of music. Those benefits may be seen to emanate from the unique potentials for education that the study of music offers within the contexts of the three domains of learning. We see those potentials by considering two categories of usefulness for music study:
I. Which educational benefits can be best accomplished by studying music than by studying any other subject?
II. Which educational benefits can be accomplished as well by studying music as by studying any other subject?
Building on Hoffer’s ideas along this line of reasoning, the following are some points that define music’s place in one or both of those categories.
study with its own unique bodies of knowledge and literature, and its own traditions of scholarly research.
2. As with any other academic discipline, music functions as an intracultural repository of information, tradition, product, power, and sustainability of cultural heritage.
3. Studying music expands and builds students’ exposure to and familiarity with repertoire beyond what they would normally encounter through common media such as TV, radio, movies, video games, etc.
4. Studying music deepens students’ knowledge of how music works as an art form and as a phenomenon and artifact of human existence.
5. Studying music provides significant opportunities for creativity and selfexpression beyond the commonplace and ordinary.
6. Studying music enables students to become skilled and sensitive listeners of music, better understanding what they hear and how it has meaning.
7. Studying music teaches students to use and understand a unique abstract symbol system.
8. Studying music enhances students’ understandings of human kind and the role of aesthetics in culture and society.
9. Studying music enhances a student’s general quality of life and that of all others who benefit from his/her music making and creative insights.
10. The study of music develops each person’s musical potential.
In 1983, Dr. Howard Gardner, professor of education at Harvard University, suggested that the traditional notion of intelligence based on I.Q. testing is far too limited. In its place, Dr. Gardner put forth a list of eight “Basic Human Intelligences” to account for a broader range of human potential in children and adults. These intelligences are:
1. Music is an established academic discipline, and as such, it is a field of
l Linguistic intelligence
l Logical-mathematical intelligence
...for society, musically trained students have value.
In fact, musically trained students are an important social and cultural commodity
l Spatial intelligence
l Bodily-Kinesthetic intelligence
l Musical intelligence
l Interpersonal intelligence
lIntrapersonal intelligence
l Naturalist intelligence
Of course, the one that jumps out to us is number 5 – musical intelligence. If we define the term “intelligence” in this context as the capacity to communicate through sending and/or receiving information and/or messages, then I think we can all see how, yes, all humans do indeed have the inborn, innate capacity to respond to music messaging. Therefore, the study of music can be seen to directly address one of the most basic of human potentials.
In building our rationale for music study, we sometimes find advantage in distilling our thoughts into an overview of topics that blend the practical with the philosophical. To that end, we might consider three broad reasons for including music in school curricula that focus on the product of music education – the learning outcomes.
Within this context, we might all agree that one of our most important goals, if not our principle mission as music educators, is to produce musically trained students, Why? Because, for society, musically trained students have value. In fact, musically trained students are an important social and cultural commodity; and here’s how.
First, we should remember that a small percentage of students are specially and specifically gifted in music, just as some are specially gifted in math, a science, writing, the visual arts, and other fields. Society needs adult experts in all fields. Therefore, society benefits directly from providing early learning experiences in school settings for all students who have exceptional abilities so that they can achieve their high potentials as future leaders and producers within their specialize fields, including music.
Second, as Howard Gardner’s Eight Basic Human Intelligences reveal, all students have a basic musical intelligence. A fundamental goal of any schooling should be to develop all basic intelligences, of
whatever levels, in all students. Therefore, “music for all” should be a given.
Third, as we all know, schools and society benefit directly from the utilitarian performances of trained musicians. Regardless of one’s philosophical views on this topic, the practical matter is that the participation of school performing ensembles and individual performers at school events and other public ceremonies of various kinds greatly enhance the quality and significance of those occasions by adding depth and impact to such events in support of their essential goals and purposes. After all, we have to admit, that’s where music in the schools started. We see that all the way back to the utilitarian rationales of Lowell Mason in the 1830s, to the academic credit bargaining of Will Earhart in the 1920s, and to the daily battles we all fight and the many accommodations we all make to keep our programs afloat and relevant in the ever-changing landscape of modern education.
So, after further examination, it appears that the NAfME list that we started with has it about right. Although we should heed warnings about using so-called “nonmusical” reasons for music in the schools in advancing the cause of music education, the other elements of the list represent some reliable information on which we might build our rationales. Those have about the right mix of practical and philosophical, reflecting the
realities of our daily work, but also sprinkling in a good dose of the exciting and exhilarating potentials that we see in our students – those things that keep us going, and keep us fighting for what is right and for what is good for all students – and that is MUSIC!
Abeles, Harold F. & Custodero, Lori A. (2010). Critical Issues in Music
Education Contemporary Theory and Practice. New York: Oxford University Press.
Elliot, David. (2015). Music Matters: A New Philosophy of Music Education (2nd ed.). New York: Oxford University Press.
Gelineau, R. Phyllis (1995). Experiences in Music (3rd ed.). Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice Hall.
Hoffer, Charles R. (2001). Teaching Music in the Secondary Schools (5th ed.). Belmont, CA: Wadsworth/Thompson Learning.
Madsen, Clifford & Kuhn, Terry Lee. (1994). Contemporary Music Education (2nd ed.). Raleigh, NC: Contemporary Publishing.
Motycka, Arthur, (Ed.). (1976). Music Education for Tomorrow’s Society: Selected Topics. Jamestown, RI: GAMT Music Press.
Reimer, Bennett. (2003). A Philosophy of Music Education: Advancing the Vision (3rd ed.). Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice Hall.
Underneath the Stars
Music and text: Kate Rusby
Arranger: Jim Clements
A cappella, SSATB, soprano or tenor solo
Publisher: Edition Peters (EP73139; editionpeters.com)
Approximate performance time: 3’45” (approximate)
Voces 8 performance: https://youtu.be/DvmU-ppORGM
Written by British folk singer-songwriter, Kate Rusby and arranged by VOCES 8 baritone member Jim Clements, “Underneath the Stars” is one of the most requested VOCES 8 arrangements (which became available for ordering in fall, 2017). One has only to do a cursory study of the score to understand its appeal. The lilting folk song nature of this a cappella choral setting captures the intimacy, simplicity, and poignancy of the text and would serve to unite a program that features traditional, classical, and contemporary choral selections. It has a certain cross-over appeal with a quasi-strophic structure, accessible tessituras, and could certainly be used as a teaching piece for balance and blend.
Go gently.
Underneath the stars I’ll meet you, Underneath the stars I’ll greet you, There beneath the stars I’ll leave you before you go of your own free will. Go gently.
Underneath the stars you met me, Underneath the stars you left me, I wonder if the stars regret me. At least you’ll go of your own free will. Go gently.
Here beneath the stars I’m landing, And here beneath the stars no ending Oh, why on earth am I pretending?
I’m here again the stars befriending— they come and go of their own free will. Go gently.
Underneath the stars you met me, Underneath the stars you left me, I wonder if the stars regret me, I’m sure they’d like me if they only met me. They come and go of their own free will. Go gently.
Music: David Basden
Text: Hilaire Belloc
SSATBB divisi, a cappella
Publisher: music available from the composer (deebee@pacific.net.au)
Approximate performance time: 2’30” (approximate)
Audio: https://youtu.be/51ooJk7tEAI or if you want to see the score as you listen, you can access score as you listen to Matthew Curtis here: https://youtu.be/_Vv0DcKb_nQ or on Soundcloud: https://m.soundcloud.com/david-basden-composer/thebirds-david-basden
Australian composer, David Basden, is extraordinarily generous with his time and his music (he responds quickly to emails and typically shares music with conductors upon request). In one of our conversations, David remarked that he wrote this little gem for a local Sydney-based community choir in 2010 and this compositional experience launched him into choral writing. He first became aware of the text through a two-part setting by Benjamin Britten (after he found the sheet music in a second-hand store in the 1970s). The fanciful poem, by Hilaire Belloc, is based on a story in the pseudoepigraphical Infancy Gospel of Thomas (which also has ties to Islamic folklore). Basden’s signature quasijazz, lush, dense homophonic writing (triads a second or fifth apart) is found here and is quite accessible. “The Birds” would be a lovely and novel addition to any seasonal choral program. The piece is currently listed in the PROJECT: ENCORE Catalog of Contemporary Choral Music and has been recognized with an ACDA Silver Platter award.
When Jesus Christ was four years old, The angels brought Him toys of gold, Which no man ever had bought or sold.
And yet with these He would not play. He made Him small fowl out of clay, And blessed them till they flew away:
Tu creasti Domine. (trans. Thou hast created them, O Lord)
Jesus Christ, Thou Child so wise, Bless mine hands and fill mine eyes, And bring my Soul to Paradise.
Tu creasti Domine
Song to the Moon (La Luna)
Music: Z. Randall Stroope
Text: Jaroslov Kvapil with a portion of text written by Stroope SATB divisi, Piano, Flute, Oboe
Publisher: Walton Music
Approximate performance time: 5’20” (approximate)
Sample performance: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XieeQcgQLns
Every so often, a conductor finds a piece by a well-known composer that stands out as “unique”, combining the elements that we’ve come to expect with the unexpected! Such is the case with Z. Randall Stroope’s “Song to the Moon”. The composer talks about the text in the notes and it is best to use his own words to describe this paraphrase of a text written in 1899 by Jaroslov Kvapil (1868-1959).
“The text of “Song to the Moon” is a very free paraphrase of a small portion of the original Jaroslov Kvapit text in Czech, written in 1899. Antonin Dvorak used Kavpil’s libretto in his masterful opera, Rusalka, completed in 1900. The present twenty-first century rendering . . . is a free paraphrase (in English) and in no means intended to be an exact of scholarly translation of the original Kvapil text . . . but is inspired by and captures the essence of the original . . . The text centers around a water nymph (named Rusalka) who lives in a fairy-tale kingdom of the Czech imagination. She yearns to be human so she can fall in love with a human prince who has been coming to her pond to bathe. The text used for “Song to the Moon” appears at the beginning of the story when Rusalka asks
the moon to find her lover (the prince) and tell him that she loves him.”
The song’s narrative is delicately set with fluid, moving eighth note patterns that are conversationally exchanged by various voice parts, as well as in the accompanying piano, oboe and flute voices. Her pleas to the moon increase in intensity throughout the course of the piece, until they reach an almost desperate pitch and end in a quasi-improvisatory repetition of the word “luna”. All voice parts are in reasonable ranges, with the exception of the first sopranos (who remain in the high A-flat area several times throughout the course of the piece). There are terrific programing possibilities with this piece and it is another tribute to Stroope’s text painting abilities.
La Luna
Your light see through endless time, Tell me where my love lies. O moon e’er you pass, Wake my dreaming lover, I am waiting, I am calling. Tell him come, O moon.
La Luna, tell him, Light his place.
Ah, moon help him remember and dream of me. Tell him who is waiting, who is longing. Tell him come, O moon.
An educational festival for elementary, middle, and high school students in band, choir, and orchestra
2018 dates: April 20-21, April 27-28, May 4-5
2019 dates: April 12-13, April 26-27, May 3-4
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Help to remember our laughter and tears, Mem’ries of summer nights. Help him remember our triumphs and tears, May this remembrance waken him. Tell that I am holding firm for at least awhile. Tell him moon, don’t disappear silver moon.
O silver moon in the deep, dark sky, Your light sees through endless time. Tell me where my love lies.
La Luna.
Dr. Diane Orlofsky is Professor of Music and Director of Choirs at Troy University, where she oversees the choral program and teaches undergraduate and graduate classes in music education. She is the conductor of the Troy University Concert Chorale and the Director of the Troy University vocal jazz ensemble, frequency.
“Pride of Dixie” Marching Band
Symphonic Band
Wind Ensemble
Studio Jazz Band
Percussion Ensemble
Collegiate Singers
Chamber Choir
Vocal Jazz Ensemble
Opera/Musical Theatre
Shoals Symphony at UNA
Bachelor of Music in Performance
• INSTRUMENTAL
• VOCAL
• PIANO
Bachelor of Science in Music
• INSTRUMENTAL
• VOCAL/CHORAL
Music Education
• INSTRUMENTAL MUSIC, P-12
• CHORAL MUSIC, P-12
NOVEMBER 3, 2017
JANUARY 26, 2018
MARCH 10, 2018
APRIL 28, 2018
University of NORTH ALABAMA
College of Arts and Sciences
Department of Music
256-765-4375
256-765-4995 (FAX) MUSIC@UNA.EDU
As I tried to filter through the mountain of scores that were sent to me as I was building the Alabama Winds program for the Midwest Clinic, I was constantly reminded through the process of the phrase “I have good news and I have bad news”. The good news is that there is so much new music available to us today! The bad news is that there is so much music available to us today! Where do you begin? We are inundated with so many new pieces, it can be overwhelming to try to make your way through everything. Selecting the literature that our ensembles play is one of the most important jobs we do as wind band conductors. The literature that we select for our ensembles is our curriculum. With so many choices, life can be very difficult indeed. I encourage you to make wise choices. Your literature selections will, in large part, determine the success of your preparation cycle and, ultimately, your performance. I encourage you to make time to listen carefully to the new literature. It is very helpful to have access to a score as you listen. I really enjoy the publishers who have prepared a YouTube video with a score so that you can “see” what you’re “hearing”. I hope the information on the following pieces will help you along this important journey!
Across the Serengeti is a grade .5/1 composition by Jack Wilds, published by FJH. This piece is ideal for your beginning or second year band that offers elements that will insure that your students enjoy the piece and they will learn something along the way!
Across the Serengeti is intended to be a musical depiction of the plains of Africa. After a brief opening fanfare, the first theme is stated in the clarinets and trumpet. There is an infectious percussion groove that will keep those inquisitive percussionists busy, and will allow the percussionists to explore several world percussion instruments. There is a contrasting lyrical “B” theme that allows your young students the opportunity to display their expressive playing capabilities. After the lyrical section, there is a restatement of the “A” theme followed by a recapitulation of the opening fanfare.
It takes a very special gift for composers to be able to write music at this level and Jack Wilds is exceptionally gifted in this area. Across the Serengeti gives conductors an opportunity to teach contrasting styles and dynamics, along with easily accessible ranges and engaging melodies that will certainly make your young ensemble sound it’s best.
Of Wind and Fire, by Gary Gilmore, is published by WingertJones Publications as a part of their Achievement Series for young bands. Of Wind and Fire is listed by the publisher as a grade 2, and is an excellent choice to open or close your concert. The work utilizes an almost relentless drive from beginning to end provided by an eighth note pattern, played by several different sections of the ensemble. Of Wind and Fire provides the conductor with an opportunity to expose students to minor tonality with both the “A” and “B” themes residing in g minor. The “C” theme is centered
around c minor before returning to the original “A” theme, once again in g minor. The orchestration for percussion in this energetic work calls for seven percussionists and does an excellent job challenging the students with several different performance techniques. The tympani part is listed as “optional” and requires only two drums with no tuning changes required during the work.
One of the most unique and beneficial components of the Achievement Series is the inclusion of a “Lesson Guide” for the conductor that contains useful information including the National Standard addressed, Learning Objectives and theory “helpful hits”. There is also a quiz included in the score with permission granted to reproduce the quiz for your students. It is always nice to see composers and publishers assisting the conductor with the educational component of our rehearsals. Of Wind and Fire is an outstanding educational addition to your library.
On a commission by Kappa Kappa Psi and Tau Beta Sigma, composer Steven Bryant composed his Miniature Suite which was premiered by the National Intercollegiate Honor Band at the 2017 national convention. The suite is a fourteen minute, five movement work, with each movement available for purchase/performance separately. The final movement, titled Irrational Joy, is an energetic, 2 minute and 30 second concert opener or closer, written at the grade 5/6 level. With perpetual motion sixteenth notes in the upper woodwinds, the brass section melodies propel the piece forward. The composer describes the pieces as “joyful music tinged with moments of dissonance. Euphoria on the edge of catastrophe”. The piece demands strong woodwind technique with an almost constant sixteenth note scalar pattern throughout. Jazzinfused syncopated rhythms in the trumpets and saxophones resting atop block chords from the low brass and woodwinds make for an exciting two-minute ride that performers and audience alike will enjoy.
Modern percussion writing requiring 5 players at a minimum, along with an optional piano and contrabass part complete this engaging composition. Full of contrasts and energy, Irrational Joy is sure to become a favorite in the repertoire.
Randall Coleman, Wind Band Music Reviewer Associate Director of Bands
The University of Alabama Music Director and Conductor The Alabama Winds
(Part One)
This month’s article is a compilation of advice from experienced band directors on the best advice that was given them in their careers on preparing their band for concert assessments and festival. These successful teachers have prepared many groups for festival and are adjudicators as well. It would be wise to read through these suggestions and most importantly, apply them on a regular basis. There were a lot of contributors willing to share, so this article will be continued in the next issue.
Betty Bates – Retired, Scottsboro High School
Record your band often. Make sure and let your students hear the recording, too. It’s amazing how many problems will correct themselves.
John McAphee, Jr – Coordinator of Fine Arts Birmingham Public Schools, Band Director Phillips High School 25 Years
Start selecting music early, get recordings of all your selections, have passoffs and regular sectionals.
Terry Ownby – Florence High School
Tone! Tone! Tone! It starts with day one of teaching students how to play. They must always strive to play with a characteristic tone.
Dr. David Spencer – Huntsville High School (retired), Covenant Christian Band
Don’t forget to compliment and encourage your students!
Dr. Mark Walker – Troy University
Remember to relax and teach the music – the rest will happen in the process.
David Brewer – Retired, Clay-Chalkville, McAdory, and Minor High Schools
Pick music that your can perform and fits the strengths of your band.
Chuck Eady – Pleasant Grove High School
Select quality literature that fits your band: literature that is within the students musical capabilities so they can experience a successful assessment.
Debora Mayes – Band Specialist, Birmingham City Schools
Contact and network with experienced directors who have been successful! Aquire recordings, schedule sectionals, and require passoffs.
Carla Gallahan – Troy University, Auburn Jr. High School
Don’t tune students individually with a tuner in the warm-up room before your assessment performance.
David Simpson – Marbury High School
Jerry Bobo (Fayette High School) told me that he believed that one of the biggest areas of concern that he has heard for bands in general is articulation issues. Checking unison lines for correct tuning was a help piece of advice as well.
Scott Thompson – Retired, Clay-Chalkville, Gardendale, and Cordova High Schools
Make sure to select music that is within the technical abilities of your students. This will leave you with the proper amount of time to rehearse the expressive aspects of your performance.
John Hillsman – Beauregard High School
Be careful not to “overly” warm-up the band before entering the stage. Do not rehearse during warmup…merely warm-up and reinforce good characteristic tone and pitch center without tuning students individually with an electronic tuner.
Dr. Lloyd E. Jones – University of North Alabama
If you take a look at the score, you will notice that ALL the rhythms and articulations line up TOP to BOTTOM. We must play it that way. Once we achieved proper tone quality and intonation, it’s all about style.
Dr. Ken Bodiford – Jacksonville State University
As you are learning a piece of music have students sing their parts as an ensemble as much as possible. Require good tone quality and intonation while the students are singing.
Carlton Wright – Alabama A & M University, Minor High School
Take the approach of making the concert band the “cream of the crop” group in the program! Rehearse scales, fundamentals and
tone EVERYDAY! Teach students to count rhythms and recognize groups of notes as one beat when possible.
Dr. Jon Remley – Band Specialist, Jefferson County BOE, Samford University
From H. Robert Reynolds (University of Michigan): “Don’t over program. Allow yourself the time to be musical as well as technical. (Told to a group of Dallas area band directors)
Curtis Burttram - Retired, Albertville High School
Balance and blend are primary considerations! Remind students that restrictive tension is their enemy.
Dr. Cifford “Ski” Winter – Retired, UAB, Vestavia Hills, and Huffman High Schools
Dave Ward (Grissom High School) first showed me how to employ the “sizzle” technique with my bands to immediately improve breath support and air control.
Deborah Basinger – Retired, Florence Middle School
I learned to seek the input of my peers in getting them to listen to my groups and rehearse them.
Jim Knight – Retired, Briarwood, Pace (FL) High Schools
Use the “Seven Essentials of Tone Production” by Yale C. Ellis (University of Alabama) as a guide: 1) Posture 2) Embrochure 3) Air 4) Ear 5) Start/Attack 6) Sustain 7) Release — achievement of these are FUNDAMENTAL.
Dr. Johnnie Vinson – Retired, Auburn University
Have section rehearsals – organize your band into 5 parts: Flutes and Clarinets 2) Saxes and Horns 3) Trumpets 4) Low Brass and Reeds 5) Percussion Each section comes in one day per week for an hour after school. This is the very best way possible to work out DETAILS in your contest music!
Jim Duren – Retired, Oak Mountain High School, Pelham High School
Don’t be afraid to experiment a little. Dave Ward (Grissom High School) once told me: “If your horns are weak, use trumpets with Kentucky Fried Chicken Buckets….the judges will think you’ve got the greatest horn section ever!”
Lots to think about here as you are making your final preparations for Music Performance Assessment! Hopefully, you are already employing many of these ideas. There are many more suggestions that will be shared in Part 2 of this article, so be sure to look for it in the next issue of Ala Breve
Rho Chapter of Phi Beta Mu International Bandmaster Fraternity is committed to the improvement of bands and band instruction in this state. Comments on this column and ideas for future columns are welcome! Please email: pemin@mac.com
The Alabama Music Educators Association is proud to recognize those AMEA members having 25 or more years of continuous membership in NAfME. This year, each person attaining 25 years and those reaching increments of five years beyond that will be honored. The following music educators were honored during this year’s conference.
Minnie Stuart - 75 years
David Black - 60 years
Gene Inglis - 45 years
William Denison - 45 years
William Connell - 40 years
Steve McLendon - 40 years
John McAphee - 40 years
Jimmy Hobbs - 40 years
Chuck Eady - 40 years
Jerry Potter - 40 years
Treadwell Davis - 40 years
Michael Brown - 40 years
John Bradley - 40 years
Patricia Blackwell - 40 years
Ronald Bearden - 40 years
Allen Bailey - 40 years
Betty Bates - 40 years
Rickie Malone - 35 years
Richard Holland - 35 years
Melanie Harris - 35 years
Tim Grabill - 35 years
Curtis Burttram - 35 years
Jeannie Bubbett - 35 years
Jon Bubbett - 35 years
Rick Whitmire - 35 years
Sallie White - 35 years
Jeffrey Hudson - 35 years
Tim Clinton - 35 years
Diane Orlofsky - 35 years
Kathy Hughes - 30 years
Johnnie Vinson - 30 years
Kay Carter - 30 years
Byron Dawes - 30 years
Beth Watters - 30 years
George Martin 30 years
Kathleen Lavay-Turner - 30 years
Eddy Williams - 30 years
Ron Pence - 30 years
Jerry Cunningham - 30 years
Johnny Nash - 25 years
Karen Garrett - 25 years
AMEA would like to express appreciation to the following partners who have joined AMEA in our efforts to promote music education in Alabama. Please support these industry/institutional members who support you as music educators!
Arts Music Shop Inc., 3030 E. Blvd., Montgomery, AL 36116
AWB Apparel, 206 Potomac Court, Woodstock, GA 30188
Bailey Brothers Music Company, 4673 Highway 280 Suite 7, Birmingham, AL 35242 Gadsden Music Company Inc., 607 Broad Street, Gadsden, AL 35902
Group Travel Network, Inc., 7485 Conroy Windermere Rd. Suite D, Orlando, FL 32835 Guardian Music Travel, 1008 Frances Pkwy, Park Ridge, IL 60068 Huntingdon College Bands, 1500 E. Fairview Ave., Montgomery, AL 36106 John M. Long School of Music, School of Music, Troy, AL 36082 JW Pepper, 9053 Riverside Pkwy, Lithia Springs, GA 30122 Kaleidoscope Adventures, 7081 Grand National Drive Ste. 110, Orlando, FL 32819 Landmark Tour and Travel, 704 37th Street South, Birmingham, AL 35222 Marchmaster Inc., P.O. Box 73379, Newnan, GA 30271
Bache lor of Music
Per formance, Jazz Studies, Comp osition, Theory Music Therapy
Bache lor of Science
Music Educ at ion/Instr umental Music Educ at ion/C horal
Bache lor of Arts
General Music, Music Administ ration
Master of Music
Per formance, Wind C onducting, Choral C onducting, Church Music, Comp osition, Theory, Arrang ing, Music History
PERFORMING ENSEMBLES
e Huxford Symphony Orchestra
Alabama Wind Ensemble
Symphonic Band Concert Band e Million Dollar Band
University Singers
University Chorus
Women’s Chorus
Men’s Chorus
University of Alabama Opera eatre
Master of Arts
Music Educ at ion
Doctor of Musical Arts
Comp osition, Per formance, Wind Conducting, C horal C onducting
PhD Music Educ at ion
Educ at ion Spe ciali st
Contemporary Ensemble
Jazz Ensemble
Jazz Band and Jazz Combo
Chamber Music
Early Music Ensembles
For audition infor mat ion and our upcoming ca lendar of events ple as e visit our website.
music.ua.edu
