2023 May TEMPO

TEMPO Editor - William McDevitt 300 W. Somerdale Road, STE C Voorhees, NJ 08043 Phone: 856-433-8512

e-mail: wmcdevittnjmea[at]gmail.com

Deadlines

October Issue - August 1

January Issue - November 1

March Issue - January 15

May Issue - March 15

All members should send address changes to: mbrserv[at]nafme.org or NAfME, 1806 Robert Fulton Drive Reston, VA 22091

Printed by: Mt. Royal Printing 1-717-569-3200

The New Jersey Music Educators Association is a state unit of the National Association for Music Education and an affiliate of the New Jersey Education Association. It is a nonprofit membership organization.

TEMPO (ISSN 0040-3016) is published four times during the school year: October, January, March and May.

It is the official publication of the New Jersey Music Educators Association.

The subscription rate for non-members is $20.00 per year. The subscription for members is included in the annual dues.

A copy of dues receipts (Subscriptions) is retained by the NJMEA Treasurer. Inquiries regarding advertising rate, closing dates, and the publication of original articles should be sent to the Editor.

Volume 77, No. 4, MAY 2023

TEMPO Editor - William McDevitt C/O NJMEA, 300 W Somerdale Rd, STE C, Voorhees NJ 08043 Periodicals Postage Paid at Lakewood, NJ 08701 and additional entries

POSTMASTER: Please forward address changes to: NAfME 1806 Robert Fulton Drive Reston, VA 20191

Please go to nafme.org to record email and address changes.

President's Message

Wayne Mallette Scotch Plains - Fanwood School District mallette.njmea[at]gmail.com

I write this message to you all with a deep sense of gratitude. I have come to the end of my NJMEA presidency, and my heart is filled with love and thanks for everyone who is a part of this organization.

I first want to thank you, the amazing music educators in the state. We have come to the end of the school year, and what a year this has been. In many schools, we have perhaps experienced a full year with no COVID-19 mitigation. Performances have been back in full swing, field trips have returned, and students are making music all over the state of New Jersey. You have navigated a changing landscape, and based on what I’ve seen in person and on social media, it is better than ever. I hope you take this summer to relax and rejuvenate. You deserve to take the summer months to recharge your battery.

Our region and All-State ensembles have had a full year of auditions and performances. This hard work does not just happen. It takes a team of people who are committed to the organization and implementation of these ensembles. To every chair, manager, and committee member, thank you!

To the NJMEA Executive and Full Board, there are not enough words to say thank you. We had a quick transition into my term, and you stood steady and maintained the ship. To David Westawski, thank you for serving as PresidentElect. The organization will be in great hands with you as President, and I look forward to serving with you. Patrick O’Keefe, it has been an honor to watch you as Past-President. Your wisdom, willingness to help, and wit have been a model of leadership for me. Thank you! To Bill McDevitt, what an honor. You are the consummate Executive Director, and I could not have done this without you.

As I shift into the role of Past President, I look forward to supporting in any way needed. I’m excited to lend support to our organizational initiatives and to be a source of advice for anyone in need.

At the All-State concert at NJPAC in February, I commented that I wanted to put in writing. It is a joy to serve as the President of an organization to supports great events like the All-State ensembles. Watching the students make mu-

sic with their peers and learn from world-class conductors is a joy that I can never adequately put into words. I am, however, aware that not enough students on the stage are representative of the demographics in the states. For too long, many students from historically discriminated communities are not been fully represented in our ensembles. While we have made strides to break down many barriers, there is more work to do.

We must continue to find areas of inequities and discrimination, and we must eradicate them. For too long, music and arts programs have been eliminated or severely understaffed, underfunded, and unscheduled in communities of color. This not only affects the pipeline to our profession of music educators but also robs students of the life changing and, in some cases, the life saving power of music. In an interview on TV, Billy Porter said that the arts make you think. And it’s no coincidence that those in power attack the arts in schools— they don’t want you to think!

I am making a clarion call for all music educators, music students, and music parents to stand up and demand that music programs are equally, properly funded, and supported. I want students and parents to become music educator evangelists! Go back to your board of education meetings and tell them how your All-State experience impacted your life! Go back to your administrators and let the know what music education has meant to you! And if you hear about a music program in a community that is not being funded or about to be cut, stand with those parents and students and demand a music education for all! It is not enough for you to have this experience, but what about your neighbors? They deserve it too!

Thank you for all you do!

Past President's Message

Patrick O'Keefe Absegami High School patrickaokeefe[at]gmail.com

As I finish the final months of my past presidency and run of 8 years on the executive board, I felt compelled to write a final note of thanks. The opportunity to serve as president of the region, and subsequently the state, has afforded me the chance to meet and work with so many inspiring educators and students, something for which I am extremely grateful.

I was 27 when I first came onto the executive board as SJBODA president and was so in awe of the multitude of things our organization was doing at the time. I had attended the conference, and had students participate in honors ensembles, but that was about the extent of my dealings with and understanding of NJMEA’s function. Granted, I was a young teacher and didn’t know what I didn’t know, but to see the advocacy, professional development, and collaboration with higher education, administrators, and retired members was a lot to realize. There were so many passionate volunteers working behind the scenes to provide experiences for teachers and students. This is what professional service was.

Fast forward eight years, so much has changed and come to fruition. The conference was reimagined and made the move to Atlantic City, we navigated personnel changes from editor to executive director, new partnerships were forged, programs like mentorship were piloted, the Crescendo Foundation found its legs, and that doesn’t speak to the day to day operations. No strategic plan could have prepared the board or myself for the biggest challenge of all, navigating the organization through a global pandemic. All of these things happen because of volunteers and passionate educators. Of course I’m biased, but our profession is unlike any other, full of people who are working tirelessly, both in their own schools and beyond, on behalf of what is best for their kids.

There is no role too small, and I implore everyone to get involved. Try something new. Don’t do things just because those are things we’ve always done - propose an idea, make a new partnership, start a conversation about

what could be. Manage an ensemble, present a session, chaperone an All State group. Maybe you were regularly involved at that start of your career, don’t be afraid to come back and see what’s new. Sure a PD certificate is nice, but the people that you meet, networks you fall into and ideas that come out of conversations are the real value.

I would have never been involved myself if not for the people that came before me, asking and encouraging me to do things. Really? You want me to conduct what group? Wait, you want me to think about being president? In most cases, it is that one on one contact that gives people the confidence to try things they never would otherwise. If you see that in a colleague, encourage them - say their name!

Thank you to my earliest professional mentors and friends in this service arena - Anthony Scardino, Joe Jacobs, Phil Senseney - volunteering me for things that changed the course of my professional life. Thank you to Jeff Santoro for being a mentor and friend. Thank you both Debbie Sfraga and Bill McDevitt for not only helping me, but all that you have done and continue to do for others. Many of us never know the impact we have on someone until they can look back and realize that one conversation, or one comment, started a domino effect that created a world of change. Thank you to the many board members and volunteers that have shown me the way, taught me life lessons and helped me to be a better leader and person. We all do the best with what we have at any given moment, and that has so much value.

Enjoy the rest of the school year and summer. I hope to see you at a concert or conference in the future, thank you for all you do.

Patrick

Executive Director's Message

William McDevitt wmcdevittnjmea[at]gmail.com

The 2022-2023 school year has been an amazing growth year for NJMEA. The post-Covid rebound has been realized by all of the states in the country and we are well on our way to a return to normalcy.

This year, we returned to our full slate of activities with great successes. Our All-State Ensembles, Festivals, and member Professional Development opportities saw preCovid attendance numbers and should continue to grow as our classroom continue to grow.

I would like to take some space here to recap the 2023 NJMEA February Conference and some of the concerns that arise in the annual post-conference survey. We administer a survey every year to gain a general idea of how we did and where we need to go. Please rememebr that we read every comment and discuss them, and try to address concerns where we are able.

I have had the opportunity to travel to several other neighboring states to see how we rate in regards to what we offer. I am very proud to say that we offer more PD sessions at our conference than almost every other state in the country. Our NAfME President Scott Sheehan also commented about how far we are compared to other states when it comrs to offereing a diversity of topics in our PD sessions. Based on survey data, there are a few areas that we would like to target for future growth:

1) Student Performances - As you surely know, many schools are not allowing student groups to travel yet. There are still concerns that are beyond our ability to address. We are looking at ways to address those issues.

2) Exhibits - Almost every state has seen a decline in exhibitor participation this year. There are several factors, the most obvious being the economy. Additionally, the large companies that used to purchase booths are not longer following that model. They are expecting their distributers to do it for them. That means that instrument manufacturers and music publishers are expecting your local dealer to buy a booth and sell their products.

There are some other topics that appear in the survey that are intersting for discussion:

1) Why are we in Atlantic City? This continues to be a question that we continue to answer, but I will do so again. When we moved away from East Brunswick, it was in response to the feedback that we were continuing to receive in our surveys: It's too crowded, there's no parking, there's no place to eat. We looked for a location that addressed those issues. The only place that did so was Atlantic City. We knew that the move would bring about other issues, but we moved to address the concerns that were presented at the time.

2) Where are the ______ sessions? You can fill in the blank here. The sessions that are presented are submitted by the presenters. The only ones that we solicit are the ones that appear in the Thursday Academies. If you are interested in a specific presenter, you can always contact them and ask them to submit a session proposal. If your blank was filled with the word "choral", then it's a different topic. This year, the ACDA National Conference happened on the same weekend as our conference. Our conference has happened on the same weekend (immediately following President's Weekend) for as long as I can remember. We have no control over ACDA and their scheduling. I'm sure that the choral sessions will be back next year.

3) It's too far to travel and costs too much! I challenge you to look at other professions and see what they do. I also challenge you to look at other state MEA's and see what they offer for a three-day conference. You can do google searches and find information on their conferences. Most of them do not have a location in the center of their state and most do not offer what we do in a three-day conference.

As we continue to read through and discuss your responses, please feel free to contact me with your thoughts and ideas!

2023 NJMEA CONFERENCE HIGHLIGHTS

NJMEA DISTINGUISHED SERVICE AWARD

Deb Knisely has served at both the state and region level in numerous capacities for decades, supporting students and colleagues during her time as band director at Cinnaminson High School. She has not only filled leadership roles, such as SJBODA President and All-State Auditions Chair, but has lent her support anywhere it was ever needed. Hosting, conducting, managing, facilitating equipment moves, Deb has impacted countless students through their experiences with our organization and we are grateful for her service. We are in a better place because of her work.

NJMEA OUTSTANDING SCHOOL BOARD AWARD

The Roxbury Board of Education continues to support the application for Choice District for the Performing Arts status and maintians the district's position as a leader in performing arts education. The Board supports vertical staffing across grades and schools to allow for depth of instruction and individual attention. The Board recently approved the standardization of music classes across the K-12 buildings and approved the Orff-based methodology as well as the resources needed for the required instrumentarium. During Covid, the Board approved the purchase of resources such as singing masks and instrument covers to allow continued music making.

NFHS OUTSTANDING TEACHER AWARD

The National Federation of High School Associations recognizes individuals in each state that go above and beyond their regular duties to support students outside of the classroom by creating opportunities and seeking experiences through particiaption and performance in extra-curriculars. This year, New Jersey's recipient is Kason Jackson, from Carteret High School, who is a strong advocate for his students in his role as choir director. His ensembles have performed at the NJMEA Conference as well as ACDA Festivals.

The Crescendo Foundation is a Not For Profit Corporation initially formed by leadership of the New Jersey Music Educators Association, who serves as the registered agent. The Association’s mission includes the advancement of music instruction in New Jersey’s educational institutions at all levels that provide in-service and enrichment opportunities for music educators, as well as sponsoring various festivals and All-State performing groups for K-12 students. As a result, the Foundation’s goal is to provide financial support to underserved students and communities to create access to the aforementioned festivals and performing groups. In this first phase of giving, funds will go to a scholarship model geared towards students aspiring to participate in All-State ensembles.

The Scholarship Framework

Through data assessment, it has been identified that All-State ensemble participation is not reflective of statewide total population demographics when comparing race and socio-economic status. The scholarship opportunities from the Crescendo Foundation gifts will allow students to apply for financial support to assist with any or all of the fees associated with participation including:

• Audition Fee - $25

• Participation Fee - $35

• Housing - $315

As part of the All-State experience and upon acceptance, students are housed together throughout the performance weekend. Scholarship opportunities would be available to cover the entire cost of this invaluable experience. In subsidizing these costs for qualified students and easing the burden of financial access, it is the hope of the Foundation that our All-State programming will become more inclusive, diverse and equitable.

We Need Your Help

We acknowledge that the Foundation’s ability to realize the plans outlined in the Scholarship program will require the generous support of the community. The initial phase of the program will require $50,000 which aims to assist 150 students over the course of the next three years in the areas of All-State Orchestra, Choir, Band and Jazz. All-State ensembles contribute to a total of 6 concerts annually in both Atlantic City and Newark. The vision for the Foundation is to eventually go beyond the scope of All-State ensembles to positively support several aspects of music education programming both at the State and Region levels, making this an important first step. All gifts are tax deductible and there are many ways and opportunities to support this important effort. We thank you in advance for your support of our state’s students and providing transformative experiences outside of their school programs.

Giving Opportunities

Large Ensemble Concert Sponsorship - $5,000

• All State Orchestra and Mixed Chorus, Atlantic City

• All State Orchestra and Mixed Chorus, New Jersey Performing Arts Center, Newark

• All State Symphonic Band, Wind Ensemble and Treble Chorus, Atlantic City

• All State Symphonic Band, Wind Ensemble and Treble Chorus, NJPAC, Newark

Concert Sponsorship - $2,500

• All State Jazz, Atlantic City

• All State Jazz, New Jersey Performing Arts Center, Newark

Crescendo Giving Level - $1,000

Sforzando Giving Level - $500

Arts Advocate - $250

Friends of the Arts - $100

Other $_____________

All gifts and giving levels will be recognized in programs for that school year and program cycle, including concerts listed above, as well as NJMEA conference materials.

All gifts are tax deductible. Checks should be made payable and sent to:

The Crescendo Foundation

300 W Somerdale Road, Suite C

Voorhees, NJ 08043-2236

Please include contact information and appropriate name listing for program printing.

News From the Board of Directors

Choral Festivals

Donna Marie Berchtold firesongwed[at]gmail.com

NJMEA sponsors two Middle School Choral Festivals. We are extremely happy to once again be able to see our young musicians in person! The first event was held at Rowan University on March 16, 2023. The festival scheduled for Rutgers University will be held on Tuesday, May 23, 2023. Each event features middle school – junior high choral groups ranging from grade 5 – 9.

Those choirs which participated at Rowan University were from the following schools: William Davies Middle School, Buena Regional Middle School, Monroe Township Middle School, West Deptford Middle School, Collingswood Middle School, Greenbrook Middle School, Township of Ocean Intermediate School, and Assumption Regional Catholic School.

The adjudicators for that event were: Vanessa Bond, Associate Professor and Coordinator of Graduate Music Education at Rowan University in Glassboro, NJ, and Charles Bass, composer, publisher, and Retired Choral Director, Oakcrest High School, Mays Landing, NJ. The Hosts were Dr. Rick Dammers, Dean of the College of Performing Arts and Dr. Chris Thomas, Associate Professor and Director of Choral Activities at Rowan University.

The program for the NJMEA Choral Festival at Rutgers is still being developed for the event to take place on May 23rd. At the time of this writing, there is one available slot for a school to participate. There will be two adjudicators at the Rutgers Festival. We thank Judith Nicosia, Associate Professor of Music at the Mason Gross School of the Arts, and Dr. Brandon Williams, Assistant Professor of choral music, and choral music education at the Mason Gross School of the Arts who are serving as Hosts for the ev ent.

The coordinators for both Festival events are: Donna Marie Berchtold, NJMEA Choral Festivals Chairperson, (Retired) from the Hamilton Twp. School District (Atlantic County), Mays Landing, and Karen Blumenthal, Von E. Mauger Middle School, Middlesex.

At the Festivals, each participating choral group receives written and aural evaluations by the adjudicators, along with a plaq ue from NJMEA which recognizes the commitment and involvement by the school, its chorus, and the director(s). Any schools interested i n participating in the Middle School – Jr. High Choral Festival(s) next year, should be sure to complete the application form fou nd in the January 2024 issue of TEMPO magazine, or online at www.njmea.org.

For more information, contact Donna Marie at: firesongwed[at]gmail.com, 609-226-7751 or Karen Blumenthal, Von E. Mauger Middle School at: blumenthalk[at]middlesex.k12.nj.us , 908.581.5053

OPERA FESTIVAL

Currently, the Opera Festival is going through a redevelopment stage with a small team of excellent volunteers who are rebranding the program to become more inclusive and accessible to more students. There is an anticipation for the Opera Festival to take place in early November 2023. However, we would like to send out a survey to see if this is of interest to students and teachers across the state. Please send your contact information if you are interested in having more details regarding sending students. We will also be looking for educators to assist with the programming.

Email: Donna Marie Berchtold, firesongwed[at]gmail.com (put Opera Fest in the Subject line)

NJMEA OPERA FESTIVAL SURVEY

The Opera Festival Committee has developed a survey to determine the needs of our membership as it pertains to the festival. Please use the following link to complete the survey: https://njmea.org/festivals/opera-festival/

News From the Board of Directors

Choral Performance

Brian Williams

firesongwed[at]gmail.com

The All-State Treble Chorus had a successful set of concerts under the tutelage of New Jersey’s own Argine Safari in February. This year the all-state ensembles had the opportunity to perform at the convention for the first time, and we hope to keep this concert in the future and turn it into a staple of the convention. Our choristers, in addition to spending the weekend rehearsing for the concerts, were given the opportunity to have a special workshop with the featured group of the weekend, Naturally7. In addition to performing a bit and listening to the treble choir, they also worked on exercises that stressed to our students the importance of honing one’s ear.

On behalf of the entire choral procedures committee, we want to extend our gratitude to Argine Safari for the wonderful experie nce she afforded the students lucky enough to sing under her. We’d also like to thank Alex Minter & Thomas Schreck for managing the choir, Joe Cantaffa for not only running a smooth show but also adding in an additional performance from scratch, Nancy Dickins on for her wizardry in rooming and coordination, and James Lubrano for rehearsing with and performing alongside the choir on piano . Thank you to all of the members that helped by chaperoning, we cannot stress how instrumental you all are in making this possible for these young musicians. Finally, we’d like to thank William McDevitt and Wayne Mallette for their help and guidance throughout the process.

At the convention in February, we had a very productive open choral procedures meeting where some strong ideas were suggested and will be implemented to make everyone’s experience better. Things most impactful to our teachers: we are working on revampin g how we collect student and teacher information, creating a uniform process in communications and procedures between both our choral ensembles, and revamping our njmea.org website to be a one stop shop for all information all-state. Thank you to everyon e who came out to our session!

PreK - 8 General Music Amy Burns aburns[at]fhcds.org

The elementary sessions shined at our recent February conference. We had our amazing featured presenters of Franklin Willis and NJ Master Music Teacher recipient, Dr. Missy Strong, for the Thursday Elementary Academy. Plus, we had fantastic elementary sessions and presenters over the three days of the conference. I want to make sure that elementary general music continues to be represented at our annual conference, as well as throughout the year. If you have suggestions for presenters or sessions or articles, please let me know.

News From the Board of Directors

Inclusion/Diversity/Equity/Access

Katy Brodhead Cullen

njmea.idea[at]gmail.com

As we begin to close out the 2022-2023 school year, the IDEA Committee is looking forward to the inaugural Student Leadership Conference planned for Fall 2023. This will be a one-day event filled with workshops and performances for music students in grades 9-12 from across New Jersey. The emphasis of the conference will be to provide opportunities for high school students to develop leadership skills and explore music-making outside of band, orchestra, and choir (for instance, Modern Band, Chamber Ensembles, West African Drumming, Electronic Music, etc.). Specific information on the date, location, and registration will be shared through TEMPO Express.

This year, the IDEA Committee held professional development workshops on selecting and teaching diverse musical works. We will continue to share resources on this topic and look forward to hosting additional IDEA workshops in the future. Moreover, we are excited to announce that a collegiate representative has been added to the committee to ensure that the perspectives and experiences of pre-service educators are included in our work. Email njmea.idea[at]gmail.com to learn more about our various initiatives or join our team!

Wishing you a wonderful spring and summer!

K-12 Ed Tech and Innovation

Shawna

Longo

shawnalongo[at]gmail.com

Please consider participating in the 2023 NJMEA Music Technology Expo! This year's expo will feature two Expos - divided regionally by state as North and South. The South Expo will be held at Rowan University on May 19 and The North Expo will be held at Montclair State University on May 24. These amazing facilities will allow our student composers, producers and songwriters to present their work in an inspiring space that will provide an incredible culminating experience for all of our student technologists. Your students will have the opportunity to:

- Observe a live recording session with audio engineers

- Participate in workshops that teach them how music technology is leveraged throughout a professional creative studio

- Engage in an immersive Jam Room

- Present and have their work adjudicated by leaders in our local and national music industry

- Connect with other student musicians from across NJ

Our planning committee this year has really worked hard to ensure all of your students have an environment that values and celebrates music creation across all genres & presentation mediums. We truly hope to see you at the event and cannot wait to hear some of your students' work!

The registration deadline for the event was March 7th, but as a teacher you can still attend and earn PD hours! Please note that this festival is most appropriate for grades 6-12, but any students are welcome to attend whether they are submitting work or not. Please go to the NJMEA website for more information under the "festivals" tab.

NJ ALL-STATE CHORUS CONDUCTORS NEEDED

The New Jersey Choral Conductor Selection Committee is in the process of choosing conductors for the 2024 Mixed Chorus and the 2025 Treble Chorus. Why not make this the year you submit your application?

CONDUCTOR SELECTION: NJ ALL-STATE CHORUSES

Who is eligible? Current NAfME members in good standing. New Jersey Choral Educators. What is required?

Submit one video of your choral conducting of THREE selections - not to exceed 12 minutes - (please see below for required selections - include a list of these selections), a proposed program not to exceed 30 minutes of music, your resume, and a letter of intent which states why you feel you are the best candidate for this position. Please indicate the group for which you would like to be considered.

Where do I send my materials?

Submit your documents and video at: https://forms.gle/MrCngdmsSQ53tjjV8

What is the due date?

January 15th, 2024

Email Brian Williams at BrianWilliamsEmail@gmail.com if you are having trouble.

What happens next? The Conductor Selection Committee will review the submitted materials. Once the videos have been reviewed, all paperwork is read and assessed. The rubrics are collected, scores tallied and the lowest score is chosen. We use the same numeric scoring system as in the NJ All-State Chorus auditions.

The chairperson does not participate in the scoring, but acts to organize the packets, give process direction to the committee members and provides the results to the Choral Procedures Committee. The chairperson does not share any information regarding the materials submitted and the panel is requested to keep their reviews confidential. To date, this system has worked with great success.

A WORD ABOUT THE MATERIALS YOU SUBMIT

*You must submit one selection from the NJ-ACDA high school required repertoire list. (Below is the link to the list.)

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1e6f8GGUg05z7z6RehQjDUnYXhz8adA56t7dzuNtWku4/htmlview?pli=1

*Second piece - from your school repertoire, your school group.

*Third piece – your choice – any ensemble. (Region, County, Honors)

The required piece and the second piece MUST be your school ensemble. Your conducting must be visible throughout the recording.

If you wish to be considered as the Mixed Chorus conductor, your 3 pieces should demonstrate Mixed Chorus repertoire.

If you wish to be considered as the Treble Chorus conductor, your 3 pieces should demonstrate Treble Chorus repertoire.

Please use your best judgment when submitting materials for consideration. Ask colleagues to review your work. Bring in all kinds of people to give you feedback! Consult the All-State conductors who have gone before you for critique and advice. Remember that we are looking for a conductor, so it does not work to your advantage if your video does not include considerable evidence of your conducting! The panel cannot assess your conducting if your group is filmed from the rear of an auditorium and all that is seen is your back! You may submit work representative of different ensembles in your school, but NO MORE THAN THREE selections.

Good Luck!!! We look forward to hearing from you.

News From the Board of Directors

Orchestra Performance/Festivals

Susan Meuse

susanmeuse[at]gmail.com

The Orchestra Procedures Committee would like to Congratulate all of the students selected to participate in the 2023 All State Orchestras and All State Intermediate Orchestra. We would like to thank Auditions Chair, Sue Mark for all of her hard work. Her attention to detail allows everything to run smoothly. Thank you also to Arvin Gopal for assisting in the preparation for the auditions. We would also like to thank Brian Verdi, Justin Lee and the parents and students of JP Stevens High School in Edison for hosting. Of course the events would not take place without the effort of all of the directors involved. The Procedures Committee has selected the solo/excerpt list and scales for the auditions next year. Look for the requirements in this issue of TEMPO! and the NJMEA website.

Right now, the All State Intermediate Orchestra is working hard to prepare for their concert on Saturday, May 13. Colin Oettle (West WindsorPlainsboro HS North) will be conducting and hosting the performance. I encourage everyone to attend this performance to hear these talented students.

The All State Orchestra will begin rehearsing in June. The conductor bio and program will be in the next TEMPO! As always, if you are interested in getting involved with the All State Orchestras, please feel free to email me or stop by a rehearsal.

I am pleased to say that we had three successful NJMEA orchestra festivals this year. For more information and photos, see the article in this issue of Tempo! Look for information about the 2024 festivals in the next issue.

Retired Members/Mentorship

Kathleen Spadafino

kspadeb[at]aol.com

Our retired members had a great time at the NJMEA conference in Atlantic City! A record number of us enjoyed a breakfast meeting where our current NJMEA president Wayne Mallette and incoming president David Westawski talked with us about new ideas for NJMEA moving forward. NJRMEA will be more involved with the mentorship program as well as our observations of Master Music Teacher nominees. Our president Ron Dolce and myself were honored to present the Master Music Teacher 2023 award to Dr. Missy Strong, who gave an impassioned acceptance speech at the general membership meeting following our breakfast. We will be sending out reminder emails and also a TEMPO express as date approach. Please join us!

Special Learners

Maureen Butler

maureenbutlermusic[at]gmail.com

Congratulations on nearing the end of another school year! After we have a chance to catch our collective breaths, the summer presents a great opportunity for reflection and renewal. Let’s consider how our special learners fared this year, and how we can better address their needs next year. NAfME has many informative recorded webinars that can be accessed at the website; they can be easily viewed in short time spans as your summer schedule allows. You could also check out the Facebook Special Learners and Music group, where music teachers are sharing questions, ideas, and news of upcoming conferences. As always, you are welcome to reach out to me and the Special Learners committee with your concerns. Collaborating with each other is a sure way to success!

2023-2024 All-State Orchestra High School Audition Requirements

All scales are to be memorized. Please no vibrato. Judges/Audition Chair will select which scale(s) is/are to be played. A metronome tempo will be given before each scale. Students will not receive extra points for additional octaves or a faster tempo. Do not repeat tonic within the scale. Repeating highest note is acceptable.

VIOLIN

All 12 major scales (C, G, D, A, E, B, F#, Db, Ab, Eb, Bb, F)

3 octaves, 8 slurred to a bow as 8th notes, with the quarter note = 120mm

D Melodic minor E Melodic minor F# Melodic Minor

The 3 minor scales above must be played in the following manner:

3 octaves separate bows as quarter notes with the quarter note = 120mm

VIOLA-CELLO

All 12 major scales (C, G, D, A, E, B, F#, Db, Ab, Eb, Bb, F)

3 octaves, 8 slurred to a bow as 8th notes, with the quarter note = 120mm

G Melodic minor A Melodic minor C# Melodic Minor

The 3 minor scales above must be played in the following manner:

3 octaves separate bows as quarter notes with the quarter note = 120mm

BASS

All 12 major scales (C, G, D, A, E, B, F#, Db, Ab, Eb, Bb, F)

2 octaves*, 4 slurred to a bow as 8th notes with the quarter note = 120mm

G Melodic minor F Melodic minor C# Melodic Minor

The 3 minor scales above must be played in the following manner:

2 octaves* separate bows as quarter notes with the quarter note = 120mm

*No octave drop.

REQUIRED EXCERPTS:

Instrument Composer Title

VIOLIN Brahms Symphony No. 4

Movement(s)

Mvt. 3 - Beginning to Reh C

Schubert Symphony No. 2 Mvt. 1 - mm. 11-64

VIOLA Brahms Symphony No. 4 Mvt. 3 - Beginning to mm. 44

Shostakovich Symphony No. 5 Mvt. 1 - Reh. 15-17

CELLO Puccini Tosca Act 3, Largo (Reh. 7-9, top part)

Beethoven Symphony No. 3 (Eroica) Mvt. 4 - mm. 44-77, top part

BASS Britten Young Person's Guide to the Orchestra Reh. H - I

Shostakovich Symphony No. 5

Mvt. 1 - Reh 23 to end of excerpt

2023 - 2024 All-State Intermediate Orchestra Audition Requirements

All scales are to be memorized. Please no vibrato. Judges/Audition Chair will select which scale(s) is/are to be played. A metronome tempo will be given before each scale. Students will not receive extra points for additional octaves or a faster tempo. Do not repeat tonic within the scale. Repeating highest note is acceptable.

VIOLIN

9 Major scales:

D, Eb, E, F in 2 octaves; G, Ab, A, Bb, C in 3 octaves

Separate Bows: each note will be played as a quarter note with the quarter note = 104mm.

Slurred Bows: 8 notes slurred to a bow, as 8th notes, with the quarter note = 104mm.

VIOLA

9 major scales:

G, Ab, A, Bb, in 2 octaves; C, D, Eb, E, F in 3 octaves

Separate Bows: each note will be played as a quarter note with the quarter note = 104mm.

Slurred Bows: 8 notes slurred to a bow, as 8th notes, with the quarter note = 104mm.

CELLO

9 major scales:

G, Ab, A, Bb, in 2 octaves; C, D, Eb, E, F in 3 octaves

Separate Bows: each note will be played as a quarter note with the quarter note = 104mm.

Slurred Bows: 8 notes slurred to a bow, as 8th notes, with the quarter note = 104mm.

BASS

9 major scales:

G, E, F, Ab, in 2 octaves*; A, Bb, C, D, Eb in 1 octave*

Separate Bows: each note will be played as a quarter note with the quarter note = 84mm.

Slurred Bows: 4 notes slurred to a bow, as 8th notes, with the quarter note = 84mm.

*No octave drop.

REQUIRED SOLO:

Instrument Composer Title

Movement(s)

Edition

VIOLIN Veracini Sonata in e minor, Op. 2, No. 8 Allegro (con Fuoco) NOT Gavotte Allegro Any

VIOLA Marais Old French Dances La Provencale and La Basque Suzuki Book 5

CELLO Squire Dance Rustique All Fischer

BASS Simandl, Franz Simandl 30 Etudes for Double Bass Etude 6

International

2023-2024

ALL STATE BAND SOLO LIST

Instrument Solo Composer Publisher

Piccolo Sonata in a minor, mvts 3 & 4

Bach Hal Leonard HL50334590 (from Sonatas for Flute and Piano Vol. 1)

Flute Concerto in G, mvts 1 & 2

Oboe Sonata

English Horn* Sonate, mvt 1

Eb Clarinet* Sarabande and Gigue

Bb Clarinet Concertino, Op. 26

Eb Alto Clarinet* Sonata No. 6

Bb Bass Clarinet Andante & Allegro

Contra Clarinet* Sonata No. 6

Bassoon Concerto, mvts 1 & 2

Bb Sop. Sax* Fantasie-Pastorale

Eb Alto Sax Tableau de Provence, mvts 1 & 4

Bb Tenor Sax Solo de Concert

Eb Bari Sax Sonata, mvts 3 & 4

Bb Trumpet Sonata

Horn Villanelle (from Solos for Horn Player)

Trombone Andante & Allegro

Bass Trombone* Sonata, mvts 2 & 3

Mozart Kalmus K03723

Saint-Saens Hal Leonard HL50565974

Hindemith EurAm/Schott ED3672

Corelli Hal Leonard HL04476869

vonWeber Carl Fischer W1893

Vivaldi Barnhouse 083-0092-13

Desportes Southern Music SS148

Vivaldi Barnhouse 083-0092-13

Mozart/Weisberg International 2161

Demersseman

Ethos Publications

Maurice Hanry Lemoine HL23953

Singelee Hal Leonard 04477549

Caravan Ethos Publications

Kennan Alfred TS0026

Dukas/Jones Schirmer/Hal Leonard HL50330050

Barat Southern SS361

McCarty Ensemble Publications ENS014

Euphonium Sonata in G Telemann/Roselle Cimmarron CM0809

Tuba Suite for Tuba Haddad Shawnee Press LA0066

Harp* Chanson dans la Nuit (from Method for Harp) Lawrence/Salzedo Lyra Music/Hal Leonard HL50328070

Piano* Waltz in Eb, Op. 18

Timpani 4 Drum Etudes, #2 & #3: pgs 29-32

Chopin G. Henle Verlag HN131

Fink Studio 4 Music (from Musical Etudes for the Advanced Timpanist)

Mallets Rain Dance Gomez/Rife Southern ST695

Battery Percussion

Snare Etude No. 2 from 12 Studies for the Drum Delecluse Leduc AL23410

Keyboard Polonaise Whaley Meredith Music (from Musical Studies for the Int Mallet Player)

*Instruments will be used as needed.

Maintianing Interest in a Multi-Year Ensemble Course

Brian Williams NJMEA Choral Performance Chair Robbinsville High School

williams.brian[at]robbinsville.k12.nj.us

Ensembles at the high school level are usually an anomaly in the eyes of non-musicians: students from freshman to seniors all take the class for (hopefully) multiple years in a row. One of the scariest things about taking over a high school job is grappling with how to maintain interest in the ensemble for your high achieving students while also teaching and developing your younger musicians. Breakout and select ensembles are always a great way to cater to your more advanced students, but ultimately do not provide a space for older students who may not be able to dedicate the amount of time required to be in the top ensemble. In this article, I plan to explore the reasons my older students stay in my non-select ensembles. While I am focused on the choral classroom, this can be applied to any ensemble course with a few adjustments.

The most important way to retain these students is to show them that they are a valued part of the ensemble. By the time my upperclassmen are taking my concert choir classes they are helping to teach the underclassmen, instructing them in how to practice, how to blend, how to decipher solfege, and bringing them in on all of their inside jokes. These bonds that are formed help create the community that keeps my choral program alive and provides an ever changing curriculum. Instead of just being responsible for learning the music, these older students are then tasked with being section leaders, keeping track of the younger musicians, and keeping the choral program running as a whole. Each ensemble is different, but these are some of the strategies that I have found successful in keeping singers over their years in the ensemble that may not be auditioning for your select group.

Leadership in your ensembles can either make or break the experience for younger students. Part of what makes engaging in music so exciting is the relationships you build with your fellow musicians. The same works in the highschool atmosphere, but if your leaders make less experienced musicians feel like they are detracting from the group, it can quickly make these students feel like their presence is not required to make the ensemble work. I want my leaders to be competent and capable musicians, but I will always select a warm and welcoming student to lead a sectional over the best musician (though it’s a bonus if you have both). With a couple years of selecting personable leaders, you’ll quickly notice the ruthlessness will diminish and your students should become

more welcoming to newcomers. One of the things that surprised me the most with this concept of leading with love was the fact that the struggling freshmen that I would expect to drop after their first year commonly ends up becoming one of my stronger singers by the time they are juniors.

We all start the year with fun games, ice breakers, and meaningful discussions, but they can be thrown to the wayside once rehearsing for concerts begins. I am lucky enough to have space where I can break my ensemble into sectionals, and on the days that I cannot utilize my practice room space, I push kids into different corners of the room. There’s lots of pedagogical reasons why having students learn music in sectionals is beneficial, but I want to highlight one of my favorite reasons I utilize it so much. Once the kids learn their part and are comfortable coming back, I expect them to be kids and goof off, make jokes, tell stories, and bond in general. Each section in this way becomes a subgroup of the cult that is choir, with their own call signs, inside jokes, and group chats. I have an entire soprano section in one of my classes that is taken care of by the “choir mom” of their class, who helps keep everyone in order and takes care of those who aren’t feeling well. These bonds and connections wouldn’t have happened if they weren’t allowed to create them during class time budgeted for it. In this way, my student leaders in each section understand that I trust them to complete the task they are given each sectional, but then it is up to them. I have had sections come back not ready, in which case the next time I pop in more frequently and keep them on task. The lesson is quickly learned: if we can do this ourselves, we can do it our way.

This leads wonderfully into my next point: students need to feel like they have autonomy in the choral ensemble. Yes, there is a director present that leads the ensemble in concerts, repertoire selection, and large picture things. But there are aspects in which can be given over to students to run in which they will feel heard. I know of programs that will allow students to vote on one piece of music for each concert, a small gesture in making students feel like their voices are heard, but that’s not enough. There will be days where I let the older students run a warmup, open class in a nontraditional way, or even take over a portion of the rehearsal when they can make a difference (a common one being a reminder of

the shadow vowel after “wave” in the Star Spangled Banner). Additionally, I have leadership positions on my “choir board” that are voted on by students at the end of every year that affects how the ensemble runs on the fringes. Here are a few of the positions and what they have done to give you an idea as to what is on the line:

• Historian: Takes information from all graduating choir members and creates a mural to be hung in the classroom at the end of the year. It is wonderful for students to come in and see a wall with names, faces, and stories of the students who have grown up in the choir going into all different fields of study.

• Choir Angel: Creates google forms for students to fill out complimenting a fellow choir member anonymously. This idea stems directly from Dr. Quist’s notes of affirmation, students love getting an email with compliments from their peers and classmates and makes them feel like they are a part of something bigger than themselves.

• Event Planner: Works with student leaders and kids in each class to throw “choir fiestas” after school once or twice a semester. They organize people to bring in food, plan a cute game or discussion topic (the early year one for new stu-

These positions all ultimately report to me, but as long as they are not going wayward they function at their own pace. They help round out this community we have built, they give something for high achievers to put on their resumes, and it ultimately reminds them they belong in the ensemble. I run after school rehearsals on Thursdays for students to come get help, and it’s a common occurrence for my upperclassmen to take younger students under their wings to help them catch up to speed.

Maintaining interest in an ensemble for four years is a difficult task, but I assert that promoting empathetic leadership, meaningful bonding, and some autonomy lay the groundwork for a strong upperclassmen presence. These ideas also have the benefit of not requiring hours of your time, instead placing the “burdon” on the students in your ensemble looking for something a little more than just learning the same type of music they learned freshmen year. You will always lose kids as they get older and their priorities are becoming clearer as they are about to leave high school: but our goal is to make sure we provide an opportunity for all levels of our older students without it becoming a redundant task. I hope this article is helpful to anyone looking at their retention trends. Have a wonderful summer and good luck in preparing for next year!

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Five Tech Tips to Assist Elementary Music Educators with Digital Manipulatives

Amy M. Burns Far Hills Country School

One of the critical aspects of our elementary music teaching scenarios is creating or using visual manipulatives to assist in teaching musical concepts, displaying visuals, teaching to multiple modalities, and so much more. Since 2020, many music educators have created and utilized digital resources and manipulatives in their classrooms. As we have developed and used these resources, we have come up against some challenges. Here are five tech tips to assist with creating digital manipulatives or trying to overcome some obstacles, or some tools that can assist you when needed.

1. Mirror a YouTube Video

This tip came up when we were preparing for the NJMEA Conference. We were thrilled to be able to feature Dr. Missy Strong and Franklin Willis as our featured presenters for the Elementary Academy. Franklin has become a very popular presenter for many reasons from his teaching methods to his fabulous digital resources. One of his most popular videos is the Rhythm Stick Line Dance. The challenge with the video is that it is not mirrored. When he goes to the right, the students watching and participating in the classroom are going to their left. There a few solutions to making the video mirrored so that the students participating will go in the same direction. Here are two:

a. Mirrorthevideo.com: I thank Becki Tarby for this tip. In the YouTube URL of the video that you would like to mirror, delete the “youtube” and replace it with “mirrorthevideo.” This will create a mirrored video in the tab that you can use at any time (see figures 1, 2, and 3).

b. Clipchamp.com: Clipchamp has a free version and a paid subscription. It is an online, as well as desktop, video editing tool owned by Microsoft. Currently, the free version allows you to create 1080p(HD) videos with unlimited watermark-free logos, and gives you access to free audio, image, and video stock, as well as free filters and effects. If you have a video that needs to be mirrored, you can create a free account, then upload the video to Clipchamp, click on the video tools, and flip the video horizontally (see figure 4). When finished, you can export it to your hard drive, or share it to Google Drive, OneDrive, Dropbox, or LinkedIn, or upload to YouTube, send to TikTok, pin to Pinterest, embed with an HTML code, share to various apps, or create a link.

2. Presenting a YouTube video without comments/ads/etc.

There are many ways to do this. Here are a few:

a. Place YouTube videos in Google Slides: If you have access to Google Slides, you can place YouTube videos into the slides using the insert menu: Insert>Video then add the YouTube URL or type a description of the YouTube video into the search bar.

b. Create a Google Site: If you have access to Google Sites, you can create a Google Site and insert YouTube videos there to have them organized in one place. You can also share them with your students.

Figure 1: Mirror the video

Figure 2: Mirror the video

Figure 3: Mirror the video

Figure 4: Clipchanp.com

Figure 5: Wakelet.com

c. Wakelet.com: Similar to Google Sites, Wakelet gives you the opportunity to organize YouTube videos in various displays and collections so that you can share them, access them, etc., in one convenient place (see figure 5). The YouTube videos will also play within the app and not open up in YouTube unless you click on the YouTube logo. Wakelet is free.

d. Place “–“ between the “t” and “u” in the YouTube URL: Place a hyphen (–) between the “t” and “u” in the YouTube URL and then click return or enter, and the video will now appear full screen with no ads or comments and with a new URL so you can reuse it at any time (see figure 6). This does not work for all YouTube URLs.

b. Edit Image: Use the “BG Remover” tool to remove backgrounds from images and use the “Blur” tool to blur out students’ faces in videos and images.

c. Statue Cards: I always love the stick figure and the gif statue cards, but when I discovered Canva, I was able to create beautiful and inclusive statue cards by searching for dance poses in the pictures (see figure 7). If you want to add music, then when you begin, create an “Educational Video” instead of a presentation. Then choose the pictures you want to use and add the music. Since it is a video, the music will play throughout the video instead of just during one picture.

3. Removing Vocals or Separating Instrumental Tracks Using Vocalremover.org

Vocalremover.org was developed by Melnik Dmitry and is a free and powerful AI tool that can separate the voice from the music and create a karaoke track that can be downloaded. There is also the Splitter AI tool included to split music into separated parts with AI-Powered algorithms. The processing speed is fast and nicely accurate. It is a free tool so the site will let you know when you have used it often and ask you to come back another day or to donate to the site by becoming a patron. Melnik continues to add functions to the site such as the recent guitar splitter. It is an amazing tech tool.

4. Canva for Education (https://www.canva.com/education/)

I have written numerous articles and presented various sessions on how great of a “one stop shop” tool Canva is for music educators. If you teach K-12, you can set up a free Canva account with your school email address that will give you the pro version for free. Canva includes an extensive library of over 100+ million visual and audio assets, effects like blur and background remover, magic resize, 100 GB of storage, over 1000s of templates, and can integrate with many learning management systems. Here are three items that can be used immediately when working with Canva:

a. Programs: Use the “Tidy up” tool in the “Position” menu to help your programs align correctly and evenly.

7: Using Canva to create inclusive statue cards

5. Archive.org – Find Books Online for Free

There are times when I need a digital version of a children’s book so that the students can see it when displayed on the screen. For example, when I wanted to read Mortimer by Robert Munsch, I was able to create a free account and find it in archive.org. I then borrowed it for an hour on that day. To do this, I logged into archive.org and had it up on the screen. I then searched for Mortimer. Once I found it, I kept the tab open. During kindergarten music class, as the students were putting their instruments away, I clicked on the button to borrow it for the hour. It reloaded and was ready to go by the time the students sat down. Archive. org is an internet non-profit library of millions of free books, movies, software, music, websites, and more.

I hope that these tech tips are useful in your classroom, on the cart, or when you are creating digital manipulatives.

Figure 6: Place a hyphen between "t" and "u"

Figure

10+ Ways to Use ChatGPT in Music

Shawna Longo Durban Avenue School, Hopatcong, NJ

shawnalongo[at]gmail.com

You might be wondering what all the buzz is about ChatGPT!?!? Well, ChatGPT is a generative pre-trained transformer that launched in November 2022. Its core function is to mimic a human conversationalist. And although it quickly answers any question you input, you’ll want to fact check its responses as it isn’t fool-proof.

There are many uses of ChatGPT in your music classroom - for your students and for you as the teacher! I thought I’d give it a try and decided to try these 10 ideas. You’ll see that I’ve included exactly what I typed into ChatGPT as well as its response.

1) DISCUSSION PROMPT - I entered: “What is the history of the Star Spangled Banner?” It provided me with the following response:

The Star Spangled Banner is the national anthem of the United States of America. The history of the anthem dates back to the War of 1812, when the British attacked Fort McHenry in Baltimore, Maryland. The fort was defended by American troops, and Francis Scott Key, a young lawyer, witnessed the battle from a British ship where he was being held captive.

As the battle raged, Key watched anxiously to see if the American flag still flew over the fort. When the smoke cleared, he saw the flag was still there, and he was inspired to write a poem about the experience, which he called “Defence of Fort McHenry.”

The poem was later set to the tune of a popular English song called “To Anacreon in Heaven,” and became known as “The Star Spangled Banner.” The song quickly became popular, and was played at patriotic events across the country.

In 1916, President Woodrow Wilson signed an executive order designating “The Star Spangled Banner” as the national anthem of the United States, and it was officially recognized by Congress in 1931.

Today, “The Star Spangled Banner” is an important part of American culture, and is played at sporting events, political gatherings, and other occasions where patriotism is celebrated.

2) DISCUSSION PROMPT - I entered: Give me 10 questions related to “Lift Every Voice and Sing.”

1. Who wrote the lyrics to “Lift Every Voice and Sing?”

2. What is the history of “Lift Every Voice and Sing” and why was it written?

3. What is the significance of the title “Lift Every Voice and Sing?”

4. What year was “Lift Every Voice and Sing” first performed and where was it performed?

5. How many stanzas are in the original poem that “Lift Every Voice and Sing” is based on?

6. What is the musical composition of “Lift Every Voice and Sing” and who wrote it?

7. What inspired James Weldon Johnson to write the poem “Lift Every Voice and Sing?”

8. What role did “Lift Every Voice and Sing” play in the civil rights movement?

9. How has “Lift Every Voice and Sing” been incorporated into popular culture?

10. What are some of the alternate titles for “Lift Every Voice and Sing” and what do they mean?

**You’ll notice that I didn’t ask for the answers to the questions, so ChatGPT didn’t give them to me. If you ask for the questions and answers, you will receive them. Something to keep in mind when you use it!

3) STUDENT QUIZ - I entered: Give me 5 multiple choice questions with answers about anthems.

1) Which country’s anthem is “La Marseillaise?”

a) United Kingdom

b) France

c) Germany

d) Italy

Answer: b) France

2) Which continent has the most countries with a national anthem in a nonnative language?

a) Asia

b) Europe

c) Africa

d) North America

Answer: b) Europe

3) Which of these is not a verse in the Canadian national anthem “O Canada”?

a) “God keep our land glorious and free”

b) “True patriot love in all thy sons command”

c) “From far and wide, O Canada, we stand on guard for thee”

d) “O Canada, we sing our hearts to thee”

Answer: d) “O Canada, we sing our hearts to thee”

4) Which country has the oldest continuously used national anthem in the world?

a) France

b) United Kingdom

c) Spain

d) Japan

Answer: b) United Kingdom

5) Which anthem’s lyrics were originally a poem written in 1814 by Francis Scott Key?

a) “God Save the Queen/King”

b) “The Star-Spangled Banner”

c) “Deutschlandlied”

d) “Ode to Joy”

Answer: b) “The Star-Spangled Banner”

4) TEMPLATE FOR EMAIL RESPONSES - I entered: Write an email response to a parent regarding their child missing the spring concert

Subject: Your child’s absence from the Spring Concert

Dear [Parent Name],

I am writing to address your concerns about your child’s absence from our recent Spring Concert. I understand that you were disappointed that your child was unable to attend the concert, and I want to assure you that we share your disappointment.

As you may be aware, our Spring Concert is an important event for our school community, and we work hard to make sure that all of our students have the opportunity to participate. We encourage all students to attend and participate in the concert, as it is a chance for them to showcase their talents and to come together as a community to celebrate the end of the school year.

While we were disappointed that your child was unable to attend the concert, we understand that sometimes unforeseen circumstances can arise. Please know that we will do our best to keep you informed of any future events and performances, so that your child can participate and be part of the school community. Thank you for taking the time to share your concerns with us. We value your input and appreciate your continued support of our school and our programs.

Sincerely,

[Your Name]

**With this response, please note that it assumed that a parent/guardian emailed me first. Also, I didn’t say anything about how it affects the student’s grade, etc. so ChatGPT didn’t address that in the response. While I would probably not send this response out as is, it is a starting point to tailor it to fit your needs.

5) VOCABULARY - I entered: Give me 10 words to describe timbre.

1) Tone quality

2) Color

3) Character

4) Texture

5) Timber

6) Sound signature 7) Resonance 8) Warmth 9) Clarity 10) Brightness

**Notice I didn’t ask for the definitions, so it did not provide them to me. It also duplicated the word timbre, so I would definitely be editing this response. Remember to really think about what you truly need the ChatGPT to generate for you!

6) LESSON PLANS - I entered: Create a lesson plan using Chrome Music Lab Song Maker for Grade 1

Subject: Music

Grade Level: 1

Duration: 30 minutes

Objective: Students will use the Chrome Music Lab Song Maker to create a simple musical composition.

Materials:

• Chromebooks or desktop computers with internet access

• Headphones or speakers (optional)

Introduction (5 minutes):

1) Start the lesson by explaining that today, the students will be learning about music composition and creating their own songs.

2) Show the students the Chrome Music Lab website and briefly explain what it is and how it works.

3) Demonstrate how to use the Song Maker, including selecting instruments, adding notes, and adjusting tempo and volume.

Activity (20 minutes):

1) Divide the students into pairs or small groups.

2) Instruct the students to open Chrome Music Lab and navigate to the Song Maker.

3) Give the students time to experiment with the different features and instruments available.

4) Encourage the students to work collaboratively and share their ideas with their group members.

5) As the students work, walk around the room to offer guidance and answer any questions.

Closure (5 minutes):

1) Once the students have had sufficient time to create their songs, gather the class together.

2) Invite a few students to share their songs with the class.

3) Discuss the different instruments and sounds the students used, as well as the tempo and volume of their compositions.

4) Ask the class what they learned about music composition and if they enjoyed creating their own songs.

Assessment:

Assess the students based on their ability to use the Song Maker to create a simple musical composition as well as their ability to work collaboratively to share their ideas with their group members.

7) CREATE RUBRICS - I entered: Create a rubric to assess the Chrome Music Lab Song Maker Lesson.

**To save space in this article, I have chosen not to include the exact rubric that was generated. But, it included a table with 5 rows (creativity, collaboration, technical skill, presentation quality, and overall presentation) and 4 columns (3 points, 2 points, 1 points, 0 points) with a descriptor for each. I will say that the generated rubric was more subjective than I would like, but I didn’t give it many parameters. A better prompt would have created a more objective, quantifiable rubric.

8) SLIDE DECKS - Outline a slide deck then add in the visuals - I entered: Create content for a slide deck on Super Bowl performances.

Title Slide: Super Bowl Performances: The Best of the Best Slide 1: Introduction

• The Super Bowl is not only the biggest sporting event in the United States, but it’s also a platform for some of the most iconic performances in music history.

• From Michael Jackson to Beyonce, the halftime show has become an event all its own.

Slide 2: Michael Jackson (1993)

• Michael Jackson’s 1993 halftime performance set the standard for all future halftime shows.

• With over 133 million people tuning in, Jackson’s electrifying performance brought the world together and put the halftime show on the map.

Slide 3: Prince (2007)

• Prince’s 2007 performance was widely considered one the greatest in Super Bowl history.

• He played some of his greatest hits, including “Purple Rain,” during a driving rainstorm, creating a memorable moment that will never be forgotten.

Slide 4: Beyonce (2013)

• Beyonce’s 2013 halftime performance was a powerhouse show that featured a reunion with Destiny’s Child.

• Her high-energy set had fans buzzing for days, and she even managed to cause a brief power outage in the stadium.

Slide 5: Lady Gaga (2017)

• Lady Gaga’s 2017 halftime performance was a true spectacle.

• She started on the roof of the stadium and flew through the air while performing her biggest hits, including “Bad Romance” and “Poker Face.”

Slide 6: Jennifer Lopez and Shakira (2020)

• Jennifer Lopez and Shakira’s 2020 halftime performance was a celebration of Latinx culture and music.

• The show featured guest performances by J Balvin and Bad Bunny and was a true party from start to finish.

Slide 7: Conclusion

• The Super Bowl halftime show has become an iconic part of American culture, with some of the biggest names in music delivering unforgettable performances.

• From Michael Jackson to Beyonce and beyond, these performances have made a lasting impact on the world of music and entertainment.

**The beauty of ChatGPT is you can change whatever you want! You can swap out information as needed. This slide deck outline gives you a place to start. And, if you are happy with it, some simple copy/paste of the text, add a few images, and links to YouTube videos of the mentioned performances and you’ve got yourself a great, super quickly planned, lesson!

9) COMPOSITIONS - I entered: Compose a song in pop song form.

Verse 1:

Every time I see your face

I feel my heart start to race

There’s something ‘bout the way you move

That makes me feel like I can’t lose

Pre-Chorus:

I know it sounds cliche

But I just can’t stay away

From the way you make me feel

Like nothing else is real

Chorus:

Cause you’re the one I want

You're the one I need

You’re the one who makes my heart sing

And every time you’re near I can’t help but believe

That we’re meant to be

Verse 2:

I never thought I’d find someone

Who makes me feel like I’ve won

The lottery of love and life

With you, everything just feels right

Pre-Chorus:

I know it sounds cliche

But I just can’t stay away

From the way you make me feel

Like nothing else is real

Chorus:

Cause you’re the one I want

You're the one I need

You’re the one who makes my heart sing

And every time you’re near I can’t help but believe

That we’re meant to be

Bridge: I don’t wanna lose this feeling

I don’t wanna let it go

Cause with you, everything’s so easy

And I never wanna be alone

Chorus:

Cause you’re the one I want

You're the one I need

You’re the one who makes my heart sing

And every time you’re near I can’t help but believe

That we’re meant to be

Outro:

You’re the one I want You’re the one I need And I’m never gonna let you go.

10) CHORD PROGRESSIONS - I entered: Create the chord progression for this song.

Verse: G - D - Em - C

Pre-Chorus: Am - D - Em - C

Chorus: G - D - Em - C

Bridge: Am - C - G - D

Chorus: G - D - Em - C

Outro: G - D - Em - C

Please note that you can ask ChatGPT additional questions related to previous questions or requests as long as you are still working in the same chat. And the biggest piece of advice I can give - Think about what information you truly want it to provide you. You’re only going to get what you ask for! But, it’s nice to know that you can revise or expand upon its response by asking it additional questions.

Here are some other ideas for using ChatGPT:

1) Help your students create a quick script for a podcast.

2) Create quick and simple Sub Plans.

3) Create parodies to songs based on various topics.

4) Increase student voice and choice by having your students “research” and present on more topics/concepts via ChatGPT.

5) Brainstorm concert programming ideas surrounding various topics, themes, cultures, or composers.

Shawna E. Longo is the General Music (Music Technology) teacher and Arts Integration Specialist at Durban Avenue School, Hopatcong, NJ. She is also a published author with her book, "Integrating STEM with Music," with Oxford University Press. Additionally, she serves as a Practice Advisory Board Member for The Center for Arts Education & Social Emotional Learning, K-12 Educational Technology & Innovation Through Music Chair for the NJMEA Board of Directors, the Arts Integration & STEAM Specialist for TMI Education; Lead Consultant for Essential Elements Music Class (Hal Leonard); and an Ambassador/Consultant for The Rock and Roll Forever Foundation, Music First and Jamstik. She is an internationally recognized clinician and consultant for music education, music technology, social emotional learning, arts integration, and STEAM.

Summer Reading List: Spotlight on Deafness

Maureen Butler NJMEA Special Learners Chris

What’s better than the summer for sitting in the sun, cold drink at our side, and a book in our hands? Here are three books that you may enjoy; one is a novel, one a memoir, and the last is a compendium of all topics pertaining to teaching music to deaf and hard of hearing students. Happy reading!

True Biz by Sara Novic, Penguin Random House, 2022

If you’re looking for a book that will draw you right into lives of people who are deaf or hard of hearing, True Biz by Sara Novic will do that. The story centers on a fictional residential school for the deaf, with a varied cast of high school students, families and teachers of differing backgrounds that represent the many perspectives that envelop the deaf community. There’s a student with a failed cochlear implant who finds a new life opening before her as she learns sign language and is able to communicate with her peers, becoming successful in her classroom for the first time in her life. Another student comes from generations of Deaf ancestors, and faces conflicted feelings when his sister is born hearing. Another gets caught up in the desire to protest the way deaf people have been and continue to be treated as second-class citizens. The headmistress is CODA, a child of deaf adults, and shows keen understanding of all her students, while dealing with the fact that the school may have to close because of budgetary reasons. Sprinkled throughout the book are pictures of basic elements of sign language, as well as important perspectives on Deaf culture, history and identity.

As her story of these different characters weaves together, by turns entertaining, uplifting, disappointing and sometimes tragic, Sara Novic’s deep knowledge of the Deaf community will give you insight into the history of deaf education. As you prepare to teach students in your music classes, this book will help you understand the different issues facing students who are deaf and HOH, and you’ll find yourself caught up in the a world that you may not have been familiar with.

Deaf Utopia: A Memoir, and a Love Letter to a Way of Life by Nyle DiMarco and Robert Siebert, William Morrow,

2022

You might already be familiar with Nyle DiMarco, Deaf model, actor and activist, as well as former winner of both America’s Next Top Model and Dancing with the Stars. In this very personal memoir, he shares

his personal experiences growing up as part of a multi-generational culturally Deaf family who used American Sign Language. Proud of this rich heritage, he relates how his confidence and belief in himself came from his family and their use of ASL. He contrasts this with the difficulties encountered by generations of deaf children who were forbidden to use sign language, in the flawed belief that the oral method was better. I was saddened but not surprised to read that older members of his family were discriminated against because of their deafness, but I was shocked to learn that DiMarco himself, who came of age in this century, had been discriminated against as well. As a teacher, I am reminded of our importance in modeling respect and empathy for our students, and in ensuring that all our students get equal access to education. Fun sections of the book were those that described DiMarco’s experiences as a contestant on both America’s Next Top Model and Dancing with the Stars, and how the producers attempted to provide communication access for him. He considers it his mission to share the significance and beauty of ASL with the world. Music teachers who read this book will gain greater insight into this beautiful language, into the world of deafness, and into the lives of deaf students we might encounter. It may also inspire you to find ways to add some ASL in your music classes and concerts.

Music for Children with Hearing Loss: A Resource for Parents and Teachers, by Lyn

E. Schraer-Joiner, Oxford University Press, 2014

This highly researched book is an important resource for anyone who wants to learn more about educational issues involving children with hearing loss. If you have any questions about how to teach your deaf and hard of hearing students, you’ll find the answers here! Informative topics include a history of music education for deaf students, explanations of different kinds of hearing loss, and descriptions of hearing aids, cochlear implants and assistive listening devices. Particularly valuable are sample lesson plans and activities, with suggestions for how to modify lessons as well as the classroom space to provide optimal learning experiences for students. Schraer-Joiner, a professor of music education at Kean University, has an obvious passion for creating musical experiences with students with hearing loss, and her expertise includes substantive research on the musical rehabilitation of adult cochlear implant recipients, musical responsiveness of prelingually deafened children, ages 2-4, as well as musicians and hearing loss.

Culturally Responsive Arts Education An Interview with Aixa Burgos

Alfred Hadinger North Plainfield

alfred_hadinger[at]nplainfield.org

It was great to see so many educators and professionals at the February conference! As we all know, professional learning is a continuous enterprise, and the New Jersey Music Administrators Association is no exception. At our February meeting, NJMAA was honored to welcome Ms. Aixa Burgos, Music Technology Teacher of the Passaic Public Schools, presenting on the topic of Culturally Responsive Arts Education (CRAE): What Does Culturally Responsive Arts Education Look Like in K-12 Music? Ms. Burgos is an accomplished percussionist and educator, having collaborated with artists such as Lin-Manuel Miranda, and is presently working towards her Doctor of Musical Arts in Music Education at Boston University.

Below is an interview with Ms. Burgos, discussing her own musical background, along with ideas for incorporating culturally responsive practices into a variety of classroom settings:

How did your musical upbringing shape your approach to culturally responsive onstruction?

Growing up in a home where cultural music was part of daily life and family celebrations. Family members would sing traditional Puerto Rican songs and play instruments, and all were welcome to participate. Singing and performing with my family was electric, engaging, and fun. As a teenager, I began to perform with local bands who would travel around the Tri-State area to perform. Music was part of my family and social life.....outside of school. The music at my school felt disconnected and unrelatable to the music I experienced with my family and social circles. Because of this, I never participated in school music programs. I did not think that it was something I would enjoy. This experience led me to think about all of the students who might be experiencing the same thing, or something similar. Students who are experiencing two very different musical environments: the music they do at school, and the music they do outside of school. If my music teachers had included music that was responsive to my cultural heritage, I would have absolutely participated because it would have been something familiar to me and something I would excel in. Now as a teacher, I am sure to get to know my students on a cultural level, so that I can understand what music makes them tick. For example, I have a student who performs in a Cumbia band with his father on the weekends. A very serious Cumbia band, where they travel to different states to perform. He is a very quiet student, so he never may have shared this aspect of his life if I didn't ask or show

interest. Whenever I include Cumbia music in my lessons, his face lights up and he has so much to contribute since Cumbia music is part of his lived experience outside of school. It is important for students to feel like their lived experiences and musical tastes have a place in our classrooms therefore, one should strive to get to know what music their students enjoy.

What are some common misconceptions for those who want to expand their teaching toolkit to better incorporate culturally responsive practices? What are some good first steps?

There are several misconceptions for those who want to better incorporate culturally responsive practices. The first one is assuming that all students from a particular cultural group have the same experiences, values, and beliefs. Culturally responsive teaching involves recognizing and valuing the diversity within cultural groups. A good first step for this misconception is for educators to avoid stereotypes and assumptions about what students from a particular culture know or believe, and instead focus on getting to know their individual students and their unique experiences and perspectives.

A second misconception is the belief that culturally responsive teaching means focusing only on students' cultural backgrounds. While it is important to incorporate students' cultural backgrounds into instruction, culturally responsive teaching also involves creating an inclusive and welcoming classroom environment that supports all students, regardless of their cultural background. A good first step for this can include recognizing and addressing issues of power and privilege, promoting social justice, and creating opportunities for students to share their own experiences and perspectives.

A third misconception is thinking that culturally responsive teaching is only relevant for certain subjects or grade levels. Culturally responsive teaching can be applied to any subject or grade level, as it is a pedagogical approach that prioritizes student-centered, equitable, and inclusive practices. A first step for this could involve using culturally relevant materials and examples in instruction, creating opportunities for students to share their own experiences and perspectives, and valuing students' linguistic and cultural diversity.

A fourth misconception is believing that culturally responsive teaching is a one-size-fits-all approach. Culturally responsive teaching should be tailored to the needs and experiences of each individual classroom and student. What works in one classroom or for one

group of students may not work for another. A first step for this could be for educators to continually reflect on and adjust their practice to better meet the needs of their students.

A fifth misconception is thinking that culturally responsive teaching is only relevant for students from minority cultures. Culturally responsive teaching is relevant for all students, regardless of their cultural background. All students have cultural identities and experiences that shape their perspectives and learning. Culturally responsive teaching can help all students feel valued, supported, and engaged in their learning

How does your instructional philosophy vary, if at all, for incorporating culturally responsive practices in different classroom settings? For example, are there varying best practices for ensemble versus classroom music settings?

Although I am currently teaching high school music technology, I began to practice cultural responsiveness when I was an elementary general music and band teacher. In my experience, I have come to realize that different classroom settings may require different approaches to incorporating culturally responsive practices as they should be tailored to the needs and experiences of each individual classroom and student. It may take time to build the capacity to identify distinct characteristics of classroom groups and students so some entry points into varying instruction based on classroom settings include:

GENERAL MUSIC:

1. Incorporating diverse musical genres: Introducing students to a wide range of musical genres, including those from various cultures around the world. For example, you might teach a unit on African drumming, Indian classical music, or Latin American folk music. This can help students see the connections between different types of music and appreciate the unique contributions of each culture. This can also be utilized in ensemble groups.

2. Using music to explore cultural traditions: Using music as a tool to explore cultural traditions and practices. For example, you might use music to teach about the significance of different holidays, such as Christmas, Hanukkah, or Diwali, and how they are celebrated in different cultures.

3. Teaching music from diverse perspectives: Teaching music from different perspectives and acknowledging the diversity of voices and experiences within a culture. For example, you might teach a unit on

hip-hop music and culture, including its roots in African American and Latino communities.

4. Engaging with student culture: Seeking to understand and value the cultural backgrounds of your students. You might incorporate music that is meaningful to your students' lives and invite them to share their own cultural traditions and music with the class.

5. Providing opportunities for student choice and creativity: Providing opportunities for student choice and creativity in the musicmaking process. For example, you might allow students to choose the songs they want to learn and encourage them to create their own music inspired by their cultural traditions.

ENSEMBLE:

1. Encouraging student input: Inviting students to share music from their cultures and incorporate those pieces into the ensemble's repertoire. This can help students feel valued and empowered in the classroom.

2. Connecting music to culture: Exploring the cultural context of the music you are teaching, helping students to better understand and appreciate the significance of the music.

3. Adapting teaching styles: Adapting your teaching styles to meet the needs of students from diverse cultural backgrounds. For example, using visual aids, storytelling, or movement to help students connect with the music.

4. Celebrating cultural events: Celebrating cultural events and holidays in your ensemble classes, highlighting the importance of diversity and cultural traditions.

5. Creating a welcoming environment: Creating a welcoming and inclusive environment in your ensemble classes, valuing and respecting the diversity of your students and fostering a sense of community and belonging. This can involve using inclusive language, being mindful of cultural norms and values, and respecting individual differences.

6. Providing opportunities for student leadership: Empowering students to take on leadership roles in the ensemble. This can include allowing students to lead warm-up exercises or choose music selections that reflect their cultural backgrounds or personal taste.

7. Incorporating social justice themes: Incorporating social justice themes into your lessons, helping students understand how music can be used to raise awareness and inspire change. This can involve analyzing lyrics and exploring the historical and cultural context of different musical pieces.

Music Education for Refugee Children: An Opportunity

Joseph Elefante Supervisor of

Fine & Performing Arts, Rahway

jelefante[at]rahway.net

According to Pew Research, the United States is home to one-fifth of all migrants in the world. As of 2020, immigrants accounted for 13.7% of the U.S. population, nearly triple the same percentage as fifty years ago. Many of these immigrants arrive as refugees. Since 1980, the U.S. has welcomed about 3 million refugees (Budiman, 2020). According to the U.N. Refugee Agency, refugees are individuals that “have fled war, violence, conflict or persecution and have crossed an international border to find safety in another country” (UNHCR, n.d.). Understandably, the refugee experience is often complicated by issues of trauma, language, and cultural identity.

As music educators, we are increasingly tasked with educating immigrant and refugee children. Schools, ever resistant to change, too often engage in “deculturalization.” We expect young people who have experienced the trauma of emigration from an unsafe environment to then abandon their cultural identities and adhere to a Eurocentric conception of education. Although often well-intentioned, we must resist traditional “color-blind” educational philosophies that do not validate children’s unique identities.

Culturally relevant music pedagogy acknowledges the cultural identities of all students and delivers a music curriculum that is responsive to those students’ backgrounds and unique abilities. Music educators have much to offer these students – particularly in the general music classroom. Researcher Kathryn Marsh (2012) studied a music program for refugee students in Australia that sought to create opportunities to incorporate refugee students’ identities into the music classroom. There is an example of a Lebanese girl who, after practicing a rhythmic pattern on a djembe assigned by her teacher, the girl asked if she could perform “an Arabic one.” The teacher immediately agreed and positively reinforced the girl’s performance, and they even incorporated the girl’s drum solo in an arrangement of a popular Aboriginal song they performed later in the program. The enthusiastic response of the audience was a sign of acceptance of her cultural identity, juxtaposed in the arrangement with Australian Aboriginal cultural identity.

Renée Crawford (2017) studied another school music program in Australia. The refugee students she interviewed said music was their favorite class in school. They especially loved singing and drumming. For students who played or sang in their previous country, music class offered a sense of stability. For others, learning to play an instrument like the drums presented a new and exciting opportunity. Learning English song lyrics even accelerated their second language learning. Importantly, music class also created opportunities for students to share aspects of their cultural identity. Like one student she interviewed said, “I like share song and dance from my country… make me happy.” Unsurprisingly, these students formed exceptional bonds with their music teacher. When the

ten students were asked who they would turn to first if they needed help, four of them mentioned their friends, one their English teacher, and five their music teacher.

Improvisation offers another avenue for individuals to explore and express their culture. Vougioukalou and colleagues (2019) studied a refugee integration program with the Oasis World Choir and Band in Wales from 2017-2019. Among the many benefits of the program, it gave refugees a rare opportunity to lead in a safe space. It also gave both performers and audience members the chance to experience aspects of the performers’ culture.

Recent immigrants and, more specifically, refugees are a large and growing portion of the U.S. population. One glance at a news article or the television is a reminder that growth will likely accelerate for the foreseeable future. As music educators, let us embrace our unique roles to affirm these students’ cultural identities while helping them feel comfortable in their new homes.

References

Budiman, A. (2020, August 20). Key findings about U.S. immgrants Pew Research Center. https://www.pewresearch.org/facttank/2020/08/20/key-findings-about-u-s-immigrants/ Crawford, R. (2017). Creating unity through celebrating diversity: A case study that explores the impact of music education on refugee background students. International Journal of Music Education,35(3), 343–356. https://doi.org/10.1177/0255761416659511

Marsh, K. (2012). “The beat will make you be courage”: The role of a secondary school music program in supporting young refugees and newly arrived immigrants in Australia. Research Studies in Music Education, 34(2), 93–111. https://doi. org/10.1177/1321103X12466138

UNHCR. (n.d.). What is a refugee? https://www.unhcr.org/en-us/whatis-a-refugee.html

Vougioukalou, S., Dow, R., Bradshaw, L., & Pallant, T. (2019). Wellbeing and integration through community music: The role of improvisation in a music group of refugees, asylum seekers and local community members. Contemporary Music Review, 38(5), 533–548. https://doi.org/10.1080/07494467.2019.1684075

INSPIRED TO BE HEARD

B.A. IN MUSIC

B.A. IN MUSIC WITH K-12 CERTIFICATION

• Outstanding Liberal Arts Program

• Accredited by Middle States Association

• Performance Opportunities

– Wind Ensemble

– Jazz Ensemble

– Chorale

– Marching Band

– Opera and Musical Theatre Workshop

– Chamber Ensembles: Brass, Woodwinds, Percussion, Strings & Popular Music

SPRING CONCERT • MAY 8, 7:00 PM

MARCHING BAND CAMP

AUGUST 22–24

FALL OPEN HOUSE

OCTOBER 14 • NOVEMBER 18

Contact Barbara Budris for more information. Email: bbudris@caldwell.edu

Phone: 973-618-3326

Engaging More Students Through Modern Band

Bryan Powell Assistant Professor of Music Education & Music Technology Montclair State University

The inclusion of popular music in United States public school music education classrooms has become increasingly common in the 21st century. This expansion is in part due to the growth of modern band programs in public schools. “Modern band” is a stream of music education that broadens the repertoire and instrumentation typically found in school-based instrumental programs. The repertoire of modern band is what people might typically think of as “popular music” played on popular music instruments—the term “popular” being used to mean “of the people,” in this case, “of the students.” Such repertoire can include musics across rock, rap, metal, reggae, EDM, county, and other genres as they emerge. Music classrooms incorporating modern band help to bridge the gap between the music that students experience in schools and the music they experience in their communities. Through focusing on music that is familiar to students, modern band allows students to see themselves reflected in the curriculum. By validating and leveraging the cultural capital of their students, music educators can forge stronger bonds between typically marginalized students and the schools that serve them.

of the existing research on modern band up until 2021 (Powell, 2021). This article includes studies on the impact of modern band programs on K–12 school music participation. Clauhs and Cremata (2020) explored modern band programs in one New York State School District, examining district-level enrollment data for high school music ensembles both before and after the implementation of modern band classes. Their findings indicated that modern band classes greatly diversified the demographic profile of school music groups. They also found that students of color were nearly twice as likely to participate in modern band compared with a White student at the high school. Additionally, students who qualified for free/reduced lunch at the high school were also nearly twice as likely to participate in modern band classes compared with students who did not qualify for these services.

The introduction of modern bands has been shown to grow the overall participation in school music across all ensembles without detracting from enrollment in the traditional band, choir and orchestra programs (Clauhs & Cremata, 2020). This finding was consonant with those reported by Powell (2019b), who examined the impact of middle and high school modern band programs on school music participation. He found that modern bands do not detract from student enrollment in traditional band, choir, and orchestra programs and instead regularly increase the overall participation in school music ensembles.

More recently, Knapp et al. (2023) found conducted a study of modern band teachers and found that teachers perceived that modern band expanded access to music education by engaging more students while also making themselves more committed to the teaching profession. With respect to student learning, teachers perceived that modern band allowed for nonmusical outcomes, including academic motivation and the creation of classroom social bonds. To a lesser extent, teachers perceived that students achieved creative outcomes, such as composition and improvisation.

Our bands, choirs, and orchestras are working well for the students that they serve.

However, current research shows that our traditional bands, choirs, and orchestras are serving, on average, around 20% of secondary school students. What about the other students who, for one reason or another, are likely passionate about music but do not see themselves participating in these ensembles? Modern band provides an opportunity for music educators to engage such students.

Modern Band Research

In an article published in Update: Applications of Research in Music Education titled “Modern Band: A Review of Literature”, I outline much

Modern Band Honor Ensembles

The expansion of modern band in K-12 music education can also be seen in the increased presence of modern band honor ensembles. In November 2022, NAfME sponsored an All-National Honor Modern Band Ensemble. This auditioned group consisted of students from all over the United States, from Hawaii to Florida. Additionally, the upcoming 2023 NAfME Eastern Division conference will feature an All-Eastern Honor Ensemble for Modern Band for the first time. These honor ensembles join the growing list of regional and state-level honor modern band groups including the 2022 New York City All-City Honors Modern Band Ensemble, 2022 PMEA District 8 and 2023 PMEA District 7

All-District Honor Modern Band Ensembles, the 2023 Tennessee Music Educators Association All-State Modern Band Honor Ensemble, and the 2023 Missouri All-State Popular Music Collective.

The Missouri All-State Popular Music Collective featured a 30-minute set of original music written by the student participants. The students met via Zoom in the weeks leading up to the All-State conference and collaboratively wrote eight songs which were performed at the opening ceremony of the conference. Other states that have recently shown interest in starting an All-State Modern Band ensemble include New York and Pennsylvania.

also developing an understanding of the pedagogies involved in teaching popular music. Five music education faculty members from NJ-based colleges and universities recently have participated in the Modern Band Fellowship. Sponsored by Music Will, the Modern Band Higher Education Fellowship (MBHEF) is an opportunity for music education professors to receive instruction in incorporating modern band pedagogies into pre-service music teacher education programs and receive hands-on instruction in playing popular music instruments. Since 2018, music education professors from Rutgers University, Westminster Choir College, Rowan University, William Patterson, and Montclair State University have participated in the Modern Band Fellowship.

Conclusion

Modern Band in New Jersey

In New Jersey, the presence of modern bands has expanded over the last decade due in part to the efforts of the non-profit organization Music Will (formerly known as Little Kids Rock). In New Jersey, there are currently over 100 active Music Will teachers serving over 16,000 students. The cities with the greatest number of modern band teachers are Newark (19 teachers), Elizabeth (15 teachers), Jersey City (14 teachers) and Passaic (10 teachers). Many of these teachers are offering modern band programs either as part of their regular teaching duties or as an afterschool club.

Modern band is not just taking off in K-12 classrooms; it is also rapidly expanding in higher education. To date, over 75 colleges and universities have included modern band into a college course syllabus. Some of these institutions are even offering full modern band courses where future music teachers are learning to play popular music instruments while

Modern band ensembles should be seen as an addition to, and not a replacement of, traditional ensembles in schools. School music education is a big enough field to both advance its practices and preserve the music offerings that are valued by current students, their teachers, and our communities; to choose one music over others does little to advance the availability and viability of music in our schools. There is an exciting opportunity to expand the vision of music education to include popular music, improvisation, composition, music technology, and musics from around the world for the benefit of all. If the music education community is serious about increasing diversity, increasing access, and promoting inclusion, then it is imperative that we widen the door to participation in school music with more diverse and inclusive ensembles.

References

Clauhs, M., & Cremata, R. (2020). Student voice and choice in modern band curriculum development. Journal of Popular Music Education, 4(1), 101-116.

Powell, B. (2021). Modern band: A review of literature. Update: Applications of Research in Music Education, 39(3), 39-46.

Portions of this article previously appeared in the Massachusetts Music Educators Journal, in the April 2020 issue of TEMPO, and in Powell, B. & Burstein, S. (2017). Popular music and modern band principles. The Routledge Research Companion to Popular Music Education, 243, 243-54.

Bridging School and Community Guitar Programs

Jayson Martinez

Guitar Teacher, NJMEA Guitar Chair

jmarti37[at]webmail.essex.edu

A landloper is defined as a wanderer or a vagabond. It was also the title of a new commission, premiered by my New York City Classical Guitar Orchestra in 2019 at Carnegie Hall, nonetheless. This avant-garde ensemble piece, which included a unique preparation for guitar strings with alligator clips, served as an energetic opener leading into the inaugural United States Guitar Orchestra performance. Their outstanding showcase featured the legendary classical guitarist William Kanengiser and the world premiere of Sergio Assad’s The Walls.

This was our final performance before the onslaught of Covid-19, leaving us, ironically, as landlopers behind our own physical and mental walls.

There was no solace found in my online public school teaching experience during this time, either. Imagine the difficulty of rehearsing with the NJMEA High School Honors Guitar Ensemble through the Zoom app and webcam, all for an All-State performance that was doomed to be canceled. I was reminded of the old adage that once you are in the dark, you learn to appreciate everything that shines.

During the height of this pandemic, us landlopers were all searching for that proverbial light of hope, but anxiety and worrisome questions started to arise behind our mental walls. When would we reconvene as a community and make music again? Would the high school guitarists slack off on practicing or lose interest altogether?

Once Covid restrictions were lifted, I began preparing for the launch of a new community music ensemble: the New Jersey Guitar Orchestra. This group, comprised of guitar teachers, avid guitar performers, pros, semi-professionals and aficionados, will also serve as a feeder-program for the graduating high school NJMEA guitarists.

During these few years, it has been my great honor to serve as the conductor, to assist in developing the talents of these two ensembles, and to have lead them in numerous performances and projects. In this short time, we have recorded four VGO virtual guitar videos, premiered two new commissions, and performed in several guitar festivals, including the 30th Annual Long Island Guitar Festival. In the spirit of coming full-circle, the NJGO and NJMEA opened for the second United States Guitar Orchestra performance in July 2022 at Merkin Hall in New York City. Currently, the ensembles are preparing for our upcoming performance of the Concerto de Los Angeles, with guest star, William Kanengiser.

We are no longer those landlopers trapped behind our desolate walls of solitude! However, our rapid upward trajectory was not only due to the efforts of our dedicated ensemble members. It was also determined by a carefully crafted plan aimed at bridging an all-state high school ensemble with a new community orchestra.

Determine your Vision and Goals

The first thing to do when starting either an all-state school ensemble or a community orchestra is to determine your overall vision and goals. For me, this included a plan to create a platform for personal expression, expand the artistic experience, and foster community by empowering people to collaborate, perform, respond, and connect to all things GUITAR!

Here are some questions I considered:

What is our audition process? Will this be an ensemble for beginners, open to anyone who can simply follow the music? Will it be a more advanced group that expects a high level of musicality from its players? Do we want to start as a novice group and gradually transform into a professional ensemble? Do we want to play only new commissions, classic warhorses, or do we want to be a pop orchestra, a new musical ensemble, a baroque orchestra? Or do we want to play a healthy mix of everything?

Starting these ensembles from the ground up can be a daunting task. From gauging whether there is enough interest, to determining rehearsal locations and performances, there is a long list of important things to consider and accomplish. However, having a community ensemble that serves as a feeder- program is crucial for the continued growth of both groups.

Recruitment and Auditions

The most effective way that I recruit for the NJMEA Ensemble is by contacting our NJ performing arts school supervisors in order to attain a list of guitar teachers and their respective programs throughout the state. This is not an arduous process, as many schools do not include a guitar program as part of their curriculum, unfortunately. Then, I email information which includes a recruitment video and links to all audition materials. I have also created social media pages that continue to serve well in recruiting for both ensembles. Additionally, I promote the NJGO through our YouTube channel, and by utilizing traditional marketing techniques such as posters, flyers, and wearing and selling NJGO merchandise.

The audition process for both my NJGO and NJMEA High School Honors Guitar Ensemble prospects include performing three scales, a solo etude, ensemble excerpt, and sight-reading. These yearly auditions are adjudicated by members of the NJGO and fellow colleagues using a formulated rubric. Once accepted, members of both groups pay a membership fee which is used for renting rehearsal space and purchasing music. Our repertoire includes a mix of classics and new commissions, with at least one piece featuring both ensembles collaborating together in concert. In the interest of fostering a sense of community, NJGO section leaders also assist in NJMEA rehearsals, playing alongside these advanced high school students. The key to effective recruitment, auditions, and bridging guitar programs is to connect with fellow guitar teachers and include them, along with their students, in these respective ensembles.

Rehearsal Space and Performances

Before I launched the NJGO, it was imperative to first find rehearsal locations. Fortunately, my school principal continues to support the NJGO and allows us to use my classroom after hours. We also utilize the classrooms of other music teachers that are members as well. Not surprisingly, it is very easy to find local colleges and universities willing to lend rehearsal space to the NJMEA High School Honors Ensemble, inasmuch as they are in need of recruiting students in these times of enrollment decline.

Our NJGO rehearsals occur once a week, same day and time, and we focus on predetermined goals for each session. However, due to schoolwork obligations, the NJMEA only meets once a month. The motivating factor for both groups to practice and attend rehearsals is to prepare for an exciting concert series that includes a world premiere piece and a collaboration with a legendary musician. For us, these projects are accomplished thanks, in part, to the generosity of grants and support of stakeholders, especially the Augustine Foundation.

If You Build It, They Will Come

To anyone who might consider initiating an ensemble from the ground up, please note that getting started is the hardest part. Take each

step in stride and try not to be overwhelmed by the amount of items on your own checklist! Creating a solid system of leadership within your ensembles is crucial for success. Remember that it is not possible for one person to do everything on their own without considerable stress, so do not hesitate to delegate to those who are willing to help. In a similar vein, do not forget to have confidence in yourself!

If you have the experience and are passionate about continuing music education, consider starting a community music group or even leading and bridging a feeder program. Remember that not all graduating students will pursue a music major, but many still want to continue learning and performing. This also gives the adults the opportunity to give back to the next generation of musicians.

Lastly, be sure to brush up on your conducting skills and have a baton in hand that inspires you to bring out the best in your ensemble members.

Jayson Martínez is recognized as the first guitar major in the history of the prestigious Arts High School in Newark, NJ, the nation’s first high school of the Visual and Performing Arts. This experience led him to attend New Jersey City University, where he studied under the tutelage of Dr. Ana María Rosado, and earned degrees in Music Education (B.A.), Music Performance (M.Mus.), and Educational Supervision and Administration (M.EdLd.). As Director of Guitar Studies at his Alma Mater, Mr. Martínez has garnered several awards, including the 2018 Teacher of the Year Award and a nominee for the GRAMMY Music Educator’s Award.

Currently, Mr. Martínez also serves as the New Jersey Music Educators Association (NJMEA) Chairman for Guitar Education, Director and Conductor of the NJMEA Honors Guitar Ensemble, and National Association for Music Education (NAfME) Eastern Division Representative for the Council of Guitar Education. He is also an adjunct Professor of Guitar Studies at Kean University.

An established classical guitarist, Mr. Martínez served as the concertmaster for the renowned New York City Classical Guitar Orchestra for over a decade. In 2021, he founded the New Jersey Guitar Orchestra, where he also serves as conductor.

Staying true to his roots, Mr. Martinez is the proprietor of Tremolo Music Studio LLC in Clifton, NJ, where he provides music education to aspiring musicians of all ages.

2023 NJMEA Orchestra Festivals

Susan Meuse

NJMEA Orchestra Performance Chair

susanmeuse[at]gmail.com

For the first time in many years, NJMEA hosted three orchestra festivals. The first one took place at Tenafly High School on February 7. The second one was at Fernwood Middle School in Egg Harbor Township on February 9. The third festival took place at Bridgewater-Raritan Middle School on March 8. A total of 15 groups performed at the three festivals.

The Tenafly festival was adjudicated by Adan Glaser and hosted by Jim Millar. The performing groups included the Paramus H.S. Symphony Orchestra directed by Yoonhee Roberts, Ewing H.S Orchestra directed by Colleen Trast, Livingston H.Sl Chamber Orchestra directed by Nancy Ciminnisi, Metuchen H.S Chamber Orchestra directed by Christopher McEwan, and Tenafly H.S Symphony and Chamber Orchestras directed by Jim Millar.

The Egg Harbor Township Festival was adjudicated by Mark Kadetsky and hosted by Jenna DiSalvio. The performing groups included the Washington Township H.S Orchestra directed by Ian Hoblitzell, Ranney School Upper Orchestra directed by Dorota Sobieski, Southern Regional

H.S Orchestra directed by Jaime Chavan, Creative Arts H.S Orchestra directed by Patricio Acevedo, and Egg Harbor Township H.S Orchestra directed by Jenna DiSalvio.

The Bridgewater-Raritan Middle School Orchestra festival was adjudicated by Michael Berry and hosted by Maria Ramsay and Catherine Butler. The performing groups included the Passaic Academy Gifted and Talented String Orchestra directed by Larisa Skinner, BridgewaterRaritan M.S. 7th Grade Orchestra directed by Catherine Butler, and Bridgewater-Raritan M.S. 8th grade and Chamber Orchestras directed by Maria Ramsay.

All of the ensembles performed their best, demonstrating the talent and ability of the students and directors. It was very inspiring to hear orchestras from all over NJ and know that string education is doing so well her. If you are interested in participating in one of the festivals next year, please keep an eye on the NJMEA website and the October issue of TEMPO!

14th Annual New Jersey Young Composers Final

Andrew Lesser

NJMEA Young Composers Competition Chair

andrew.lesser[at]yahoo.com

The 14th annual New Jersey Young Composers Competition (NJYCC) finals were held on Saturday, February 25th, 2023, at the annual New Jersey Music Educators Conference in Atlantic City. Students from all over the New Jersey area submitted original compositions in both instrumental and vocal divisions. Finalists were interviewed by a panel of judges representing the NJ-YCC committee; special thanks to Scott Ordway, Raif Hyseni, and Cooper Ford for providing an excellent critique session.

Recordings of each finalists' compositions are now posted on the NJMEA website under the Young Composers Competition link. Applications for the 2023-24 competition will also be posted on the website in the Fall of 2023. Congratulations to all who participated, and we look forward to receiving more exemplary submissions for our next competition.

We are also looking for volunteers to participate in the committee of next year's competition. You do not need to be a professional composer to be part of the committee, only a New Jersey music teacher and NJMEA member. If you would like further information, please contact Dr. Andrew Lesser, NJ-YCC Chairman at andrew.lesser@yahoo.com.

Congratulations to the following finalists:

Grand Prize Winner:

“Letting Go” by Arya Jeraled Piscataway High School

Finalists:

“Concertino No. 1” by Ivan Wong

West Windsor/Plainsboro High School South

“Static Spring” by Charles Love Parsippany Hills High School

“Tangyun” by Larry Xu

The Pennington School

“The Revolt” by Aadhitya Raam Ashok

J.P. Stevens High School

NJMEA SALUTES NEW JERSEY’S OUTSTANDING ALL-STATE MUSICIANS

The New Jersey Music Educators Association is proud of the hundreds of NJMEA members who sponsor the many thousands of students who audition for Region and All-State ensembles during the year. Listed below are the outstanding musicians who were accepted into the 2022-2023 New Jersey All-State Performing Ensembles. Many hours of practice and preparation have been spent by the students and the teachers who have helped these students attain this noteworthy goal. We congratulate everyone who has been a part of these activities.

2023 New Jersey All-State Wind Ensemble

PICCOLO

Vishal Kumar South Brunswick HS

FLUTE

Heidi Gubser Princeton HS

Mia Zhong John P Stevens HS

Karina Yang Ridge HS

Julia Zheng Newark Academy

OBOE

Isabell Hu Princeton Day School

Charlie Hu Westfield HS

ENGLISH HORN

Christina Nicolau Bergen Co Academies

BASSOON

Hannah Cheung Edison HS

Connor Mark W Windsor-Plainsboro HS No

Eb CLARINET

Pablo Ramirez-Garcia South Brunswick HS

Bb CLARINET

Timothy Lien Livingston HS

Yerim Park Indian Hills HS

Hong Cheng John P Stevens HS

Leah Kang No Valley Reg HS at Demarest

John Harjes Toms River HS South

Aaron Wong East Brunswick HS

Leon Guo Livingston HS

Rishi Gurnani John P Stevens HS

Yejun Park Bergen Co Tech HS

ALTO CLARINET

Dev Thaker South Brunswick HS

BASS CLARINET

Joshua Rubin Watchung Hills Reg HS

Philip Om Cresskill HS

CONTRABASS CLARINET

Sarah Lincoln Westfield HS

ALTO SAXOPHONE

Aryan Avadhanam WWindsorPlainsboro HS So

Jack Crawford Washington Twp HS

TENOR SAXOPHONE

Isabelle Mailman Wayne Valley HS

BARITONE SAXOPHONE

Siddharth Vaidya John P Stevens HS

TRUMPET

Samar Munagala John P Stevens HS

Michael Minenna Morris Knolls HS

Aaron Caso Mountain Lakes HS

Nathan Lee Parsippany Hills HS

Markus Ryen Ridgewood HS

Nolan Daly Westfield HS

FRENCH HORN

Pranav Nair Montgomery HS

Nathan Spergel Livingston HS

Margaret Eidel Toms River HS North

Alyx Martos Newark Academy

Jackson Wiggert Millburn HS

TROMBONE

Nicholas Andrade Roxbury HS

Amol Bhingarde John P Stevens HS

Justin Masi Roxbury HS

Giovanni Ciro Eastern Reg HS

BASS TROMBONE

Ryan Parichuk Mount Olive HS

EUPHONIUM

Alexander Massuet Mount Olive HS

Sophia Fontaine The Wardlaw Hartridge School

TUBA

Derek Wang Bridgewater Raritan HS

Zoe Jones Ridge HS

DOUBLE BASS

Isabella Francisco East Brunswick HS

BATTERY PERCUSSION

Matteo Johnson Camden Catholic

Logan Soltys Absegami HS

Peter Loeffler Edison HS

Jared Griffith Camden Co Tech School

Luke Tan Wardlaw Hartridge School

MALLETS

Theodore Chun Millburn HS

Ethan Miller Hillsborough HS

Hunter Pico Absegami HS

Eleanor Race Clearview Reg HS

TIMPANI

Yamato Hara Paramus HS

PIANO

Shreyas Agnihotri Governor Livingston

2022 New Jersey All-State Orchestra

FIRST VIOLIN

Krystal Sun No Valley Reg HS-Demarest

Nora Lee Peddie School

Allison Lee Churchill Jr HS

Timothy Shi Millburn HS

Catherine Kong Bridgewater-Raritan Reg HS

Anthony Zhai Montgomery HS

Elise Hwang Stuart Country Day School

Emily Jung Ridgewood HS

Rena Kim Fort Lee HS

Cory Zhou Acad for Info Tech

Stanley Liu Watchung Hills Reg HS

Andrew Lu Montgomery HS

Henry Depew Bernards HS

Angeluna Xu Peddie School

Sophia Kim W Windsor-Plainsboro So HS

Isabella Jung Leonia HS

Heather Lee Eastern Reg HS

Enoch Lue The Wilbeforce School

Isaac Jin Leonia HS

Sidney Nam Leonia HS

Sanjay Kaushik W Windsor-Plainsboro No HS

Hanna Chee Ridge HS

SECOND VIOLIN

Sanjeev Harikrishnan Montgomery HS

Daniel Xie High Technology HS

Hannah Lin East Brunswick HS

Chloe Cho Bergen County Acad

Cailyn Min Bergen County Acad

Elizabeth Morgievich Randolph HS

Michelle Choi Eastern Reg HS

Evelyn Chao East Brunswick HS

Brooks Wang Chatham HS

Miranda Qing Montgomery HS

Daphne Faulkner-Valiente Montclair HS

Alexander Choi Paramus Catholic HS

Carmen Dai Newark Academy

Ethan Song W Windsor-Plainsboro So HS

Bernard Liang Manalapan HS

Noah Hyun Lenape HS

Chloe Cho Ridgewood HS

Hannah Choi Tenafly HS

Lia Choi Paramus Catholic HS

Amanda Sun East Brunswick HS

Andy Pei Ridge HS

Kelli Chang Rutgers Prep School

Leah Kvares Randolph HS

VIOLA

Iris Hur Bergen County Acad

Brandon Wu Bridgewater-Raritan HS

Suhyoung Park Bridgewater Raritan HS

Keaton Chien Peddie School

Grant Rupinski Southern Reg HS

Lunette Shaw Tenafly HS

Kevin Zhao Montgomery HS

Daniel Cho Tenafly HS

Sasmit MunagalaW Windsor-Plainsboro No HS

Andrew Li Chatham HS

Gabrielle Zammit Princeton HS

Kevin Chen Westfield HS

Kevin May East Brunswick HS

Annie Miao Montgomery HS

CELLO

Katrina Lee Peddie School

Teyha Lim Immaculata HS

Caleb Park Pingry School

JaeAh Shin East Brunswick HS

James Liao Chatham HS

Ian Zhang Newark Acad

Geoffrey Li Bridgewater-Raritan Reg HS

Justin Tam John P Stevens HS

Sarah Lee Tenafly HS

Emma Lin East Brunswick HS

Ethan Xu W Windsor-Plainsboro No HS

Mason Moon Millburn HS

Michelle Shi Moorestown HS

Joshua Kim No Valley-Old Tappan HS

Keshav Ramesh East Brunswick HS

Benjamin Chang Ridge HS

BASS

Vishva Gajaraj East Brunswick HS

Guarav Kakarla W Windsor-Plainsboro No HS

Alexander Lu Bridgewater-Raritan Reg HS

Isabella Francisco Churchill Jr HS

Kenneth Allaway West Morris Mendham HS

Madeline Epstein WWindsorPlainsboro No HS

Julia Li Newark Acad

Giovanni Lombardo W Morris-Mendham HS

Erin Goldsmith Hopewell Valley Central HS

Aryaman Tomar WWindsorPlainsboro No HS

PICCOLO

Yuma Okada Fair Lawn HS

FLUTE

Karina Yang Ridge HS

Ellen Wu W Windsor-Plainsboro So HS

Julia Zheng Newark Acad

Yuma Okada Fair Lawn HS

Jaqueline Strickland Bridgewater Raritan HS

OBOE

Celia Wojcik Haddonfield Mem HS

Amanda Sun Princeton HS

Rachel Wang South Brunswick HS

Erica Koenigsberg WWindsorPlainsboro No HS

ENGLISH HORN

Erica Koenigsberg WWindsorPlainsboro No HS

BASSOON

Elizabeth Barlow Pascack Valley HS

Samuel Broytman Fair Lawn HS

Hannah Cheung Edison HS

Cian Kelly South Brunswick HS

Bb SOPRANO CLARINET

Eugene Lee Cresskill HS

Yerim Park Indian Hills HS

Hong Cheng John P Stevens HS

Pablo Ramirez-Garcia South Brunswick HS

Bb BASS CLARINET

Hong Cheng John P Stevens HS

FRENCH HORN

Christopher Juan John P Stevens HS

Nathan Spergel Livingston HS

Kate McAvaddy Oakcrest HS

Margaret Eidel Toms River North HS

Leigh Rose Hart Vernon Township HS

Alyx Martos Newark Acad

Kai Kim Bergen County Acad

TRUMPET

Ian Lee Lawrenceville School

Aaron Caso Mountain Lakes HS

Nathan Lee Parsippany Hills HS

Michael Minenna Morris Knolls HS

Jaden Lathom Howell HS

Nathanael Gaw Gaw Academy

TROMBONE

Javid Labenski Cherokee HS

Vincent LaRosa Howell HS

Nicholas Andrade Roxbury HS

Eric Tigh Bridgewater Raritan HS

Keizo Katayama Fort Lee HS

Andrew Kropas Ramsey HS

BASS TROMBONE

Ryan Parichuk Mount Olive HS

TUBA

David Horn Livingston HS

BATTERY PERCUSSION

Brandon Chang John P Stevens HS

Logan Soltys Absegami HS

Luke Tan Wardlaw Hartridge HS

MALLET PERCUSSION

Hunter Pico Absegami HS

TIMPANI

Julian DiMaggio Bridgewater Raritan HS

PIANO

Joie Kuan CJ College Prep

2023 New Jersey All-State Treble Chorus

SOPRANO I

Koharu Ando No Valley Reg HS Demarest

Eliana Bice Hillsborough HS

Amaia Biggan Randolph HS

Jessie Bittle Woodstown HS

Giada Cammarano Westfield SR HS

Aaralyn Camp Cherry Hill HS East

Sarah Cohen Cherry Hill HS East

Isabel Coverdale Cherry Hill HS West

Sophie Deerberg No Burlington Co Reg HS

Marisa DeStefano Morris Knolls HS

Ella Forchic Pitman HS

Mia Franzo Delaware Valley Reg HS

Obenewaa Frimpomaa Millburn HS

Toyesha Ganesh East Brunswick HS

Shilo Garnett Winslow Twp HS

Mirabella Gibson Eastern Reg HS

Jenna Johnston Egg Harbor Twp HS

Allison Karmazin Freehold Twp HS

Jessica Lewis Kingsway Reg HS

Joyce Li Montgomery Twp SD

Kailyn Luizzi Cedar Grove HS

Kaelan Mattos Scotch Plains-Fanwood HS

Anika Mukherjee Ramsey HS

Sofia Narvaez Ridgefield Mem HS

Molly Park Burlington County HS

Allison Paterno Parsippany Hills HS

Annabelle Plociniak Roxbury HS

Julia Rojkov Ridgewood HS

Kaitlyn Sabo Kingsway Reg HS

Henna Sharma W Windsor-Plainsboro HS So

Aditi Shenoy Ridge HS

Katherine Shi Montgomery Twp SD

Saanvi Shringare Monroe Twp HS

Tanvi Tewary Bergen County Acad

Sanjana Thayi Bridgewater-Raritan HS

SOPRANO 2

Mehar Aiden Monroe Twp HS

Ella Anzuini Burlington City HS

Guntas Brar Bridgewater-Raritan HS

Angelina Brennen Bergen County Acad

Eliana Cardona Lyndhurst HS

Madeline Carvalho Hunterdon Central Reg HS

Gianna Cavallero Winslow Twp HS

Alyssa Cuccurullo Brick Twp Mem HS

Kaitlyn D'Alessandro Westfield SR HS

Gina Geiger Roxbury HS

Siena Giordano Cedar Grove HS

Jay Granholm Newton HS

Khushi Handa Monroe Twp HS

Morgan Hoban Cinnaminson HS

Simone Kaden Lyndhurst HS

Elle Kim Bridgewater-Raritan HS

Rachel Klemm Westfield SR HS

Prajakta Kulkarni East Brunswick HS

Heehyun Kwen River Dell Senior HS

Michela Leiser Hackettstown HS

Tanvi Mathur Ridge HS

Vanya Medina Hillsborough HS

Caroline Morrelli Westfield SR HS

Grace Nagle Morris Knolls HS

Robyn Nemeth Edison HS

Olivia Nieves Ridgefield Mem HS

Holly Paradise East Brunswick HS

Diya Ramesh Eastern Reg HS

Rhiannon Rankus Burl Co Inst of Tech

Caroline Rosiecki West Essex HS

Isabella Shreyhane Westfield SR HS

Roja Sonikar Monroe Twp HS

Nethra Srimal Montgomery Twp SD

Andrea Suarez Ridgefield Mem HS

Paige Their No Burlington County Reg HS

Emily Wojciak Brick Twp Mem HS

ALTO 1

Leilyn Alcantara Ridgefield Mem HS

Katherine Becker Roxbury HS

Cecelia Belinfanti Woodstown HS

Jasmine Bollack Parsippany HS

Chloe Bonaguide West Essex HS

Rebecca Borda Roxbury HS

Avery Brooks Westfield SR HS

Chloe Chang Eastern Reg HS

Charlotte Cotroneo Westfield SR HS

Leah Crossan Clearview Reg HS

Arushi Das John P. Stevens HS

Amber Deegan W Morris Mendham HS

Gourika Dhiman John P. Stevens HS

Melina Diou Morris Knolls HS

Alyssa Fox Morris Knolls HS

Natalie Gonzalez Westfield SR HS

Isha Gullapalli Roxbury HS

Jenna Hauser Chatham HS

Ava Hosonitz Morris Knolls HS

Anumita Jaisankar John P. Stevens HS

Mikayla Kelly W Morris Central HS

Charmaine Manipon Hawthorne Christian Ac

Virginia Messick Woodstown HS

Mia Miller Pitman HS

Erin Miskimon Morris Knolls HS

Afsheen Mohammad Monroe Twp HS

Shea Porada Kinnelon HS

Alyssa Pray Howell HS

Rachel Rodrigues Monroe Twp HS

Sylvia Ryan Bloomfield HS

Jasani Shellman Ramsey HS

Christine Shong Ridgefield Mem HS

Aanya Sinha Parsippany HS

Brianna Siochi Monroe Twp HS

Jahnavi Srikanth W Windsor-Plainsboro HS So

Sivaatmika Subramony JF Kennedy Mem HS

Gabrielle Vecciarelli Chatham HS

Anaina Vineeth JF Kennedy Mem HS

Jasmine Wang Livingston HS

Sera Wong Eastern Reg HS

ALTO 2

Deyana Abdelhady Rutgers Prep

Prakruti Ankem John P. Stevens HS

Navya Anush Monroe Twp HS

Jessica Ardolina Middletown HS No

Keziah Awa Winslow Twp HS

Amal Ayub W Morris Mendham HS

Veronica Baladi Bergen County Acad

Ryleigh Balazs Churchill Jr HS

Melissa Barriga No Plainfield HS

Summer Caffrey Lyndhurst HS

Natalia Chahine Saddle Brook MS/HS

Kira Chard-Cunion Ridge HS

Kathleen Chung Ridgefield Mem HS

Kennedy Coleman Audubon JR/SR HS

Natalie Dreyer Morris Knolls HS

Riley Erwin Audubon JR/SR HS

Julia Farrar Ramsey HS

Nicole Forte Washington Twp HS

Avery Frank Newton HS

Maya Govindu Monroe Twp HS

Olivia Hachey Roxbury HS

Kashish Jaiswal Morris Hills HS

Taylor Kitzman Raritan HS

Jamie Kudler Roxbury HS

Aditi Kumar Montgomery Twp

Adriana Lai Cherry Hill HS West

Kyra Lentzner Westfield SR HS

Medha Mahesh Montgomery Twp

Tommy Oberle Leonia HS

Raeva Patwardhan West Essex HS

Amelya Race High Point Reg HS

Grace Rasizer Wayne Valley HS

Morgan Seagreaves Washington Twp HS

Esha Shah Paramus HS

Danielle Smith W Morris Central HS

Arieanna Tambriz Bergenfield HS

Shania Tiwari Monroe Twp HS

Cecelia Valdez Lyndhurst HS

Payton Vogt Audubon JR/SR HS

2023 New Jersey All-State Symphonic Band

PICCOLO

Yuma Okada Fair Lawn HS

FLUTE

Shining Wang Livingston HS

Sophi Wang Livingston HS

Annika Moon Leonia HS

Hannah Lee Bergen Co Academies

Andy Yin Princeton HS

Lina Lin W Windsor-Plainsboro HS So

Rachel J. Kim No Valley Old Tappan HS

Kevin Cho Bergen Co Tech HS

Oriana Huang Dwight Englewood School

Adora Rao Bridgewater Raritan HS

Sara Srinivasan South Brunswick HS

Joanne Ding Wardlaw Hartridge School

OBOE

Andrea Chen Bergen Co Academies

Kevin Moon Ramsey HS

Chloe Chung Bergen Co Academies

Erin Lenox Watchung Hills Reg HS

ENGLISH HORN

Sumedha Solai Ridgewood HS

BASSOON

Jun-ki Kim Peddie School

Andrew Yuan W Windsor-Plainsboro HS So

Dylan Adamo Hillsborough HS

Dylan Frey Verona HS

Eb CLARINET

Michael Hanna Egg Harbor Twp HS

Bb CLARINET

Benjamin Chee Ridge HS

Matthew Gao The Lawrenceville School

William Huang The Lawrenceville School

Hanyi Deng High Technology HS

Justin Ni John P Stevens HS

Eugene Lee Cresskill HS

Brian Lee Montville Twp HS

Kevin Dai John P Stevens HS

Mira Wang Cherry Hill HS East

Matthew Kim River Dell HS

Emily Jin Ridge HS

Julian Ahn Tenafly HS

Gene Pak Bergen Co Academies

Jennifer Kim No Valley Old Tappan HS

Elliott Yi Ridgewood HS

Liliana Lincoln Westfield HS

Yeseo Choi River Dell HS

Kenny Shao Churchill Junior HS

James Eck Delbarton School

Erik Stroin Lacey Twp HS

Sean Li East Brunswick HS

Qianqian Qu Millburn HS

Jaejoon Hwang No Valley Reg HS at Demarest

Skylar Li Kent Place School

ALTO CLARINET

Brandon Colan Williamstown HS

Richard Kuzma Sayreville War Mem HS

BASS CLARINET

Evan Park Morris Hills HS

Angelina Morizzo Southern Reg HS

Ian French Watchung Hills Reg HS

Dev Dalwadi Edison HS

SOPRANO SAXOPHONE

Jackson Pellegrino Columbia HS

ALTO SAXOPHONE

Aadarsh Balaji John P Stevens HS

Andrew Xiong John P Stevens HS

Zachary Rubin Watchung Hills Reg HS

Henry Cai Millburn HS

TENOR SAXOPHONE

ColinKim Tenafly HS

Miles Birnbaum W Windsor-Plainsboro HS No

BARITONE SAXOPHONE

Christian Heil Washington Twp HS

Evan Gongora Hanover Park HS

TRUMPET

Colin Morrissey Absegami HS

Jonathan Xavier South Brunswick HS

Jared Wyetzner Metuchen HS

Teresa Wang Millburn HS

Colin Mroczko Madison HS

Grace Chu The Lawrenceville School

Bohyun Ahn No Valley Old Tappan HS

Nicholas Mikhail Wayne Valley HS

Peter Lyga John P Stevens HS

Thomas Alexander Eastern Reg HS

Timothy Holzmann Paramus HS

Kevin Wang Bridgewater Raritan HS

Connor Malatestra Bridgewater Raritan HS

FRENCH HORN

Riana Sherali John P Stevens HS

Christopher Juan John P Stevens HS

Yiming Huang Montgomery HS

Akhil Gopal John P Stevens HS

Leigh Rose Hart Vernon Twp HS

Saksham Kulkarni John P Stevens HS

Barbara Ashley Mount Olive HS

Theodore Higgins-Griffith Edison HS

TROMBONE

Madhav Narayan John P Stevens HS

Jonathan Lee Edison HS

Charles Lansdowne Morris Knolls HS

Joshua Yoon Cresskill HS

Nathan Braun West Morris Central HS

Keizo Katayama Fort Lee HS

Sumit Kulkarni John P Stevens HS

Eric Tighe Bridgewater Raritan HS

Peter Eaton Princeton HS

BASS TROMBONE

Hangyeol Cheong Princeton HS

EUPHPONIUM

Katherin Garcia West Milford HS

Mallory Pritchet Brick Twp HS

Agastya Shahane Bridgewater Raritan HS

James Krempasky Bridgewater Raritan HS

TUBA

Andrew Li John P Stevens HS

Sylvanus Jumbo Mount Olive HS

Dante Ragusa West Essex HS

Michael Tamboer Bridgewater Raritan HS

Jacob Sullivan Raritan HS

Theodore Medina Fair Lawn HS

DOUBLE BASS

Nicholas Park Fort Lee HS

BATTERY PERCUSSION

Jaden Lu Monroe Twp HS

Gavin Oh Shawnee HS

Matthew Nelson John P Stevens HS

Aaron Levine Tenafly HS

William Hoelzel West Morris Central HS

MALLETS

Michael Preuster Monroe Twp HS

Preston Masigla Monroe Twp HS

Marcello Sabat Monroe Twp HS

TIMPANI

Iswer Prasad Harinarayan BridgewaterRar. HS

PIANO

Ahan Kaushik East Brunswick HS

2022 New Jersey All-State Mixed Chorus

SOPRANO I

Sophia Ashbahian No Valley Reg HS-Old Tappan

Abigail Camacho Hawthorne Christian Acad

Kennedy Christensen Monroe Twp HS

Grace Chung Bergen County Acad

Elisa Chung East Brunswick HS

Hannah Cohen No Valley Reg HS-Demarest

Noyonika Gupta Montgomery Twp SD

Sophie Havens Westfield Sr HS

Riley Haworth Pascack Hills HS

Megan Hurley Kittatinny Reg HS

Navya Joshi John P Stevens HS

Sanya Kalbag Bridgewater-Raritan HS

Sarah LaMonica Westfield Sr HS

Chloe Lee Summit HS

Emily Leuenberger Summit HS

Olivia Marino Westfield Sr HS

Emma Milsom Roxbury HS

Jessica Morales Cedar Grove HS

Lily Navarro East Brunswick HS

Vanshika Pahilwani Morris Hills HS

Avanti Patwardhan Bridgewater-Raritan HS

Kathryn Radcliffe No Jersey HSA

Angelina Riveros Roxbury HS

Leah Scialla Hunterdon Cent Reg HS

Danica Snyder Piscataway HS

Cecilia Soheily Hawthorne Christian Acad

Aria Spinetti North Hunterdon HS

Emma Timpone New Providence HS

SOPRANO II

Victoria Adams Eastern Reg HS

Gabriella Albanese Hillsborough HS

Samyuktha Arvind W Windsor-Plainsboro HS So

Diya Bajaj W Morris Cent HS

Mina Batra Somerville HS

Rachel Bustamante Hawthorne Christian Acad

Sofia Crespo Paramus HS

Anna Garrison W Morris Mendham HS

Emma Giaccio Paramus HS

Katyayani Iyer East Brunswick HS

Meera James Monroe Twp HS

Diana Kalynyak John F Kennedy Mem HS

Claire Kurisko W Morris Mendham HS

Emma Mach No Burlington Co Reg HS

Sanjana Madhukar John P Stevens HS

Megan Mazzola Pitman HS

Adeline McCloskey West Essex HS

Isabella Negron Roxbury HS

Sarah Nichols Immaculata HS

Sophia Passaro W Morris Central HS

Elizabeth Pollock Shawnee HS

Diya Sareen Montgomery Twp SD

Riley Shivas Roxbury HS

Meera Singh Ridge HS

Sarah Smith Highland Reg HS

Sarah Sovak Ramsey HS

Ava Spinetti No Hunterdon HS

Giuliana Stout Clearview Reg HS

Madison Weil No Burlington Co Reg HS

ALTO I

Natalee Basile Woodstown HS

Chelsea Bohn-Pozniak Cinnaminson HS

Kayla Brown Howell HS

Abriella Camp Cherry Hill HS East

Nicole Choi Pascack Valley HS

Grace Chung Tenafly HS

Alexis Ciardella West Essex HS

Ava Connelly Eastern Reg HS

Bianca Del Campo Bergenfield HS

Kora Garcia Kittatinny Reg HS

Sofia Ghani Montgomery Twp SD

Melanie Gilbert Mahwah HS

Adwaitaa Goswami John P Stevens HS

Eliza Halteman Newton HS

Laura Justnes Montville Twp HS

Kai Kamasamudram Millburn HS

Sanskruti KeshavpatnamW Windsor-Plainsboro So

Audrey Kuo Morris Hills HS

Trinity Lee No Valley Reg HS at Demarest

Jinny Lee Leonia HS

Faith Lee Eastern Reg HS

Brianna Lugo W Morris Central HS

Angelina Mora Westfield Sr HS

Talia Morrison Washington Twp HS

Oorvee Mulay Monroe Twp HS

Luciana Musano West Essex HS

Krisha Parikh Eastern Reg HS

Amelia Perlmutter Rutherford HS

Cendny Pierre East Orange Campus HS

Lucie Saint-Denis Westfield Sr HS

Hanna Shein Deptford Twp HS

Angelina Tung Summit HS

Medha Valluri John P Stevens HS

ALTO II

Erin Bailey Bishop Eustace Prep

Isabella Balestrieri Paramus HS

Oliver Barrood Montgomery Twp SD

Lily Brunell Delaware Valley Reg HS

Sarah Buckman Middletown HS North

Gianna Cappello Pitman HS

Nadia Cruz Audubon Jr/Sr HS

Tori Dillon Howell HS

Samantha Faramelli Kingsway Reg HS

Ayra Gulati No Burlington Co Reg HS

Chloe Han Paramus HS

Emily Herman Cherry Hill HS East

Jessica Hutchinson Columbia HS

Marisa Landi Kingsway Reg HS

Soleille Manasse Hawthorne Christian Acad

Ava Milsom Roxbury HS

Kaitlyn Murphy Washington Twp HS

Skye MuthuramalingamNo Burlington Co Reg HS

Olivia Oliveira Lyndhurst HS

Jayla Pierre Saddle Brook MS/HS

Nadia Rego Westfield Senior HS

Keira Rheinheimer Newton HS

Emma Schrier Cinnaminson HS

Krishi Shah Paramus HS

Sasha Torres Millville MemHS

Maya Wachlaczenko Lyndhurst HS

Syona Wadhwa Montgomery Twp SD

Brooke Warren Cherry Hill HS East

TENOR I

Nathaniel Algor Ramsey HS

Andrew Berkemeyer Randolph HS

Noah Brasteter Audubon Jr/Sr HS

Adam Bretz Kingsway Reg HS

Jordan Calderon Morris Knolls HS

Jack Cecilio Williamstown HS

Andrew Darling Roxbury HS

Aidan Fairchild-Sandoval Lyndhurst HS

Danny Fencik Rutherford HS

Daniel Hillig Washington Twp HS

Norbert Martinez Roxbury HS

Luke Mitchell Hawthorne Christian Acad

Nikhil Mula John P Stevens HS

Ryan Nelson W Morris Mendham HS

Charlie Valdez Morris Knolls HS

Joel Yeo Ridgefield Mem HS

TENOR II

David Amorosi Audubon Jr/Sr HS

Gravit Bali John P Stevens HS

Derek Boxer Bridgewater-Raritan HS

Alexander Brinkman Roxbury HS

Sean Carpenter W Morris Central HS

Oren Cohen No Valley Reg HS at Demarest

Tyler Correia Matawan Reg HS

Nehan Degala John P Stevens HS

Anish Dharam John P Stevens HS

Ronan Flanagan New Providence HS

Stavya Gupta John P Stevens HS

Holden Hutchinson Delaware Valley Reg HS

Dominic Irizarry Pitman HS

Kyle Irving North Plainfield HS

Vaibhav Iyengar Parsippany Hills HS

Andrew Kim Bergen County Acad

Aaron Lintag Bergenfield HS

Skyler Lipkind Westfield Sr HS

Jake Matheis Parsippany HS

Philip Mathew North Hunterdon HS

Keshav Nair Howell HS

Aidan Olmo Paramus HS

Henry Park Ridgefield Mem HS

Shivam Patel John F Kennedy Mem HS

Prahalad Rana John P Stevens HS

Adam Roman Parsippany Hills HS

Logan Sellers Kittatinny Reg HS

Aadityaa Singla John P Stevens HS

A.J. Stanchfield Saddle Brook MS/HS

Nicholas Stella Morris Hills HS

Mishael Tineo Ridgefield Mem HS

Ian Wilson Cedar Grove HS

Tarun Yanamandra W Windsor-Plainsboro HS So

BASS I

Charles Baird-Hassell Chatham HS

Adam Bathurst Clearview Reg HS

Evan Bulan Newark Acad

Nickolas Burinsky Delaware Valley Reg HS

Sean Colarusso High Point Reg HS

Colin Covington Delran HS

Joseph Gamba Westfield Sr HS

Garrett Gao Westfield Sr HS

Justice Hanson W Morris Mendham HS

Andrew Joyal Morris Knolls HS

2022 New Jersey All-State Mixed Chorus (cont.)

SangHoon Jung Bergen County Acad

Edwin Kim No Valley Reg HS at Demarest

Jakob Krombholz Metuchen HS

Sam Laitman Westfield Sr HS

Bryle Steven Laput Ridge HS

Aaron Long Howell HS

Colin Mossmann Mahwah HS

Evan Paddock Roxbury HS

Jay Parmar East Brunswick HS

Gamaliel Perde Hawthorne Christian Acad

Alan Pinzon Saddle Brook MS/HS

Philip Regalado Monroe Twp HS

Angus Schmitt High Point Reg HS

Nathan Shurts Kinnelon HS

Jesse Shvartsman W Morris Central HS

Jackson Strong Audubon Jr/Sr HS

Prashasth Turaga East Brunswick HS

Akshar Vedantham Monroe Twp HS

Shravan Venkat John P Stevens HS

Yavan Vyas Newark Acad

Ryan Walsh North Hunterdon HS

BASS II

Eric Ahn Ridgefield Mem HS

Thomas Alexander Eastern Reg HS

Nathan Birdwell Haddon Twp HS

Gavin Brophy W Morris Central HS

Ronit Chakraborty John P Stevens HS

Aprameyo Chakravarty Westfield Sr HS

Jared Colan Williamstown HS

David Doherty Roxbury HS

Morgan Fuld Fair Lawn HS

Gabriel Gutierrez Tenafly HS

Christopher Korneyev Cherry Hill HS East

Andrew Krautheim Chatham HS

Siddharth Lakkotu John P Stevens HS

Evan Leone Westfield Sr HS

David Liansi Bergen County Acad

Justin Masi Roxbury HS

Krish Nambiar John P Stevens HS

Richard Noh Leonia HS

Nicholas Olson Cinnaminson HS

Seongjun Park Ridgefield Mem HS

Gabriel Pino Deptford Twp HS

Rishikesh Ravi Bridgewater-Raritan HS

Andrew Rickey Eastern Reg HS

Eric Silverman Cedar Grove HS

Rishabh Sinha Livingston HS

Harrison Tomasco Morris Hills HS

Andrew Tomasco W Morris Mendham HS

Jordan Viszoki Monroe Twp HS

Ryan Williamson Westfield Sr HS

Jack Youncofski Matawan Reg HS

Ethan Young Westfield Sr HS

2022 New Jersey All-State Jazz Band

SAXOPHONES

Ginger Meyer, Alto I W Morris-Mendham HS

Jack Crawford, Alto II Washington Twp East

Abhik Mojumdar, Tenor I So Brunswick HS

Chris McCrum, Tenor II Delran HS

Philip Om, Bari Creskill HS

TRUMPETS

Jacob Tolento Newark Academy

Nicholas Mikhail Wayne Valley HS

Shivan Kundra Newark Academy

Alvary Caravaca Mount Olive HS

TROMBONES

Charles Lansdowne Morris Knolls HS

Charles Kunzweiler Newark Academy

Alexander Massuet Mount Olive HS

Hangyeol Cheong Princeton HS

RHYTHM SECTION

Jiakun Huang, Piano Princeton HS

Eleanor Race, Bass Clearview Reg HS

Ayan Chaudhuri, Guitar Livingston HS

Kai Koyama, Drums Ridgewood HS

2022 New Jersey All-State Jazz Choir

Ella Anzuini Burlington City HS

Kaitlyn Campbell West Milford HS

Julia Gerst West Milford HS

Benjamin Harris Ridgewood HS

Daphne King West Milford HS

Connor McGorty Ridgewood HS

Emma Mohanty East Brunswick HS

Tyler Nese-Santos Mainland Regional HS

Aya Nestle Hopewell Valley Central HS

Jess Pritchett West Milford HS

Gillian Rasp West Milford HS

Jennie Scala West Milford HS

Zachary Wittner West Milford HS

Larry Xu The Pennington School

RHYTHM SECTION

Samvit Singhal, Piano New Providence HS

Christopher Maratea, Bass Ridge HS

Gabriel Barrett, Drums Cherry Hill HS East

2022 New Jersey All-State Intermediate Orchestra

FIRST VIOLIN

Emily Wang Warren MS

Tinghe Cao Robert R. Lazar MS

Nathan Song William Annin MS

Anderson Yu William Annin MS

Mason Chu Chatham MS

Lauren Sera Chung Tenakill MS

Hannah Lee Tenakill MS

Heewon Park Eisenhower IS

Rena Ryu Cresskill MS

Klaudia Kowalewski William Annin MS

Sunny Liu William Annin MS

Victor Hsu Cresskill MS

Chloe Kim Tenakill MS

Amay Naik Bridgewater-Raritan MS

Laura Lin Newark Acad

Sunny Cui Princeton MS

Adrian Chirnoaga Woodrow Wilson MS

Emilian Lipnevic Thomas R. Grover MS

Soobin Kim Bridgewater-Raritan MS

Jane Lee Sayreville MS

Kevin Zhang Clinton Township MS

Kevin Yang Home School

Leah Park Rosa International MS

Neha Thota John Adams MS

SECOND VIOLIN

Ethan Yan Rosa International MS

Lucas Ni William Annin MS

Matthew Keng Montgomery Upper MS

Kash Tsai West Essex MS

Prisha Bagchi Thomas R. Grover MS

Sophia Gao William R. Satz MS

Anna Kang Thomas Grover MS

Aditya Nerkar Thomas Grover MS

Leilani Gopal Woodrow Wilson MS

Natalie Cheng

Montgomery Upper MS

Paige Wang Woodrow Wilson MS

Madeline Yong Edison IS

Jerry Yu Rosa International MS

Ameya Srinivasan John Adams MS

Alexander Kuchuk Churchill Jr HS

Brooklyn Jang Montgomery Upper MS

Jonathan Chang William Allen MS

Grace Li William Annin MS

Chloe Ha William Annin MS

Mihir Goel Thomas Grover MS

Ian Chang Rutgers Prep School

Seoyul Kim Chatham MS

Mai Kim Edison IS

Stephen Shen Hammarskjold MS

VIOLA

Joshua Cha Princeton Day School

Ethan Lee Churchill Jr HS

Lucas Kim Lewis F Cole MS

Aiden Lee Montgomery Upper MS

Wonyul Choi Ridgedale MS

Adithya Anand Bridgewater-Raritan Reg MS

Alan Lei Hammarskjold MS

Olivia Kim Cresskill MS

Stephanie Cho Tenakill MS

Sanjana Murali William Annin MS

Matthew Ham Hammarskjold MS

Audrey Kim Tenakill MS

Alexis Zhang Kent Place School

Natalie Chen Bridgewater Raritan MS

Kingshuk Mallik John Adams MS

Gina Park Rosa International MS

CELLO

Jessica Hong Churchill Jr HS

Jason Liu Churchill Jr HS

Kwanyun Loo Rosa International MS

Elie Kuan Central Jersey College Prep

Aidan Lee Voorhees MS

Hawon Song Cresskill MS

Charlotte Ji Dressel John Adams MS

Darren Lee Churchill Jr HS

Parker Woo Community MS

Claire Kim Cresskill MS

Kenny Yang Home School

Kayla Park Leonia MS

Aaron Li Thomas Grover MS

Kealia Grace Smith Homeschool

Vivian Shen William Annin MS

Zimo Nan William Annin MS

BASS

Rishabh Ramaswamy Thomas Grover MS

Alex Acot Montgomery Upper MS

Elves Huang Montgomery Upper MS

Arav Choudhary Churchill Jr HS

Akhila Pithani Princeton MS

Mikhial Veras Theodore Schor School

Odhran McDermott Princeton MS

New Jersey Governor’s Awards for the Arts in Education

2022-2023

NJMEA Recipients

New Jersey All-State Orchestra

Alexander Lu

Bridgewater Raritan High School

Sponsoring Teacher: Hsiao-Yu Lin Griggs

Anthony Zhai

Montgomery High School

Sponsoring Teacher: Ingrid Tang

New Jersey All-State Band

Isabelle Mailman

Wayne Valley High School

Sponsoring Teacher: Gabriel Batiz

Karina Yang Ridge High School

Sponsoring Teacher: Dan Zugale

New Jersey All-State Jazz

Ginger Meyer

West Morris Mendham High School

Sponsoring Teacher: Mick Gibbons

Opera Festival

Kathryn Radcliffe

NJ Homeschool Association

Sponsoring Teacher: Anne Paynter

New Jersey All-State Mixed Chorus

Noyonika Gupta

Montgomery Township High School

Sponsoring Teacher: Jeffrey Woodworth

Oliver Barrood

Montgomery Township High School

Sponsoring Teacher: Jeffrey Woodworth

Luke Mitchell

Hawthorne Christian Academy

Sponsoring Teacher: Anne Paynter

Christopher Korneyev

Cherry Hill High School East

Sponsoring Teacher: Heather Lockart

NJMEA Master Music Teacher

Dr. Missy Strong Mount Laurel Schools

NJMEA Leadership in Music Education

Patrick O'Keefe

Absegami High School

Governor's Award Ceremony is scheduled for June 2, 2023 at the The College of New Jersey

NJSMA

North Jersey School Music Association

www.njsma.com

Greetings to all of our colleagues! The past few months have been filled with some great musical activities throughout our region. I will start off with our performances. A huge thank you goes out to our site hosts, managers, accompanists and conductors as follows:

BAND (Hosted at John H. Walker MS by Andrew Mayewski Jr. and Vincent Vicchiariello)

Intermediate Symphonic Winds (Richard Barrieres, conductor Carolyn Masi & Andrew Lopez, managers)

Intermediate Concert Band (David Marks, conductor Jeff Peters & Erik Sloezen, managers)

CHORUS (Hosted at Memorial MS by George Glock & Clifton HS by Leonid Weismantel)

Intermediate Mixed Chorus (Laura Kosmich, conductor Michael Holak, accompanist Paul Ricigliano, manager)

Intermediate Treble Chorus (Deborah Mello, conductor Michelle Yampolsky, accompanist Julianne Boyle & Rebecca Polynice, managers)

ORCHESTRA (Hosted at Ramapo Ridge MS by Wendy Campbell & County College of Morris)

Intermediate Symphonic Orchestra (Sue On, conductor Peter Norell & Rob Anderson, managers)

In addition to everything listed above, the band division hosted our annual high school concert band festivals (March 21 - 23). Congratulations to all of the groups that participated along with those chosen to represent our region at the state gala. On April 1st, the elementary general music division along with the NJYC co-sponsored a workshop entitled It’s

Elementary My Dear. As always, this was a huge success and a great experience for everyone involved. Our orchestra division also hosted two festivals in April for high school/intermediate and elementary ensembles. Both of these events were well received and successful.

We still have a few more events planned in May and June including the 5th & 6th Grade Honors Band Festival, Guitar Festival, Elementary Choral Celebration and Membership PD Day. Info for these events can be found on our website calendar (https://njsma.org/calendar/).

My term as President is coming to a close and I’d like to publicly thank our entire executive board for all of the work they have done. Making everything happen in our region is an immense job. Their hard work and dedication along with all of the membership who helped contribute their services and knowledge is greatly appreciated. We are always looking for volunteers to help in any capacity. Please reach out to anyone on the executive board if you are interested and want to get more involved. Please also visit our website (https://njsma. org/) for other region related information and contact info for all executive board members.

I hope everyone has a successful and enjoyable end to the school year. I look forward to continuing my service to the region as Past President starting in September 2023. Please don’t hesitate to reach out if there is anything I can help you with.

Christopher DeWilde NJSMA President president[at]njsma.com

CJMEA

Central Jersey Music Educators Association

www.cjmea.org

I hope everyone is doing well! This will be my final report for CJMEA during my presidency. It has been such a privilege to serve each of you during the past two years. During this time, I have had the opportunity to work with some of the finest educators, students, administrators, industry professionals, and many more and it has been an absolute pleasure. I have learned so much from this experience and I am proud to have served in this role during the period of entering the postpandemic and watching the organization get back up and running. I would like to thank the CJMEA Board, all of whom have been a team of true professionals. I couldn’t have asked to work with a finer group of individuals during the past two years. We have accomplished some wonderful things and I am very excited to see where things will go not only in CJMEA but for music education in the state as a whole. While I will

be sliding into the Past-President role as well and maintaining my duties as the Division Percussion Chair, I am so excited to pass the baton to Brian Williams as our next CJMEA President. Brian is a wonderful individual who is full of great ideas and passion for music education. I am confident without a shadow of a doubt that the organization is in great hands with Brian. I look forward to working with him as well as the rest of the CJMEA Board for the next two years.

SJCDA

South Jersey Choral Directors Association www.sjcda.net

The South Jersey Choral Directors Association held their annual Elementary Chorus Festival on March 4, 2023 at the Washington Township at the Republic Bank Performing Arts Center. Guest conductor Polly Murray led the 40th Annual Elementary Chorus in a wonderful concert program accompanied by Nick Watts at the piano.

Our Intermediate Region Season has just wrapped up. The concerts were amazing and the students all performed at a very high level. I would like to thank our conductors: Mark Kraft (Intermediate Wind Ensemble), Ciji Coates (Intermediate Symphonic Band), Christopher Beckett (Intermediate String Orchestra), Tanya Chanphanitponkit (Intermediate Chamber Orchestra), Vinroy Brown (Intermediate Treble Chorus), Mariel Johnson (Intermediate Mixed Chorus), and Pamela Ferrali (Intermediate Percussion Ensemble). You were all a pleasure to have in CJMEA this year and the students had a wonderful time working with each of you! All of this couldn’t be possible without our Division Chairs: Sandy Olson and Ashlen Udell (K-8 Band), Helen Kernizan (K-8 Chorus), and Grace Lee (K-8 Orchestra). Your tireless efforts to make this happen have been outstanding. I thank each of you for all of your work this season.

Our Diversity and Inclusion Division ran a PD session in March at North Brunswick MS featuring Vinroy D. Brown on the topic of “Diverse Musicians: Programming for our Classroom”. This was the second part to his PD back in the Fall. Thank you to Isaiah C. Mason, our CJMEA Diversity and Inclusion Chair for putting these PD Sessions together. I encourage everyone to please “like” our CJMEA Facebook Page which will contain updates about all our news and events. If I can ever be of assistance to anyone, please feel free to reach out!

Yale Snyder

CJMEA President

percussion[at]cjmea.org

SJCDA would like to thank everyone who contributed to the success of this year’s elementary festival: managers Matthew Guerrasio (Fernwood Ave MS) Theresa Hengeli (Central Park Elementary), box office coordinator Kathy Drachowski (Delran HS), Festival Coordinator & our site host, Amy Melson (Washington Twp HS) and her wonderful Choir Parent Association, the festival would not be possible without the hard work, preparation and support of the sponsoring directors with 30 South Jersey schools that participated in the program.

Our organization held its annual SJCDA Spring General Membership Meeting & Seminar on Friday, April 28th at Scotland Run Golf course. We started the morning with a buffet breakfast together as well as a brief membership meeting. Following that, our two scholarship winners Amalia Messick from Collingswood HS & Paulina Baron from Lenape HS presented outstanding performances of their winning audition pieces.

The presenters for this year’s inservice were Hope Knight and Donald Dumpson. We would like to thank Hope and Donald for their amazing and informative workshops at our breakfast meeting.

Many thanks to all of the SJCDA membership for a wonderful performance season. We again would like to thank all of our members who gave so much of their time and energy to make this year's festivals tremendously successful. Thank you for all that you do for SJCDA in the past, present and the future.

David Taylor SJCDA President dtaylor[at]nburlington.com

SJBODA

South Jersey Band and Orchestra Directors Association

www.sjboda.org

Congratulations to all who were involved with the 45th Annual All South Jersey Junior High School Band Concert. The performances were outstanding. The conductors this year were Bethany Wiberg (Richard M. Teitelman MS) and Pamela Turowski (Burlington County Institute of Technology). Nancy Robinson (Linwood Public Schools) and Mariah Cottrell (Davenport Primary School) provided excellent assistance as managers for these ensembles.

This concert would not be possible without the commitment and dedication of our colleagues. Joe Brausam (Lacey Township MS), our Junior High Band Coordinator, was responsible for organizing a wonderful event that our students will cherish for many years. Special thanks to Derek Rohaly (Mainland Regional HS), Marc Spatz (Fernwood Avenue MS), and Dawn Donchey (Alder Avenue MS) who offered their facilities and percussion equipment for the rehearsals and the performance.

Our 15th Annual Chamber Ensemble Concert took place at Penns Grove HS. Jon Porco (Deptford Township MS) was our Chamber Ensemble Coordinator and Ken Rafter was our concert host. The ensemble coaches were Brass: Jim Mark (Cherry Hill HS West), Percussion: Andrew Kruc (Deptford Township School District), Sax: Noa Even (Rowan University), Woodwind Quintet: Val Kuntz (Williamstown HS), Clarinet: Liz Cicali (Middle Township School District), Flute: Renae Block (Evesham Flute Studio), and Tuba/Euphonium: Jacob Weber (Cherry Hill Elementary Schools).

Our 29th Annual High School Concert Band Festival showcased 16 ensembles this year. This two-day event took place at Rowan University with Joe Higgins as our host. The performances by these groups are evidence of the many excellent instrumental music programs in South Jersey. Our festival coordinators were Mike Armstrong (Deptford HS) and Jon Porco (Deptford MS). The adjudicators were Megan Cooney (Rowan University) and Teresa Purcell-Giles (William Patterson University).

Our Elementary Music Festival will be held on Saturday, April 29th at Absegami HS with Patrick O’Keefe as our host. The string ensemble and three bands will represent approximately 120 schools. Our coordinators will be LeeAnn Hewitt (Eagleswood ES & Little Egg Harbor School District) and Christine Macaulay (Clara Barton ES). Kate Wyatt (Egg Harbor Township School District) will conduct the string ensemble. The band conductors will be Howard Isaacson (Dr. Joyce Miller ES), Andrea Goos (Mount Pleasant ES) and Karen Baker (Buena Regional MS). Scott Nulty (Stafford Intermediate School), Nicole Adorno (Silver Run ES) and Chris Janney (Haddonfield HS) will assist as managers for the bands and Samantha Sara (Dr. Joyce Miller ES) will be the manager for the string ensemble.

The SJBODA Spring Breakfast meeting will take place on Wednesday, May 24th at 9:00 AM at Seven Star Diner. Please contact Lori Ludewig at 609-457-0590 or sjbodapresident@ gmail.com if you plan to attend. Please continue to check the Web site, maintained by Derek Rohaly (Mainland Regional HS), for the latest SJBODA updates.

Lori Ludewig SJBODA President sjbodapresident[at]gmail.com

James Buchanan

Professional Musician, Educator, Beloved Father & Grandfather James Buchanan, 80, of Maplewood, NJ, passed away on Tuesday, January 31, 2023, ending a beautiful life, fully lived. Jim was predeceased by his beloved wife of 54 years, Carol Buchanan, and is survived by devoted daughter, Rebekah Buchanan Harris, of Bethesda, MD and grandchildren, Benjamin Lev Harris, Maayan Shira Harris, and Shoshana Eve Harris. Funeral will be Monday, February 6 at Preston Funeral Home, 153 South Orange Avenue, South Orange, NJ. The family will receive visitors at 10:30 AM and services begin at 11:00 AM followed by burial at the Rosedale Cemetery, 408 Orange Road, Montclair. Jim Buchanan was a passionate musician and music teacher. He performed professionally and taught in West Caldwell public schools for 35 years. In his retirement, Mr. Buchanan was Maplewood Township's first Cultural Affairs Director and formed Maplewood Community Music among other groups. Mr. Buchanan's legacy is most truly reflected in his family, the countless lives he touched, his music and the community that grew out of them. Mr. Buchanan was predeceased by his brother, Howard E. Buchanan, Jr. He leaves his dear brothers, Bruce E. Buchanan, Sr., and Kim P. Buchanan (Jane), and many nieces, nephews, students, friends and neighbors.

Joseph

A. DePaul, Jr.

Joseph A. DePaul Jr., died on Wednesday, February 15, 2023. The Funeral will be from the Rossi Funeral Home, 1937 Westfield Ave. Scotch Plains, NJ on Tuesday, February 21, 2023. There will be a visitation at the funeral home from 10:30am-12:30pm. A Funeral Mass will be celebrated at St. Bartholomew the Apostle Church, Scotch Plains, at 1pm. The interment will follow at Hillside Cemetery, Scotch Plains. Joseph was born in Elizabeth and raised in Scotch Plains. He graduated from Scotch Plains Fanwood High School in 1968. He then received his Bachelor’s Degree from Boston

University in 1972. Joseph settled to Cranford in 1997 and has been a resident ever since. After graduating from college, Joseph was a Professional Musician for several years. He was a member of the house band at the Southampton Princess Beach Resort in Bermuda, and then went to Las Vegas and performed for various Hotels. In 1984, Joseph became a Music Teacher for the Elizabeth Board of Education. He retired in 2009, after 25yrs in that position.

Joseph had a love for flying and photography. He received his amateur pilot’s license, and would show his photography at various galleries throughout NYC. In his most recent project, Joseph was photographing Paris, France, to publish a book on the city. Joseph was a devoted animal lover, and especially of his cat Kayleigh.

Joseph is survived by his two brothers Richard (Peggy), and Douglas; and his niece Rachel Hennessy (Michael).

Herbert W. Huff

Herbert W. Huff died Wednesday, February 8, 2023, at his home in Monroe Township. He was 93.

Born in Elizabeth to the late George and Henrietta (Munster) Huff, he lived in East Brunswick before moving to Monroe Township in 2001. He was a music teacher in the New Brunswick schools for 36 years before retiring in 1991.

Mr. Huff was a member of the United Methodist Church at New Brunswick, where his late wife was the organist and he was the choir director, and the Cranbury Methodist Church. He was a veteran of the United States Navy having served during the Korean War.

His wife Barbara (Daugherity) Huff died in 2017. He was also predeceased by two brothers – Arthur and George Huff. Surviving are two daughters – Laura Jean Gincel and her husband Abraham and Elizabeth Ann "Betsy" McGrath and her husband John all of Monroe Township; his son David Warren Huff and his wife Elizabeth of South River; and six grandchildren – Matthew, Craig and Timothy Huff, Adam and Paul Gincel and Sarah McGrath.

This column salutes the lives and careers of recently departed colleagues. It is the way NJMEA and NJRMEA can express appreciation for the work that they have done and the lives that they have touched. We mourn their passing and salute their contributions, which are the basis for music education in the state of New Jersey.

NJMEA RESOURCE PERSONNEL

Inclusion/Diversity/Equity/Access

Marching

Middle/Junior

Band Festival .................................. Manuel Martinez ...................................... manuelmartinez[at]gehrhsd.net

Middle/Junior High Choral Festival

Donna Marie Berchtold firesongwed[at]gmail.com

NJMEA Historian Nicholas Santoro n31b13[at]gmail.com

NJMEA State Conference Exhibits Chair ......................... Nancy Clasen ................................................ nancyclasen[at]gmail.com

NJMEA State Conference Manager Marie Malara malara97[at]aol.com

NJMEA/ACDA Honors Choir Kaitlyn Reiser kreiser[at]spfk12.org

November Convention – NJEA .......................................... Nancy Clasen ................................................ nancyclasen[at]gmail.com

Opera Festival Chair

Donna Marie Berchtold firesongwed[at]gmail.com

Orchestra Performance Chair ............................................. Susan Meuse ................................................ susanmeuse[at]gmail.com

Orchestra Procedures Chair Craig Stanton & Elisabeth Sato asoprocedures[at]gmail.com

Research

Colleen Sears quinnc1[at]tcnj.edu

Students with Special Needs ............................................ Maureen Butler .................................. maureenbutlermusic[at]gmail.com

Supervisor of Performing Groups

Patrick O’Keefe patrickaokeefe[at]gmail.com

Tri-M ............................................................................... David Westawski ...................................... westawski.njmea[at]gmail.com

REPRESENTATIVES/LIAISONS TO AFFILIATED, ASSOCIATED AND RELATED ORGANIZATIONS

NJ American Choral Directors Association

Governor’s Award for Arts Education ..............................

NJ Association for Jazz Education

NAfME ...........................................................................

NJ Music Administrators Association

NJ Retired Music Educators Association

NJ TI:ME ..........................................................................

Percussive Arts Society

Kaitlyn Reiser kreiser[at]spfk12.org

Patrick O'Keefe ........................................... patrickaokeefe[at]gmail.com

Miguel Bolivar mbolivar.njaje[at]gmail.com

William McDevitt ......................................wmcdevittnjmea[at]gmail.com

Jonathan Harris harrisj[at]nvnet.org

Ronald Dolce rdolce561[at]aol.com

Andrew Lesser ........................................... andrew.lesser[at]yahoo.com

Joe Bergen joe[at]mantrapercussion.org

COMMUNICATION SERVICES/PUBLIC RELATIONS

Executive Director/TEMPO Editor

William McDevitt

wmcdevittnjmea[at]gmail.com

TEMPO Express ................................................................ Andrew Lesser ........................................... andrew.lesser[at]yahoo.com

NJMEA 2021-2023 Board of Directors

Executive Board

President

Wayne Mallette

Past President

Patrick O’Keefe

Absegami High School patrickaokeefe[at]gmail.com

NJSMA, President Christopher DeWilde

Anthony Wayne Middle School president[at]njsma.com

CJMEA, President Yale Snyder Monroe Township Schools percussion[at]cjmea.org

Scotch Palins-Fanwood District mallette.njmea[at]gmail.com

President-Elect

David Westawski

West Windsor-Plainsboro High School South westawski.njmea[at]gmail.com

Executive Director William McDevitt

Retired wmcdevittnjmea[at]gmail.com

SJCDA, President David Taylor

Northern Burlington Reg HS dtaylor[at]nburlington.com

NJMEA Board of Directors - Appointed Members

Administration

Alfred Hadinger North Plainfield alfred_hadinger[at]nplainfield.org

Advocacy

Libby Gopal East Orange Campus HS lgopal[at]ewrsd.k12.nj.us

Band Festivals/NJEA Liaison

Nancy Clasen Thomas Jefferson Middle School nancyclasen[at]gmail.com

Band Performance

Megan Alexander meganalexander160[at]gmail.com

Choral Festivals

Donna Marie Berchtold Retired firesongwed[at]gmail.com

Choral Performance

Brian Williams Robbinsville High School williams.brian[at]robbinsville.k12.nj.us

Chorus/Orchestra/Jazz

Joseph Cantaffa Howell High School jcantaffa[at]rocknrollchorus.com

Conferences

Marie Malara Retired malara97[at]aol.com

Guitar/Expanded Ensembles

Jayson Martinez

Newark Arts High School jmarti37[at]webmail.essex.edu

Higher Ed./Research/Collegiate

Colleen Sears

The College of New Jersey quinnc1[at]tcnj.edu

SJBODA, President Lori Ludewig

Collingswood/Oaklyn Schools sjbodapresident[at]gmail.com

K-12 Ed Tech and Innovation

Shawna Longo Durban Avenue School shawnalongo[at]gmail.com

Music Industry

James Frankel jim[at]musicfirst.com

Orchestra Performance/Festivals

Susan Meuse Hammarskjold Middle School susanmeuse[at]gmail.com

PreK-8 General Music

Amy Burns Far Hills Country Day School aburns[at]fhcds.org

Retired Members/Mentorship

Kathy Spadafino Retired kspadeb[at]aol.com

Special Learners

Maureen Butler Retired maureenbutlermusic[at]gmail.com

GENERAL ADVERTISING RATES

Note: Additional fees will apply if metal plates are required. Ads which exceed the specified sizes will be charged at next ad size.

EDITORIAL POLICY

Articles may be submitted to the editor of this magazine by anyone who wishes to write about topics related to music or music education. All articles which are selected for publication will be proof read for content, spelling and grammatical errors. Authors who submit an article to TEMPO Magazine for publication agree to all of the following

1. the editor may edit all articles for content, spelling and grammar.

2. the printing of the article in TEMPO Magazine, the printing date, and placement are at the discretion of the editor.

3. permission is granted to reprint the same article in any National or State Music Education Association magazine on the condition that the author’s name and TEMPO Magazine are to be mentioned in all reprinted articles.

4. no exceptions will be made regarding items 1 through 3 above.

5. the author of the article may submit his/her article to additional magazines for publication.

NJMEA Past Presidents

1924 - 1926 Josephine Duke

1926 - 1930 R.W. Laslett Smith

1930 - Jay W. Fay

1930 - 1931 Wilbert B. Hitchner

1931 - 1933 Thomas Wilson

1933 - 1935 John H. Jaquish

1935 - 1936 Clifford Demarest

1936 - 1938 Mable E. Bray

1938 - 1939 Paul H. Oliver

1939 - 1941 K. Elizabeth Ingles

1941 - 1942 Arthur E. Ward

1942 - 1944 John T. Nicholson

1944 - 1945 Frances Allan-Allen

1945 - 1947 Philip Gordon

1947 - 1949 Violet Johnson

1949 - 1951 Samuel W. Peck

- 1953

G. Gleason

1977 - 1979 Buddy S. Ajalat

1979 - 1981 Alyn J. Heim

1981 - 1983

1983 - 1985 Anthony Guerere

1985 - 1987 Joan Policastro

1987 - 1989 Joseph Mello

1989 - 1991 Dorian Parreott

1991 - 1993 David S. Jones

1993 - 1995 Anthony Guerere

1995 - 1997 Sharon Strack

1997 - 1999 Chic Hansen

1999 - 2001 Joseph Mello

2001 - 2003 Nicholas Santoro

2003 - 2005 Frank Phillips

2005 - 2007 Joseph Akinskas

2007 - 2009 Robert Frampton

2009 - 2011 William McDevitt

2011 - 2013 Keith Hodgson

2013 - 2015 Joseph Jacobs

2015 - 2017 William McDevitt

2017 - 2019 Jeffrey Santoro

2019 - 2021 Patrick O'Keefe

TRAINING THE CREATIVE LEADERS

OF TOMORROW

Performance

Music Education

Composition

Music Therapy

Jazz Studies

NEW: Recording Arts + Production

CALI IMMERSIVE RESIDENCY PROGRAM

AT MONTCLAIR STATE UNIVERSITY

CAROLINE SHAW

We welcome the greater NJ area community to join us for our second annual reimagined professional residency program at the John J. Cali School of Music at Montclair State University. The seven week-long residencies include a rotation of top rated artists and ensembles. Each residency will contribute to an on-going exploration of the ever-changing landscape of music today, introducing students and the community at large to amazing events of today and to a future that will be, at times, less traditional.

An exceptional artistic and academic education

Mentorship by internationally acclaimed artists, educators and scholars

Inspiration and preparation to serve the community and enrich society using the transformative power of music

Developing musicianship and professional skills in ensembles, masterclasses, clinical experiences, internships, and teaching

Experiencing the cultural riches of New York City nearby

DEGREES

Bachelor of Music, Bachelor of Arts, Master of Music, Master of Arts, Artist’s Diploma

Music Education, Performance, Jazz Studies, Music Therapy, Theory/Composition

Graduate String Quartet Residency Program

MONTCLAIR.EDU/MUSIC

TEMPO

ROB KAPILOW

CHRISTIAN MCBRIDE VOCES8

RAHZEL

JON B.

RHIANNON GIDDENS CAVANI QUARTET

DECODA

FINISH THE SCHOOL YEAR ON A HIGH NOTE

ENROLL IN THE MASTER OF MUSIC EDUCATION FROM ROWAN UNIVERSITY’S CRITICALLY ACCLAIMED COLLEGE OF PERFORMING ARTS

With a focus on diversity, equity, inclusion, and access, the Master of Music Education program prepares music educators to become school-based change makers. Convenient online courses during the academic year and a sensational three-week summer session help students connect theory to practice and go deeper into the heart of music education.

ENROLL NOW AND YOU WILL:

• Advance your approach to teaching music

• Explore current trends in the field of music education

• Develop strategies for teaching music in an ever-changing society

• Participate in workshops and seminars with prominent music education scholars

• Continue your growth as a musician and an educator

LEARN MORE! go.rowan.edu/musiceducation