This excerpt from “Life after graduate school: The importance of a Mentor” is written by Kristin Yost (soon to be featured in a series of ComposeCreate posts on finances). Â Kristin is the founder and executive director of Centre for Musical […]
Life after Graduate School: The Importance of a Mentor Read More »
What Music Means to Me Project is a celebration of the value of music in education and quality of life. Â This project was started by Richard Rejino, a musician and photographer, in a most interesting way. Â You can read more
What Music Means to Me [Author Interview] Read More »
I am preparing to give a few workshops about motivating students to play more musically. My thesis has been that learning to listen and love a wide range of musical and non-musical sounds is one of the secrets to producing
Listening: The secret of great music performance Read More »
Here is Part 2 of “The Myths of Playing by Ear” by Bradley Sowash.  Read Part 1 here. Myth #3 Only experts can teach ear skills. The biggest obstacle for students seeking ear skills is finding instruction. To illustrate this, let me
The Myths of Playing by Ear-Part 2 Read More »
Bradley Sowash, a wonderful jazz musician and composer, helps unscramble 4 myths of playing by ear. Here is Part 1 of “The Myths of Playing by Ear.” Playing by ear is one of those areas of teaching music that often
The Myths of Playing by Ear-Part 1 Read More »
When a teaching colleague asked me if I had any worksheets that were specific to triple time, I realized to my dismay that I did not! I know that when we first introduce triple time, it is easy for students
New Rhythm Worksheets: Triple Time Read More »
I am a firm believer in finding the right word to coax a correct response from my students. It is so easy to fall into a rut in using the same words again and again to describe staccato (“short and jumpy”)
Preparing for Fall: Useful Adjectives for Teaching Read More »
I am now on a break from teaching until mid-August when I begin my fall semester. During the next few weeks, I’d like to prepare for fall by doing the following: Establishing achievable overall goals for my studio. Organizing my
Preparing for Fall Read More »
(NOTE: This contest for my students has expired, so I don’t really need any votes any more. However, I’m leaving this post up to help other teachers see how to do a Cartoon Motive Contest themselves.) Teachers, I need your
Cartoon Motive Contest: We Need Your Vote! Read More »
I think interesting rhythms are a great “hook” that composers can use in their music.  Hemiola just happens to be one of my favorite rhythmic tools. Several of my students have been studying rhythmic dictation in 6/8 timing and we have been
Hemiola Rhythm Drill Added Read More »
The Great Fuzzy Event of 2026!
You will not believe what we released at this premier event! Four new Fuzzies solos, a new and FREE incentive program, summer ideas, new resources and so much more! Even the replay is super fun!
