Midweek Meanderings and Miscellany XXII: Short, Sweet and AH-one and AH-two!**

**(* for those of a certain generation....those who don't get it, see paragraph two below..hint: Champagne Music!)

The office move has been made! Things looks great. IT and Mailroom guys did a phenomenal job! amazing they got it done! (and I'm so glad to see that buddy EW, who was just given an office three months ago, actually gained space in her new "condo sized" cubicle facing the forest!)

In brief -
- Lots of back to school calls from teachers and others seeking resources and help, and
- categorizing hundreds of responses to the two surveys we did this summer on the standards for transmission to the Standards Task force by 8/31!
*** SPECIAL THANKS this week to JL of IT who saved the day by helping me fix a blooper I made on my computer which prevented me from being able to access the formatting codes on this blog! Were it not for JL - you'd be reading this in black and white only, no color and no links!

The main deal this week is,
I've been wanting to share this article re: accordion playing, an old timer teaching the instrument to youngsters, fearing the skill will die out. I've always liked the accordion, my first memories of this unique instrument being my Uncle Stan playing the box at family gatherings. It was the coolest looking thing, and made the most amazing sound. It lured me down to the basement where the guys were drinking and yucking it up. Uncle Stan would come over when he saw me creep down the steps, and play as he smiled at me, and then he'd come over and let me press a few of the keys/buttons....what a thrill!

Yes, Uncle Stan was Polish American, and this was in the mid 60's, but lest you think the accordion is just Lawrence Welk's instrument of choice to play sappy cornball music, think again (and hear the LIVE performances BELOW!) This free vibrating reed and bellows contraption has much to teach, about how it came over to this country, all the types of music that can be played on it (Tango, Eastern European gypsy music, even polkas and waltzes, chanties and ballads and jigs, and Cajun/zydeco!), the different names the accordion takes in different cultures ..........
(to quote the W. Post article linked above:
"Although originally conceived in the early 1800s as a device to tune pipe organs, the accordion was quickly embraced as an instrument throughout Europe for its versatility, rich sound and portability. It traveled to the United States with the wave of emigration at the turn of the 20th century and became big business in the 1930s, when immigrant vaudeville performers stole the spotlight with their ornate accordions and fast-flying finger work."

This instrument and its sound gets your blood pumping!!

To supplement the Post article, I went looking for a few links to share (see below) about the history of the instrument, and the accordion in American music. Unbelieveably, the first item that came up on that search was an article by Uncle Stan's SON, MY COUSIN, Roy!!! (professor at RIT, Rochester, NY, also amateur pianist and pilot).....! Talk about coincidence! My cousin has written about the accordion in Polish American culture! I'm sure he has some great memories of the instrument, too, his Dad being an accordion player..... (and his lovely Mom, my Dad's sister, my Aunt Irene, had a beautiful singing voice, I'm sure she sang along with Uncle Stan...I know she and my Dad used to perform in Polish folk costume in their home town in the 30's....click to see cool photos of such costumes; it's the 2nd photo in queue, not the family portrait)

Have a listen to some live performances by musicians from around the world happening this week in Washington DC at the 60th Anniversary Coupe Mondiale International Competition for Accordionists, jointly hosted by the Accordionists and Teachers Guild, International (ATG) and the American Accordionists' Association (AAA) from 13 - 18 August, 2007 in Alexandria, VA (Washington, DC) USA.

CLICK to hear live broadcasts from the JFKennedy Center Millenium Stage

Here's the schedule this week:

Wednesday:
- University of Missouri-Kansas City Accordion Orchestra, Joan Sommers, Director
- Martin Music Center Accordion Orchestra (CA), Randall Martin, Director
Thursday:
- Showstoppers Acc. Orchestra & Dancers (NH), Rosita Lee Latulippe, Director
- North Shore Accordion Orchestra (New Zealand), Lionel Reekie, Director
Friday:
- Accordeonova (Denmark), Peter Anders, Director
- Beijing Children's Palace Baidi Accordion Orchestra (China), Chen Weilang, Director
Saturday
- Winners of the six CIA Coupe Mondiale Categories

LINKS about the Accordion

HISTORY of the Accordion

American Accordionists Association (and once on, click on WORLD of Accordions on left hand column, to see more details about how they work, and their classification)

Daily reports from the Coupe Mondiale, and other neat links

CHAMPAGNE music

STARS of the LAWRENCE WELK SHOW

Around the WATER COOLER

Ensemble plays over net: Arab, Jews and Persian musicians share the same stage

International Relations and Culture (check weekly for new stories)

See you next week! SR

Midweek Meanderings and Miscellany XVIIII: Headlines

Just an average week so far, busy, but steady. Nothing particularly needing elaboration, so I'll just give some headlines!

- I'm stunned and amazed and impressed by EWL's long list of remembered concerts ! (see her blog 7/24)
- The big Clean up on Friday was pretty successful, overall, and in my neck of the woods, managed to get rid of about 2 Hefty bags of stuff, but I probably have about at least 5 bags worth to go.....will continue to chip away at it! At least I can walk around in my office now!
- MENC employee CR, from member services, is leaving MENC for greener pastures! He will be missed, as he's an enthusiastic, helpful, highly motivated, and fun person.
- New MENC server up and running, thanks to the IT guys!
- on-going Eureka and standards survey work, the project continues.......!!
- kudos to LE, KR, AD and MB for providing a great short advocacy piece under a tight deadline, to send to one of MENC's stalwart advocates for her mailing to her state's Legislature!
- member requests and school starting, just around the corner! Can already see fall flowers (milkweed pods, goldenrod, others) forming their buds of flower.....can't believe in a month or so it'll be September! where'd the summer go?
- many new initiatives and projects on-going....there's buzz all around the office, no doubt news of these things will soon be out!
- some new treats in store for members, some new items for the classroom and web resources too....keep your eyes peeled for info in alerts and news!
- New cool advocacy brochures now available on MENC website! click here: The Power of Music: Advocacy Brochure Series

-August Question of the Month will be a chance for you to tell us what you did this summer, and what you're looking forward to this coming school year! Click it out come August 1!

- Jerusalem Symphony Saved! A few blogs back, I posted a link about the Jerusalem Symphony possibly being shut down after 70 years. It was rescued. Jerusalem Symphony to Stay in Business

Around the Water Cooler
- have not watched "The Singing Bee" or "Don't Forget the Lyrics", but here is an interesting article about singing misfit lyrics!

And for all you lyric fans, see THIS and THIS!
And for song snippets, see THIS!

See you next week! SR

Midweek Meanderings and Miscellany XV: It's all Local! Finally Funding for FRSS! and....No Water Cooler!!

Since we last wrote.......

MENC has been a ghost-town, of sorts! Since last Friday, with exec staff on their way to Florida, the level of "background hum" is considerably lower! (to say nothing of the parking lot being considerably emptier!).

We did have our summer social last Thursday, in honor of the solstice, courtesy of MENC's publications department, who showered us with watermelon, brownies, ice tea and music! Singing In the Good Old Summertime, the MENC Centennial Canon and the National Anthem!

Friday, EH showed us a DVD collage of media coverage from the National Anthem Finale - what great footage! MENC hopes to get it up on the MENC website soon for all to enjoy!

Tuesday 26th, MENC set up a live web link for staff here at the national office to watch/participate in the Keynote address at the Centennial Congress in Florida. We were able to watch and listen as former Governor of Arkansas, Mike Huckabee addressed the Congress regarding music ed advocacy...and Anne Bryant, Executive Director National School Boards Association, and Brenda Welburn, Executive Director, National Association of State Boards of Education added their thoughts about strategies for dealing with local and state school boards.

I share below a few points that stuck with me. Hopefully, there will be a transcript or some other summary of the talks soon available on the MENC website or news pages....

Huckabee talked about how music is a life skill, a life long skill, not something you learn in school and then forget; he listed three points to remember:

1. real change is deployed at the LOCAL level, not the federal, and that is where influence from the community supporting music should be directed. Huckabee says the battlefield for winning the "get music into every school at every grade level K - 12" is at the LOCAL and state level. Policy is driven at the state level, innovation is at the state level. So, we need to PUSH at the STATE (and district) level. Not so much at the Federal level.

2. "You only fund what you force" - that is, build a mandate into the law and that will force the issue, and the money should follow.....push the issue!

3. you only improve in the games in which you keep score - that is, find ways to keep score and build community pride in the program - score the value of the arts program - performances, assessments, show cases....show it makes a difference!

Huckabee talked about "Play it Again, Arkansas!" a program where the state ran a used instrument drive, asking folks to donate old instruments they might have sitting unused. Music vendors across the state volunteered to fix these unused instruments, and donors got a tax break. The repaired, donated instruments were then distributed to school band directors in Arkansas, and when Gov. Huckabee visited the Arkansas All State festival, the director told him that the student who was first chair in the All State band had, one and a half years prior, not even had an instrument, as his parents couldn't afford it - and now, he was All State first chair! Talk about making things happen!

He spoke of building a bi-partisan coalition, a bi-partisan team. NO ONE OWNS this issue! It's a UNIFYING issue!!

When asked how to get the governors and local government officials to listen - he said, governors are competitive; they watch each other and see what is working in other states; they like to win. So, find a way to push your governor, find someone who knows him/her, convince your governor and leaders by building a coalition in the community.... make it easy for them to WIN at this issue......make it easy for your governor, school board, or district personnel to sell the idea to those higher up.......figure out what the community cares about, and present your argument and a win/win solution the government official can take to his higher ups. HELP the school boards and superintendents, show them that if the kids succeed, THEY succeed. Show them that the KIDS are the constituents!

Finally, Huckabee gave an example of how to deal with community members who may say they don't have kids in the system, don't care, don't want to help, tired of paying taxes for education, etc........he said remind them that future of our country depends on the education kids get today....that the kid serving burgers or working at local shops are kids in school NOW, and WILL be the doctors, businesspeople, mechanics, you name it, workers of tomorrow. That your life may depend on these kids, and it's in your best interest to care about the type and quality of education they get. The better educated they are, the better YOUR future as a citizen in this town/country is. Services and skills will be accurate and high with a good education - of which music is a huge part!!

ANNE BRYANT of NSBA mentioned, among other things, that a year or so ago, she asked a Disney executive, who does Disney hire? And that executive told her, we don't hire the MBAs, the accountants, the IT people - we hire the musicians and artists, because we can always teach them the other skills.....in essence, they wanted creativity in their new hires.

Brenda and Anne were asked what forms of evidence are most persuasive for local boards? They answered that while data is certainly good, stats, etc., legislators also LOVE the stories, so don't leave out the stories!

OTHER ITEMS OF NOTE:
Finally, GOOD NEWS!! Quoting from the MENC June 2007 Legislative Newsletter:
"On June 7, the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education (LHHS) passed the Fiscal Year 2008 (FY08) budget, and as part of this, they designated $2.2 million for the Fast Response Survey System (FRSS) which would allow enough money to perform the long-overdue FRSS in the arts, the last of which was done in 1999-2000" (see this link: http://nces.ed.gov/surveys/frss/publications/2002131/ ) and 1994 http://nces.ed.gov/pubs95/95082.pdf

"This significant success is a direct result of the intensive efforts by the arts education community, including MENC, over the past several years! "

I say YAHOO!! Boy, do we need stats and data on what's happening in the arts in our schools. This is GREAT NEWS!!!

CLICK HERE to register to get the MEMO

RESOURCES FOR PONDERING during summer days:

Musician Health
click to see the MENC Position paper on this topic

and read a short article (note: scroll ALL the way to the end of the page once it opens, article is at the end!) about hearing loss in musicians, and the program at the University of North Texas Center for Music and Medicine

NYTIMES Chamber music: is it dying?

ROCKERS ON TV by Steven Van Zandt

And see Little Steven's Underground Garage!

WATER COOLER
Did you know that MENC has, in fact, just ONE water cooler?! (bubbler, fountain!) for the three floors. I guess according to health codes, the ratio of staff to fountain is adequate. And it seems most non-work conversation actually goes on in the hallways, in the kitchens, between cubicles, and out in the lobby, rather than at the bubbler! Stay cool !

See you next week! SR

Midweek Meanderings and Miscellany XIV: Summer Solstice, MENC "Lite", and Glastonbury Fayre

In honor of the Summer Solstice today/tomorrow, I'm keeping today's entry as light and breezy as I can!
This is for sure a meandering and miscellany!

Passing thoughts/comments!
* The photos of the National Anthem Finale last week are fantastic, almost (almost!) like being there. Be sure to check out the upcoming magazines and webnews for the photos!
* It's just a routine week on my end of things, keeping on with requests and follow up with surveys and info. Looking ahead to what will be due....soon!
* Staff summer social tomorrow to celebrate summer, and to send off staff heading to Florida for the Centennial Congress! (I see paper money in the denomination of ONE GAZILLION with picture of an MENC female leader on it, being produced in large quantities at the desk of LE, trusty assistant to MB - - hmm, are they really going to work or play games down at Disney??!)
* Staff to gather today at 11am to practice singing the MENC Centennial Canon for singing during social!

* ML wrote Monday in her blog how long time MENC stalwart retired staff member Harriet Mogge helped MENC with the Centennial preparations recently. Harriet has stepped in and up to the plate on numerous occasions for MENC since her retirement! When I was first hired back in 1999 (by fellow blogger EWL, thank you!), our department was fledgling and behind in its work, and Harriet M was on board to help us get up to snuff. I credit her with helping me understand a lot of how MENC works, and helping me navigate my first month of answering member requests! Thank you, Harriet! Hear Harriet's interview with EWL, on her lifelong connections with MENC, on the MENC PODCAST for May! (go to MENC's homepage, and click on PODCAST link on Right hand side of page!)

* Last few weeks I've been talking about surveys MENC has done, and how great it is to get member feedback/ideas. Did you know that you can always give us feedback? Just click on the MUSIC Box to send your thoughts!

FLASH: "NON-LITE"
NEW STUDY REVEALS STRONG RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN QUALITY MUSIC EDUCATION
PROGRAMS AND HIGHER STANDARDIZED TEST SCORES - funded by the NAMM Foundation under its "Sounds of Learning" initiative, and was published in MENC's Winter 2006 Journal of Research in Music Education

Click HERE for more info
About the NAMM FOUNDATION


Around the Water Cooler
As my time allows, I peruse/read a lot of arts journals and on-line arts websites, list servs and newsletters, always seeking useful/helpful info members can use in advocacy efforts or the classroom. Usually I run across some interesting fact or article which seems worth sharing. Here are a few "LITE" tidbits (and be sure to check past SR blogs for other "lite" and "not so lite" resources!)

SICK PUPPY FESTIVAL (it really is about music!)

NEW MUSIC how to respond

Please, don't forget THE COMPOSER!

GLASTONBURY FESTIVAL (formerly known as Glastonbury FAYRE) - "largest greenfield music and performing arts festival in the world" - started 1970 two days after Jimi Hendrix' death. Held over summer solstice weekend the following year and since then. Quote from website: "It's like going to another country. It involves travel, and probably a queue to get in. Then you enter a huge tented city, a mini-state under canvas. The Law still applies, but the rules of society are a bit different. Everyone is here to have a wild time in their own way. The site has distinct socio-geographic regions". Check it out!

History of the FAYRE

KT TUNSTALL on the Glastonbury Festival (KT, of "Black Horse and Cherry Tree" fame, made more famous by Kat McPhee's version on AI 2006). Sounds like someone living in Sgt. Peppers Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds!

Enjoy the longest day of the year! See you next week! SR

Midweek Meanderings and Miscellany XIII: Peanutbutter Coookies, "Healthful Milk" and Server fritz!

It's a crazy week here, in fact, crazy two weeks to come, and perhaps to help allay stress and help fortify staff, Dr. Mahlmann treated the staff to “Healthful milk” and peanutbutter cookies yesterday in honor of National Peanutbutter Cookie day. Maybe we were overfortified, as the MENC server crashed and we've been without email (a lifeline to the outer world!) since noon on Tuesday. Yikes! And what a week! Webinars, three day National Anthem Project grand finale this week, NEB finance meeting, strategic planning finalization, budget finalization, notebook for Centennial Congress finalization (see ML’s blog of Monday)…..busy busy busy! The staff of the Executive, Special Programs, Public Relations, Government and Conference Department are all on full drive/overdrive, and my hat is off to them! Not easy to do what they do.....good luck and kudos! (I'm sure music teachers reading this understand this sense of wearing many hats, being their own PR, executive, finance, programming department all rolled into one - talk about being pros!!)

Speaking of pros....and hats off.....there are a few other people here at MENC who quietly and efficiently and effectively keep this place humming along.....membership processors, memberservices reps, accountants and financial folks, publications editors, administrative assistants, receptionists, the IT and mailroom guys who keep us connected to the outside world, the production and web folks, the directors of these departments....all parts make the whole! Makes MENC an interesting place to work! (if I’ve forgotten anyone, I’m sorry, I get fogged in with all the info swirling around in the Info/Research Dept!).

Had a great email from a 30 year member who contacted us a couple weeks back for advocacy help, programs being cut…..her email was telling me how well the meeting went – one school board member showed, but 125 other folks –parents, arts people, you name it – and they had a long and productive brain storming session about what to do …..had her entire quote to share with you, but the MENC server is down, so cannot get at the email just now – may post it later...worth reading.....good solutions and approach. Really great to hear news like this, and an unusual solution! Yay to long time members and all members who work daily to keep music alive!

Recently got the results of a member survey sent to 5550 members randomly, about possible celebrity spokespeople for MENC…..the most frequently suggested person was Wynton Marsalis- and a good cross section of conductors, composers, jazz folks, opera, classical musicians, and tons of pop musicians and a good number of American Idol contestants! (as well as a few movie and TV stars/personalities.....) Don’t know if MENC will pursue any of these options…but thanks to the many members who took the time to give us feedback, it is so valuable and so interesting! (by the way got about 574 responses…..)

REFRESHMENT around the WATER COOLER
Remember (if you watched) the April 24 episode of American Idol, “Idol Gives Back”? The performance that most stayed with me was the African Children’s Choir. I found their website, as I wanted to know more. Great info here: CLICK
They are amazing, they're orphans and war tramatized kids, you'd never know it from their smiles and joy. Talk about the power of music!

Speaking of Africa and singing - read this great article "Why We need Choral Music - Ubuntu", by Steven Fisher CLICK

Wonderful poem, The Junior High Band Concert, courtesy of the Writers Almanac. In the archive, check the posting for June 7. It's worth a read! CLICK

Good article about taking music lessons and practicing! CLICK

SEE YOU NEXT WEEK! SR

Midweek Meanderings and Miscellany XII: Summer Breezes, Summer Lull!

You can feel that "end of school year" feeling even here at the National offices; you know, the workload seems to get "lighter"! (even the days get lighter.........until June 22, when they start getting shorter again!). The number of incoming requests from teachers and students has lessened (although the ones that do come in are usually a bit more complex, as some teachers/schools are now figuring out how to cope in the face of budget cut decisions)....and even responses to surveys indicate schools are closing and folks are winding things up in the classroom until next year.....and the honeysuckle which has been crazily prolific and heavy scented the last couple of weeks is finally receding from its intoxicating lure, and letting the lush green foliage take over with its whooshing of leaves in the wind (trees look like big ocean waves, all swaying in unison in the fresh strong summer breeze...."clapping their hands" (paraphrased from "The Peaceable Kingdom") - - makes you think of swinging on a hammock out in the back yard with a good book and glass of lemonade, watching the clouds drift by.......

Monday, a request came in from a current collegiate MENC member who is graduating, and starting his first year teaching in the fall. He was looking for resources to set up his elementary music classroom, wanted to be fully ready to roll come fall! Talk about eagerness, excitement and wanting to be prepared! I hope he's able to do what he wants in his classroom and gets the funding and support he needs and wants! In referring him to a few sources, looking through a few websites and catalogues for this student, it reminded me of how much joy I used to get out of elementary music class (seeing pictures of rhythm instruments, recorders, song books in the catalogues.....). It reminded me of the fun we had had back in school, music time was the best thing! How we loved to use the (old fashioned) painted and grooved wooden sticks (lummy sticks?) for clacking together in beat to the songs, the tambourine, the Orff instruments (oh, to be chosen to play the Orff! me, me!! hands going up wildy!), singing the rounds and piano playing!

Looking through the music vendor supply catalogues on Monday, I wanted to buy EVERYTHING in them, and set up my OWN classroom at home for ME to play and make music in! ;-} (but really, would LOVE to give it all away to kids, if I were a music teacher, I'd so spoil my kids with "stuff" to use in the classroom! Watching little kids make music, singing, and then the little ones dancing and responding to music is one of the rare beauties of life!).

So! Back to reality....with this little lull in the rush of member requests, with most surveys sent, and results coming in or in already, there's time to catch up on back requests, and look ahead a bit and try to plan for projects/work in upcoming months. It seems we'll barely get caught up and on course, when mid August, suddenly, there's an upsurge of requests, as more schools are starting the school year in August.....I used to plan on doing long pushed-to-the-back-burner projects in the "summer", meaning July and August, but now I'm the wiser to know that it's really more like June and July when things are a bit quieter, and it all starts again in August! (of course, when MENC National Assembly happens in July, or other executive level functions come onto the radar, as they are this year with the Centennial Congress and surveys for National Assembly, there really isn't much of a lull at all!)

One of the surveys that recently came to conclusion is the May on-line Question of the Month, on the use of sacred music in the classroom, classroom management, out of pocket expenses, and overtime work for the music teacher. We've asked these same questions two previous times, and as in the past, have received some of the highest response rates from members in this voluntary on-line survey. 765 responses this year! Hoping to publicize some of the results in the October news pages in Teaching Music, and eventually, hopefully on the website so members can read how others are dealing with these issues. It's so helpful to hear back from our members on all these issues! Thanks to all who responded and shared!

AROUND THE WATER COOLER:
Best summer song: "Summer Breeze", Seals and Croft

Click to see more songs with seasons in the title!

Remember "In the Summertime" by Mungo Jerry? If you've never heard, you've GOT to! Will bring a silly smile to your face! (can't link to it cuz it's on commercial sites...but you can easily find it on the web!)

What's your favorite song about summer? ! (write to info@menc.org to get a link to a neat interview with Daniel Levitin (mentioned in EWL's blog yesterday) about music, memory and emotion!)

Picking up on EWL's mention of the Beatles' Sgt. Peppers Lonely Hearts Club Band album - June1, driving home, heard great BBC radio program about the making of the album (Links to all BEATLES stuff - please write to info@menc.org, because me and technology don't mix and this blog won't take my links!)

The BBC commentary talked about how for this album, a 40 piece orchestra was hired....they interviewed some of the musicians who were in that orchestra for this album! They commented that to them, it was just another gig, and some of them did their 10 - 5 with the Beatles, then went off that evening to another gig! For the song "A Day in the Life", the orchestra was requested to come in full concert dress. The producers/Beatles had re-created a party atmosphere in the studio for the recording of this song....colored lights, party hats, soda/beer, and members of orchestra and production team had to wear false mustaches, noses, etc. For the famous "sound of car crash" (or however you want to interpret it!) orchestral part in between verses, there were 40 empty measures to be filled by the orchestra. George Martin instructed the orchestra to glissando from the very softest they could play to the loudest......

This commentary so inspired me, when I got home, I informed my husband that June 1 was the 40th anniversary of the album, and we promptly put the record on and sat and listened and remembered and got recharged as my husband sang Paul's bass guitar line while imitating his picking, and I did my famous pretend to be their back up singer gig - imitating John's nasally drone and Paul's old-timey vaudevillian sound....

And as if that wasn't enough, Sunday 6/3, on Washington's 100.3 FM, their Beatles Brunch featured more of the history of Sgt. Pepper, with actual interviews with the Beatles about the songs. Did you know "Good Morning" idea came from a cereal commercial? And they ended the show with a GREAT live version of "It's getting better all the time" that Paul did on a recent tour.....and finally, John on tape, with his 4 year old son Sean singing "I get by with a little help from my friends" .

Anyway, "We'd like to thank you once again" (quoting the Fab Four).....for being members and reading this blog! Hope your summer is off to a good start!
See you next week! SR

Midweek Meanderings and Miscellany XI

HI there, Folks,

It's a short week, which means work gets condensed into fewer days....only in 2.5 days this week, so please excuse the brevity today.... In lieu of my ramblings, have a go (in your leisure moments, ha ha!) at these articles! Caught my eye..... Just click on the title!

CHINESE LOVE OF PIANOS

MUSIC EDUCATION, From the Top

LOVE/HATE American IDOL

NEW ZEALAND HEAVY METAL 27 year old CONDUCTOR of NZ Nat. Symphony!

POP STARS JOIN the MUSIC EDUCATION DRIVE

AROUND THE WATER COOLER
from SR Blog III April 4, I went on about: Speaking of cartoons....it's amazing to me how I became familiar with so much classical music.....via Saturday morning cartoons! Most especially, Liszt's Hungarian Rhapsody No. 2. My husband and I can never hear it without breaking into wide grins, and then, "conducting" it right down to the final "DA DAHHH!", in imitation of whichever cartoon character was conducting the cartoon orchestra! (see blog III for further links on this topic!) SOOO....had to put in this bit I recently ran across...... Mickey Mouse Piano Solo - apparently it's the first time appearance of the "Hungarian Rhapsody No. 2 in C-sharp minor" in an animated cartoon. (source, Arts Journal). According to the Arts Journal, the tune would become famous in later cartoons ("Rhapsody in Rivets", "The Cat Concerto" and "Rhapsody Rabbit").Quoting Arts Journal: "Watch closely, you'll see that "Rhapsody Rabbit" borrowed heavily upon this performance by Mickey, as they use the same general situation and have a number of similar gags."

See you next Wednesday! SR

Midweek Meanderings and Miscellany X: Bogged Down on the Blog!

Not too much to say today...of real note.....some days, you just don't! Today's one of those days. Just keeping my head down and doing what needs to be done.

I suppose I COULD wax rhapsodic about the MENC socials, in general, and perhaps, one day, I or another fellow blogger will.... suffice it to say there is a photographic testimony of many a wild and crazy MENC staff social here at MENC.....and speaking of MENC SOCIALS..........
The Pudding Social yesterday was uneventful, alas.... I had images of pudding being hurled/lopped across the room, splatting resonantly against the wall (you know, shades of elementary school cafeteria - the industrial glue strength mashed potatoes lifted, medieval catapult-like, on the fork and flung up against the folded up benches......old Mrs. Dundas the cafeteria monitor lumbering over to nail the boys about proper behavior...but in our case, perhaps ML would be right there on the front lines, whapping that ole puddin' cup up against the wall!) No, to my dismay, MENC staff were far too sedate at this social ;-) I think it was the milk put us to sleep, or the mid-afternoon lulls.... I KNEW the pudding should have been chocolate! Vanilla is too gentle! Want to whip up the staff? SERVE CHOCOLATE! ;-}
Anyway, it was a very nice break, courtesy of Dr. M (er, Dr. Pudding). Oh yes, and a new employee named SARA showed up in puppy ears and Jack Bauer sunglasses - perhaps a fellow blogger will explain or provide a photo!

Best bit of the week: speaking with a 39 year MENC member and having her say "being a member of MENC is the Bible of being a music educator!"

RESOURCES and NEWS of POSSIBLE INTEREST

American Voices - a Houston, Texas-based not-for-profit company taking American music to foreign lands! Latest, Iraq! And they're doing a summer program for kids in Iraq this year! Read the full story, HERE

Amusing article from Financial Times of London on Audience Etiquette (or lack thereof!) click here! (please...)

GRANTS: The 2008-2009 NAMM grant priorities and a Request for Proposals will be announced in the fall of 2007. For more information about NAMM’s grants program, click here!

Around the Water Cooler
AI......Something is definitely missing this year. For first time, I did not watch the entire "last" competition show.....! Maybe it's my "old" ears not attuned to "pop" sound of today. The sparkle and element of surprise and "you never know what this person will do with their song!" doesn't really exist with these two finalists (EDITOR's note: JORDIN WINS!), in my humble opinion. Now Melinda, THERE is a song interpreter- THERE is someone who brings her own stamp to each song. AH, Melinda! (interjected Thursday: WONDERFUL to see her and Lakisha doing it up with Gladys Knight last night in finale, and then Melinda getting her own turn w/ her two back up singer pals!!) As a fellow blogger said - AI exhaustion has set in. Time for a much needed break....and when you start having dreams about auditioning for Senior American Idol, it's time to make a break!

On that note! See you next week! SR

Midweek Meanderings and Miscellany IX: Survey Mania!

Seems there are surveys coming out of the woodwork, dancing and swirling around like Bacchae (or Sirens, as the case may be! calling me ever closer to the edge from which I will never return!) Not only the two big Eureka surveys, but now also a draft for a potential new project at MENC, as well as a draft of a survey to leadership pre-National Assembly (gathering input from staff, and pulling together past MENC surveys on various topics to create a digest of information we've collected in the past from members). And soon, I'll be sending two more surveys created by doctoral students who are researching music ed issues!

More surveys are possibly on the books for over the summer or early fall, and there is the ever present monthly on-line member survey soon due! It's great to collect information, and MENC is making a concerted effort to use the input from members to help inform decisions on national initiatives and policies....I love surveys, taking them, answering them, AND creating them, but I admit, my head is swimming! ;-}

Speaking of National Anthem project (see RF's blog of last week, Thursday Interlude)!
This weekend while out of town visiting my Mom- in- law, we were at the store, and while waiting in the car for my husband, I saw and HEARD.....a 7 year old boy transversing the parking lot, two full lengths behind his Dad.....The boy was dressed in a soccer uniform, and looked like he'd just come from his game. What made this scene unusual, the boy was SINGING, out loud! He was singing The National Anthem! Perhaps he was imagining the opening of a ball game, he was relishing every word, just kinda dancing and loping along after his Dad, lost in his own thoughts.....he knew all the words, even hit the high notes, and did not stop singing even as he opened the SUV door and climbed up into the cavernous vehicle.

I was mesmerized to see one so young, and a boy (usually it's the girls singing to themselves!), singing out loud, and then, for the song to be The National Anthem! I was sorry when he got into their car and shut the door, as I wasn't able to hear the end.....I had nearly gone over to him to say "Wow, way to go, good job, you know it!". Whoever taught him the song - or however he picked it up - it was neat to see, and I was hoping he would remember the words and not be afraid to sing it just as fearlessly and just as freely when he got older!

RESOURCES: Jazz and African music

Great interview in the Sunday May 13 Washington Post magazine, with Billy Taylor, of DC area jazz fame.
"The Last Encore" - about jazz, its place in American music and its future, or lack of it....by Wells Tower

Driving home from work Monday night, heard the BBC on our local NPR station, caught the end of a great interview/conversation with jazz star Hugh Masekela. He grew up in apartheid S. Africa, his parents listened to American Jazz; he pursued learning the trumpet, and left S. Africa at a young age and studied music in England and the U.S. To hear the interview, click here!

And to see what eight records he would take to a desert island with him, click here!

(note: BBC show, Desert Island Discs - one of Radio 4's most popular shows...Roy Plomley created in 1942; each week a guest is invited to choose the eight records they would take with them to a desert island. SEE LIST OF GUESTS FROM PAST WEEKS/year - click here!

Where I first heard Hugh Masekela back in the late 80's, GREAT GREAT show on African music:

Afropop World Wide

Around the Water Cooler
The withdrawal continues as I found out this past Monday that the finale of "24" (yes, I'm a fan...have watched since season 2 - although this season was really not very good compared to previous....) and "Idol" are BOTH next week! I kinda don't care who wins Idol (yes, I do! who am I kidding? Melinda Melinda Melinda!)

And I'm looking forward to "On the Lot", the new Spielberg reality show re: aspiring filmakers....nothing like living vicariously through others who have the chutzpah to actually DO it!! (I don't think I'll get "into" the Idol "Search for American Band" thing, or "So you think you can Dance"? although that was pretty good last year.....can't completely ignore my own reality!)

I am looking forward to seeing what song was chosen as the "winner" in the AI song contest....I succumbed and did the vote, listened to all 20 submissions, but truthfully, only listened to TWO all the way through! The other 18 songs, did not (could not!) listen to completely... you could tell the song just wasn't "taking off"......some were trying SO hard to be "THE" big inspiration/"Found my Dream" song........they weren't BAD, but they just weren't anything to make you sit up and really NOTICE or want to LISTEN. Let's see if others thought the same!

See you next week! SR

MIDWEEK MEANDERINGS and MISCELLANY VIII: EUREKA! EUREKA!

EUREKA! EUREKA!
No, sorry, no grand discovery, just the name of the survey company that's helping MENC with a preliminary study of how/if members use the national standards in the classroom! The survey went out last week, with some going out this week, and we've had a bunch of responses directly to MENC with feedback/reactions to the survey. This survey is only a preliminary look MENC will be taking/making regarding use of standards, so stay tuned in coming months for notices of additional surveys on this topic!

In addition to fielding the queries from the survey respondents, I've also been immersed in another component of that project - going through the arts/music standards for every state to see how they align to the national standards, comparing to the state standards information Eureka put together last November. I've been in touch with many state supervisors of music, and have been drilling down through state DOE websites... See the RESOURCES below for an easy quick way to get an overview of what's going on in the standards in the states!

Speaking of Surveys - have you seen the MENC Question of the Month for May? click here!
This particular survey always gets a lot of response. We've asked these same questions in December 2004 and 2005; I get the feeling these are topics members like to talk about! Add your thoughts!

RESOURCES
Did you know there was a EUROPE chapter of MENC?
CLICK HERE for a link to all the state MEA affiliates of MENC, and scroll down to E to get to the link for the European MEA!

STATE STANDARDS and other ARTS ED POLICY info:
AEP
ECS

AROUND THE WATER COOLER
I predict major withdrawal symptoms in two weeks as AI goes into the finale....but then again, will be nice to
not be so tied down to Tuesday and Wednesday nights! (why can't I be this disciplined for OTHER pursuits?!)
What a waste of a show to have BeeGees music sung by the contestants.... Sorry, just not a fan of Mr. Gibb at all!

See you next week! SR

Midweek Meanderings and Miscellany VII: Tra La, It's May, or, Why I work at MENC!

Every day when I come into MENC, I step across a walkway of bricks inscribed with names of folks who taught
music, love music, work for music, or are remembering how music played a part in their lives (The Walk of Fame)

I've often thought of buying a brick to honor those in my life who introduced me to music and made it possible for me to enjoy, learn and perform music.... I try to commemorate them/honor them in each day I work at MENC. Sounds corny, I know, but it's true. The people who gave me my love for music are the ones who opened up the door to what I consider to be one of the best things going on this planet.....these folks are kind of my Fairy God People who are with me and come out whenever I listen to, sing, play, or otherwise engage with music or music learning/activities.

It'd be too long to go into detail about each of them - suffice it say that each in their own way was incredibly influential, made an indelible impression on me, and inspired me to keep learning, trying, doing, engaging with music. I could write a chapter on each, but due to lack of space, time and fear of boring readers (whom I sure have their own inspiring Fairy GodPeople of Music), I'll just list them as briefly as I can - (must say SOMETHING about them!) - in lieu of buying a brick for each which would cost me a fortune (which I'm sure MENC could use, but, sorry, so could I!) It's a bit self -indulgent of me, but as this is what's on my brain this week, lucky you all get to hear about it!

Lest this sound like an Oscar Award acceptance speech....ummm....well, it kinda does. My apologies. Get your gagging done now or just skip over this section. The point of all this is - without these folks, I'd not have a clue about music and therefore would not appreciate or WANT to work at a place like MENC. Working at MENC is my way of giving back to the field, to help perpetuate and preserve it so others can experience some of what I had the fortune to.

There's of course first and foremost, my parents. touchstones: the Weavers, Dad singing his old choral music around the house (Stenka Razin, Gospodi Pomilui, Russian choir stuff.....and of course, one that tickled us kids, from his army days, I think "OH porkchop, you shall be free, with gravy on them!"); Artur Rubenstein at Symphony Hall in Boston with Mom; five years of Saturday lessons in piano, theory, voice and children's choir at the New England Conservatory; records for my birthday and Christmas; my constant friend, the old red piano in the basement; the ever present support and encouragement... and memories of Mom teaching me at age 5 how to sightread (generally speaking), "Mighty Lak a Rose" in our old folk song book on the couch, and her praising me for being able to make my voice go up when the notes went up, and down when the notes went down.......singing to my infant brother in his cradle...falling in love at age 4 with Mary Poppins and vowing to be like Julie Andrews! Who says kids don't know what they want to do at an early age?

My first piano teacher Linda Hawes, who taught me theory and the basics; scales in each key written out in pencil in my composition book, helping me (albeit begrudgingly at age 7!) learn my ABCs, the building blocks of theory....my elementary Music teachers Ms. Daniel in 3rd grade, Mrs. Farmer in 4th and 5th who opened up the wonders of group singing to me and recorder and harmony and descants....

Mrs. Edna Geary in 6th, with her exacting standards and very professional conducting. My first exposure to the "real" world of professional music! (she was a little scary, but boy did I learn a lot!)

Then in 7th grade - oh dear, a man! But not just any man (Little did I know at the time! how we 7th grade girls dreaded class with this "old" man!). William Rice, father of Tim Rice of Jesus Christ Superstar fame; Mr. Rice shared with us the first recording of Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat which had just opened in London; he also taught us (what patience he must have had!) music that was more than kid stuff - sophisticated contempory harmonies and choral pieces - "The Summer Knows" from the Summer of 42 - we thought it was sappy and soupy but did it ever linger in my mind and did I ever realize the haunting beauty of it later in life. He was a genius we did not appreciate!

Martha Dahl in 8th, who was the idol we all ascribed to be/know, the dream teacher, beautiful and talented and funny and fun and fair and who gave us so many opportunities....her voice like gold crystal, her concern for us, we all wanted her to be our Mom! She was and is awesome! what crushes we had on her!

Lo and behold, thinking a new world of choral wonders awaited us in high school - sequestered and relegated to the 9th grade GIRLS CHOIR, deemed not "old" enough to be part of the elite "SELECT" Mixed choir - what frustration! and to make it worse - who was leading it, but our old nemesis (so we thought!) Mr. Rice from 7th grade! How had THAT happened?! Ugh. We were merciless on him. But he put up with us yet another year, teaching us despite ourselves...and then we were allowed entrance into the auditions for the ELITE SELECT Mixed choir having "done our time" in the 9th grade girl's choir!

AH! SELECT CHOIR. The legendary choir that went to Russian, Europe, the most talked of group in the school....led by the wonder of the school, Robert "Bob" Wentworth - shaggy golden beard, trim lithe build, long blondish hair reminscent of a lion-like Rasputin - he was a character and half - and he commanded the choir - you WANTED to sing for him - everyone loved Bob and he loved everyone back - he had a way of making EVERY SINGLE person feel like THE most important person in the world TO HIM, and yet, he could bring you to tears of shame when the choir acted up and he'd walk out on us to get us to realize he meant business. It was no easy task conducting up to 70 high school students each morning (yes! we had choir FIVE DAYS A WEEK! WHAT LUXURY!) at 7am.... the music he got us to make, the opportunities, how they filled us...when we found out he lost his hearing a few years after we graduated, how we cried! But it was nothing like the tears that flowed and the outpouring of alumni who came and sang the beloved Alleluia (Randall Thompson) at his memorial service when he died too young of a heart attack, those d..n cigarettes he constantly smoked!). No one was like Mr. Wentworth....

(More about him, I'm happy to provide....concerts with Randall Thompson conducting us as we sang his music; Michael Colgrass' premiere at Boston Symphony Hall of the contemporary choral piece "The Earth's a Baked Apple"; Thompson's "Alleluia" at Graduation; "Wimbawe" as we left the risers at springthing (see below); Mah-may-me- moh- moo every morning warm up and how Mr. Wentworth would vary it to keep us on our toes; the lecture hall (Earth's only paradise); Carmina Burana; Vivaldi's Gloria.....it was heaven on earth, the only thing that made coming to school really something to look forward to, starting out each day feeling fantastic and alive......nothing has ever come close....)

Of course, select choir would not be complete without Dean Aldrich and his wonderful piano accompaniment and quirky ways; and Dean handled the ultra select "special" choir, we did mostly madrigals, he was so good at working with a small bunch....quiet and quirky, he knew his stuff. Mrs. Putukian came to play one year when Dean was not around; she was great!

Those long Saturdays in Boston - I could not forget the lady who taught me all I know about singing - Ms. Afrika Hayes, daughter of the famed African American tenor Roland Hayes....at age 12, what did I know about life, music? But she was patient and giving and knew how to get me to relax and find my voice; I stayed with her til age 22...... what a presence, what a voice, what a beautiful lady......thank you thank you thank you Ms. Hayes!!

Then there was scary, Ichabod Crane looking Mr. Devries, piano maestro extraordinaire, whom I sure was exquisitely frustrated at having to teach such a slow stubborn study as I.....yet, through his introducing me to Czerny, Bartok and other contemporary/Eastern European piano greats, I learned technique and history I never thought I'd be able to..his scary pushing did something after all!

There was also the lovely and shy theory teacher, I've forgotten her name, but so dear and gentle and smart, teaching me all about theory, harmony, sightsinging and dictation, what a challenge and what a fascinating skill! I had to give up Mr. Devries as I could not practice as much as he would have liked me to (after all, I was a singer and into theater!). So we found wonderful Mrs. Balekdjian, private piano in town, whose passion for her instrument, music and down to earth way of teaching and talking kept me at the keyboard another two years despite my flagging interest. Thank you!

And at college - James Olesen, music professor/choir director MASTER,at Brandeis - another superstar, amazing talent, caring, high standards, taught us fantastic vocal technique, gave us such challenges, his artistry and passion, his love for music and way with people - just someone incredible.....what a sound he got us to produce!! I was never prouder than being in the choir under his direction! He was and is a pro......

SO...why "Tra La It's May? the Lusty month of may, the lovely month when everyone goes blissfully astray,
It's time to do a wretched thing or two, and time to make each precious day one you'll always rue!"
Camelot as sung by Julie Andrews
While in high school, every May the school put on a "Spring Thing". Back in the 70's, this meant plenty of batik, silk screen printing posters, art work, outdoor musicians, food, sports, and raffles....plus events, concerts and theatre (no plastic moonwalk bounces for us, thank you very much! it didn't even exist then!). The kids of the school ran it and planned it. The center piece was the spring choral/band/orchestra concert, and the theatre department's spring musical. My freshman year, the musical was Camelot. As a lowly freshman, I was allowed to be only in the chorus....but that didn't matter. Watching the upper classpeople perform was a gift. May became a magical time, not just due to Spring Thing's festive air, but because performing in Camelot in our headbands of flowers and long dresses, secretly swooning over the guys playing Lancelot and Arthur, and pining to be the gal who played Guinevere, "The Lusty Month of May" became our anthem for May and spring and all things wonderful associated with music....it rings in my head every May since!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
WORK RELATED (just so you know I do work!)
Catching up on back requests, as the school year is winding to a close, people are contacting us for resources on curriculum for next year, budget issues, sacred music issues, cut backs to staff issues, materials for courses they're planning next year, and students with their final papers. Eureka has sent out the survey this week, and I've got to get on the stick updating the info on state standards that Eureka will use in the analysis of the results!

RESOURCES
Latest SBO survey on use of music tech in the classroom

MUSIC ED on line

AROUND the WATER COOLER
Very effecting, this girl can SING! Not the complete video, can't find - from Idol Gives Back, Jeff Beck and Kelly Clarkson

You like Idol? You like to vote? Help pick the song the finalist sings/records!
American Idol songwriting contest

See you next Wednesday! SR

Midweek Meanderings and Miscellany VI

Some weeks fly by, others don't, this week is rushing past! How did it get to be Wednesday already!?

MUSIC IS IN THE AIR!
As ARN mentioned on Friday 20th, the nature around MENC is prolific! Carrying on the nature theme, and picking up ML's 4/23 "inspiration" motif.......it's pretty inspirational to work here at MENC, primarily due to the neat people we help (Music teachers/students), but also largely because of the beautiful setting. Each day I come in, I feel I "lucked out"- after working in the concrete environs of downtown DC, Reston is a wonderland!

There are walking/running/biking trails all through the woods and office complexes surrounding MENC's building. At lunchtime with work friends, and during pre-work early morning walks, I've explored a lot of these paths. It's so soothing to have the "escape" of nature!

What I REALLY enjoy and appreciate is the SPRING SYMPHONY that accompanies one as they walk (as long as they don't wear headphones !!). The BIRDS that live around here in the spring chime like bells - the serenade is just incredible.....it has to be one of the most beautiful sounds ever.....especially after a long silent winter. It's something I look forward to all year, and has made my working time at MENC that much more enjoyable AND productive! (this is the short version; the "waxing poetic" version is saved in a separate file for anyone who is interested in knowing the details of what birds I saw, and other adventures along the trails!)

WORK RELATED
Lest you think I don't work! This week, working on getting the final draft of the MENC Position Paper (click to see them!) on assessment ready for posting for member comment. Did you know you can give us your input/feedback on our position statements? We just had a round on Home schooling, Pullout programs, and Health in Music education. Those three final papers should be on the website in a week or so. No doubt more will be in the offing in months to come.....

Getting ready to do the final round of surveys via EurekaFacts LLC (www.eurekafacts.com), the company MENC hired to ask our members about conferences, publications, and the National Standards. Some of you may have already been contacted in past months for the publications/conference survey. The information we collect on the standards will help MENC and the field discuss the future of the standards, based on what teachers are actually teaching in the classroom. If you have questions about this, you can write info@menc.org and reference the BLOG!

As EWL mentioned above - budget time is here! This is one time of year I usually feel lucky in the sense that I don't have pages of items to detail, given I'm a one person department.....

REQUESTS from students finishing up final term papers, and researchers getting their summer projects underway. Several from schools facing cuts....and others looking for funding!

Also as EWL mentioned - Dr. M and Mike B. have been out of town - when they're away, the "flurry" of activity in this part of MENC's hallways is signficantly less! When they're in town, it's a constant line of visitors/staff to their offices....we often joke "take a number"! like at the deli or bakery (if you're from NY, you will understand what I mean!). Anyway, it's been blissfully "unhectic" outside my office the last two days, perhaps which has allowed me to wax poetic (in the longer unpublished version of this blog...). Sometimes I wonder how Mike and Dr. M keep up the pace they do! But it's Wednesday now, everyone is back and I'm sure the vibes around here will be amped up!

IN THE NEWS
From Britain, a music program for prisoners: Times Online, 4/13/2007

RESOURCES
Inspiration and Creativity in the Workplace: US News and World Report 4/30/07

AROUND THE WATER COOLER: Not thirsty! No comment!

SEE you next Wednesday! SR

Midweek Meanderings and Miscellany V

Back from NH, Concord to be exact, the NH MEA Spring conference. Great conference, a short one but chockful of good sessions, enthusiastic members, and terrific kids rehearsing for All State! It was a lot of fun for me to watch the students during their breaks as they perused the exhibits, interacted with one another, helped unload instruments from vans, gathered round their teachers for instructions, sat in the hall playing cards, got excited about the free MENC buttons at our exhibit table, and generally did their thing.

The sound they produced in their rehearsals (band/orchestra) was just outstanding. I could not believe such
great music was coming from such young looking people! Unfortunately, the choral rehearsals and vocal sessions were being held in another hotel, so I didn't get to hear that or meet many of the singers.....

But to a one, the people I met in NH were the friendliest and kindest. And what a treat to see all those pine trees stretching for miles as the plane passed over....(coming from congested DC....). Yes, it snowed while I was there, surprising everyone, but the intrepid teachers and students carried on..... Luckily I got out of Dodge before the next snow system was due on Sunday. One cool thing - the chef of the hotel preparing the banquet for students did an ice sculpture in the shape of the MENC Centennial Logo! I imagine the NHMEA will have photos in the next issue of their state journal (unfortunately I didn't have a camera with me!). All in all, good to be there, meet the members, have them see what's available to them resource wise from the MENC National office, and generally get to know them.

By the way - good assessment and data collection on arts education happening/soon to happen with the NH Department of Education arts division - click HERE!

RESOURCE of the week:
While flying, of all places, saw an article in the USAIR magazine for: The Encyclopedia of Popular Music - ten volumes - 4th edition - 27,000 entries on bands and artists from every genre: jazz, folk, swing, garage, rockabilly, disco, punk, techo and more. An interactive, subscription based version is scheduled to go online in August at www.muze.com; the paper version will be 10 volumes, available from Oxford University Press for the modest price of (!) $1,300.

Around the Water Cooler:
A good friend sent me a poem for Easter called "Mozart in a classroom of Children". Unfortunately, I can't reprint it here without permission (which would take forever to get, if I even could!). However, it was from a books entitled
Mixed Voices: Contemporary Poems about Music, 1991 by E. Buchwald and R. Roston, Editors, in case you're interested!

See you next Wednesday! SR

Midweek Meanderings and Miscellany IV

Gearing up to go to New Hampshire Music Educators Spring Conference tomorrow,
running the MENC Resource booth. Will be nice to have a change of scene and meet some of the members from NH!

Speaking of MENC's Centennial (see EWL's and ML's blogs this week) - the
Congress in Florida (June 25- 28) is open! Consider taking some vacation time
at Disney and joining in the discussions!

The National Anthem Project staff at MENC is gearing up for the project finale on June 14....lots going on there, keep an eye out!

And have you ever tried our monthly on - line survey, the Question of the Month?
Give it a try! (click here) We frequently ask YOU for your opinion and inside insights, so please check back from month to month!

In the news:
Teaching Musicians to be Entrepreneurs

Resource of the Week:
Recreational Music Making

Around the Water Cooler:
An 8 year veteran of MENC leaves today, RT, who grew from staff assistant to editorial assistant to manager! With a lovely singing voice and team mentality, and true love of all things music...she will be missed! She's on to bigger challenges and opportunities....

Speaking of Latin Music (American Idol last night - ouch!) - Great group to check out for authentic Latin music (not pop) from Central and S. America - Sol y Canto They also have a kids' album in Spanish.

See you next Wednesday! SR

Midweek Meanderings and Miscellany III

One of the best things about my work here at MENC is the daily correspondence/conversations with members (and others) who call or write in, asking for information to help them teach music, or info to help with advocacy, or research, or a school paper. We used to keep tabs on how many requests we received each day/month; at one point we were getting several hundred/month! The demand comes and goes based on the time of year.....October and January seem to be BIG request months, with a small surge in March/April, particularly from college students looking to finish up their last papers........

What makes helping folks especially rewarding is when they actually reply and let us know how things went. Below is verbatim (no, I didn't make this up just to fill the blog and toot our own horn!) one reply received from a very grateful member. It made me happy to hear things were looking up for their music program, and all was not lost. So, Teacher Members, do not lose heart! Sometimes, this advocacy thing DOES work!

QUOTE: I talked to you several weeks ago regarding the possible Music reduction in time and staff in my school district. You sent me lots of material (it was great!) and the steps in the process of making a difference. The number one step was getting parents involved! I sent your emails to all the Music staff in our district. It truly helped all the staff, as they sent on what was pertinent for their groups of parents. I am happy to report back to you about the progress of this situation. Five very articulate and respected parents spoke at our BOE meeting against the proposed cut in Music and PE. About 100 people were there as a show of support. There was no action taken to eliminate and/or cut times! The principals have been directed to re-do the schedule and come up with different plans. This will then be presented to all the teachers and a parents committee has been set up to help with the process. Can you believe it?!!!! I am truly amazed at the developments! So while we are not sure of the outcome, we have reached the goal of letting the Board know the importance of Music and that parents do not want the time reduced! I will be sending you several articles from our local newspaper for you to see...I want you to witness our success because you are a part of it!

Around the Water Cooler
As an offshoot to the "American Idol" British invasion theme (see blogs last week)...
I was discussing with a co- worker how the first Beatles album allowed in our home (1966) was "Rubber Soul" (most likely because it was so acoustic and almost "classical"....Mom had her standards!) We devoured it; or rather I did. Day after day, singing along with "Rubber Soul", I imagined myself as a back up singer to the Fab Four. After all, why not? My fantasies were fueled further when the news came out (1967, 68?) of an unknown local gal from
UK who won the solo on (Paul's tune?) "Those Were the Days".....after all, I was only 7, and anything was possible!
I learned every vocal harmony on each song, including the back up choir parts "Oooh la la la!".....("You won't see me"....)
While sharing this info with co-worker pal, she also confessed to doing the same thing, and we agreed that's probably how we learned to sing harmony.....she reminded me how we could, in those days of mono-recording and early stereo, separate out the singing parts with one turn of the "balance" knob on our RECORD PLAYERS.....so that Paul's treble voice came out of one speaker, and John's more resonant tones came out of the other speaker. This certainly helped train our ears. We felt like geniuses with our "smart" listening....and rebalancing the tracks back together made a sound that was like candy!

SO! In honor of reminiscences about singing, and "American Idol's" themes of standards with Tony Bennett, and British Invasion and 60's Pop with Diana Ross......here is an"> 8 minute cartoon (go ahead, treat yourself!) from 1936, apparently a cult classic: "I Love to Singa!". Spoiler: If you rent the DVD "Happy Feet", this is one of the shorts on the disc..... has something to do with singing birds, as does "Happy Feet"! Teaser: "Singa" has a very "American Idol" like scene....hilarious! You will be reminded of the "wanna be" IDOL contestants during the IDOL audition phase!
">Description and history of the cartoon (click here!)

Speaking of cartoons....it's amazing to me how I became familiar with so much classical music.....via Saturday morning cartoons! Most especially, Liszt's Hungarian Rhapsody No. 2. My husband and I can never hear it without breaking into wide grins, and then, "conducting" it right down to the final "DA DAHHH!", in imitation of whichever cartoon character was conducting the cartoon orchestra!

(For a more sober performance, see: youtube; and Click to see a list of many cartoons featuring classical music!

and CLICK THIS to see Rhapsody in Popular Culture" along with cartoon characters stills....

See you next Wednesday! SR

Midweek Meanderings and Miscellany 2

Goings on in my neck of the MENC woods....

New Hampshire (click to see sessions) is readying for their annual All State conference, April 12 - 14 in Concord, NH. (l'll be going to run the MENC resource booth)......they are excited, it's the first time they've held
their All State in a hotel instead of a high school, and they're hoping it'll be a big success so
as to entice more members from across the state to participate in future years.

MENC also had a visitor from China last week, who had come to the states to make a presentation
on the role of music in patriotism in China. She and the professor of the U.S.
university where she made her presentation had a good look around MENC headquarters,
and even came across a rehearsal of the MENC Recorder ensemble, the (staff) members of which
graciously impromptu performed a new piece for the visitors, percussion and all!

And yes, the MENC tree (see EWL's blog below) has looked lovely since December,
and now some industrious MENC staff have already donned it for the Centennial -
vintage photos from last 100 years music education,
miniature instruments ornaments, and party blowers!
And kudos to JR, who monthly has knit a miniature sweater
with some symbol of that month's decorating theme to ornament the tree!

I nearly forgot!I Tomorrow I pass my 8 year anniversary at MENC! (3/29)
wow. Some folks have been here 15 - 20 years!
was a real stroke of serendipity (? can you say that?!)
I found MENC... and thanks to EWL for hiring me!

In the news:
The AP reported last week that Italian musician, Francesco Lotoro, has, for the last 15 years, been independently (on his own time and dime) seeking, collecting and preserving the "lost" music of the Holocaust...music written in the death and labor camps, from Europe to Japan. His work will have a permanent home at Rome's Third University in September 2007, and feature 4,000 papers and 13,000 microfiches including music sheets, letters, drawings and photos. He is also rearranging and recording many of the pieces to produce a collection of 32 CDs, five of which have been published already. Even officials at the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington have lauded the work and said it is groundbreaking. I have not found any public website for this work, yet.... but to get an idea of the type of material Lotoro has collected, see the collection at the US Holocaust Memorial Museum: Music page

BEAUTIFUL VOICE! For Idol Fans, and even non-Idol fans: listen to SHADA, one of 4 contestants remaining in the "Star Academy" reality show out of Lebanon; Shada is Iraqi, age 25. Her voice, singing a song from the 60's from the Middle East, is mesmerizing and heart breaking. This show follows contestants 24/7, and viewers call in via cell to vote - a la American Idol. ON NPR

RESOURCES of the WEEK
American Composers forum
Composers Datebook
Arts Education Partnership
Good resources/tech and lesson plans
Cool careers (middle school level)
PBS teachers guides on line

AROUND the WATER COOLER
Speaking of British invasion..... (see EWL's Water cooler item below) -
isn't it amazing (to those of us who are of a certain age) that many of this year's American Idol contestants admitted they hadn't a clue about the British music invasion of the 60's? Okay, it was 30 years before their time, but still!
And did you notice NO ONE sang any Beatles? (click to see review)
And for those who are real Idol aficionados, check out Michael Slezak's reviews
each week; "spot on" and most entertaining! Almost better than the show!

Interesting article from Smithsonian Magazine on the Real Dreamgirls: How Girl Groups Changed American Music

My cousin's son just got accepted into three colleges, and is
waiting to hear from #4. He's a marching band/jazz guy... and he wants to teach music!
So he's chosen some programs with great jazz programs and great
music education programs....way to go, Andy!

SEE YOU NEXT WEDNESDAY! SR