Asta 2018 Wrap-up

As I reflect on the 2018 the ASTA National Conference through my haze of exhaustion and happiness, I feel like there are a few takeaways that I'd like to share with you today. The Conference has become for me and many others somewhat of a a family reunion. It's a time where like-minded professionals and friends get together to share ideas, encourage each other, and enjoy each other's company. There are so many wonderful informative sessions at the conference that cover topics including traditional pedagogy, K-12 strategies,  eclectic style performance,  advocacy and many other current topics and issues to mention just a few. In addition to the conference sessions, there is an amazing exhibit hall where manufacturers of instruments, accessories, publishers, and others can share their products and receive feedback from the people who actually use their product on a daily basis. There are meetings of minds throughout the course of the four day event and many new ideas are germinated at this time.

For me, this year's conference was particularly moving in a variety of ways. First, I have been struck by the opportunities that we have at the conference to look at our past and honor the folks that laid the groundwork for this organization and the profession of string teaching. Some were at the conference this year and others weren't able to make it. But, throughout the conference there were conversations about the ideas that started with the pillars of generations before us. We heard many references to folks like Paul Rolland,George Bornoff, Marvin Rabin, Dorothy Straub,Shinichi Suzuki, and so many more throughout the week.

At the same time, I was struck by the incredible number of young people at the conference. I feel like the collegiate chapters of the American String Teachers Association are stepping up in huge ways. The youthful energy in the sessions, the jam sessions, and the social events, was energizing for me in many ways. I was thrilled to meet up with many students that I have conducted in various honors orchestras, camps, and other events over the years who are now string teachers in the profession. It was wonderful to hear about their ideas, their passions, and their aspirations for their students and their professional lives.  I am honored to play a role in their lives and truly desire to encourage and inspire them moving forward.

I am also really excited to begin a new role as Chair of the National Committee on Content Development for ASTA.  I had many conversations throughout the week with individuals and groups about the power of web content and the various modes that can include.  It seems that we all are thinking about web content and how it can be most useful  to those  in the profession.  I am honored to play a role in the next phase of these decisions and initiatives for ASTA.

Another important facet of the conference for me is spending time with my friends and deepening those relationships.   I was honored to present a session with my dear friends Jim Palmer and Dr. Rebecca McLeod from UNC Greensboro. It was wonderful to prepare our session together and share our ideas with the enthusiastic audience on Friday.  I also loved getting to know Jim's students who served as our demo orchestra.  I had so many other meals and conversations with some of my best friends from across the country. In many ways , these connections are the real value of this organization . I find and inspiration in these relationships and genuinely appreciate my colleagues in the most profound of ways. 

(Side bar: Congratulations to Jim Palmer for being named the recipient of the 2018 Elizabeth A. H. Green Award for Exceptional Accomplishments in the K-12 String and Orchestra Education.  This is certainly well earned and well deserved!)

I love gaining new ideas from the sessions I attend.  This year was no exception.  I picked up several nuggets this year and will implement them immediately at NCSSM and in my conducting appearances.  Similarly, I gain so much from presenting at the conference. This is important professional development for me and I truly appreciate all of you that attended my sessions and encourage me to be better each year.  I particularly appreciate all of you who attended my 7:00 AM STEM Concepts in the String and Orchestra Classroom session.  You are troopers!

Each year, after the conference, I come home with a renewed appreciation for my colleagues and my profession. We are so privileged to be string teachers and orchestra directors in the United States today.  We need each other.  ASTA is the glue that brings so many of us together and continues to make us better in so many ways.  If you have never been to the conference, try to get to Albuquerque next year.  You will be transformed. Until next year...

Peace.

Scott

Artist/Educator

Back in May, I had an outdoor gig at local sports bar/restaurant, Devines in Durham. It was a Saturday night and happened to be prom night for my school, the North Carolina School of Science and Math.  Throughout the evening, I was delighted to notice lots of my students coming out of other area restaurants, on their way to the prom following dinner.  Many of them stopped in order to hear me play a bit and take photos of me and my fellow musicians.  The crowd that was at the bar to hear me play could see the joy and fun in the students eyes of seeing their music teacher in a performing setting, outside of school.  What a fun experience for all!

Today I am thinking about the importance of maintaining a life as a performing artist while pursuing a career as a music educator. In the weeks around that performance, I was involved in a series of interviews, seeking a new visual arts instructor at NCSSM. One of our stated priorities for the candidate was that they, in addition to being an exceptional experienced teacher, had a vibrant life as a working artist. We believe that there is true value for students in having a role model that is a working artist. (By the way, we certainly found that person and are thrilled to have her on Faculty today at NCSSM!!)

I have worked hard over the past 30 years to maintain an active performing life. Many of you know that I still perform as a violinist both in the classical and in a variety of improvisatory arenas. I perform regularly in churches, as part of a string quartet, as a solo artist, as a recording artist, and as part of numerous pop and rock bands around Durham & the Triangle region of North Carolina. I also frequently pick up my violin and perform as part of conducting appearances.

I believe strongly that modeling a performing life is a vital part of the educational process. Students want and need to see their teacher actively engaged in the art that they themselves are working so hard to master.

That Friday night was a really cool experience along these lines. I couldn't help but think that this was actually another important part of the educational process for my students. It is not often the students get to see me as my alter ego, improvising violinist. They're used to seeing me in rehearsal, conducting the orchestra, and running the various programs at NCSSM.  In the end, we all have a responsibility to maintain our life as an artist and practitioner in our chosen field. That's how students really learn. They see their mentors doing the thing they love. Students learn by example. And, they find an interest and passion in that same area as their mentors. For those of you that are young music teachers or perhaps even pre-service teachers, I encourage you to set concrete goals for both your teaching life and you're performing life. 

Don't ever let your chops deteriorate to the point that  you won't play for the public. Find time to practice. Find time to perform. And find ways to model your passion and expertise in performance for your students. Build advancing your performing skills into your professional development plans and time.  Use some of your summer time and other breaks for practice, lessons, or other performing opportunities.  You owe it to yourself and you owe it to your students!

Peace.

Scott

ICO 2016 Interlochen Final Concert

Before I close the door on my 2016 Interlochen experience, I want to make sure that I say a few words about the repertoire that I selected for our final concert of the season. That concert actually took place several weeks ago.  I am sorry I didn't post about it prior to the performance. I do, however I encourage you to check out the audio recordings of the concert at the Interlochen Public Radio website. I will attach the link here as soon as it is available.

For this concert we did 5 selections.

We began the program with Mandolina by Gabrielle Faure, arranged by Tom Sharp. Those of you that know me, know that I frequently perform alt styles works arranged and composed by Tom Sharpe. This, however, is a wonderful piece by Faure, originally scored for piano and soprano solo. Tom Sharpe has brilliantly arranged it for string orchestra. Let me Begin by saying that this is a pretty difficult work. We actually had to modify some of the viola and cello parts to accommodate some of the less experienced players in the Intermediate Concert Orchestra. That said, it was quite easy to transcribe the bass line for these areas of the piece. This work includes beautiful melodies for each section of the string orchestra. It begins with a lovely soaring cello line and then hands the melody off to the violins. The B section is led by the violas. The melody then returns to the cellos  featured on the A' section to the end. I must say that this addition does require a good deal of editing. The bowings also must be modified for young orchestra in order to make the phrasing really speak. Also, it takes some time to really figure out who has the melody at any given moment and how the accompaniment parts fit in underneath the melody. That said, when all assembled, this is an absolutely beautiful work. I would rate this as about a grade 5 piece. It is absolutely stunning when performed.

For our second piece, I continued with the French theme. We performed the Minuet from Le Tombeau de Couperin, by Maurice Ravel, arranged by Carrie Lane Gruselle. I became aware of this work 2 years ago at a new music reading session that ASTA presented in North Carolina. It is a little outside the box of what I would normally Program for young orchestra. Each voice in the string orchestra is very independent and it requires attention to dynamic detail, as well as attention to details in phrasing, bow technique, hooked bowing, and other techniques associated with the impressionistic period. This piece features lovely melodies in each section and requires students to be very cognizant of conductors' nuances in the stick. The B section of this work features a muted string section performing a haunting minor melody.

Third, the orchestra presented the world premiere of Peter Terry's Blindsighted. You can see my notes on this piece in my previous post.

Following that, we performed the world premiere of another String orchestra work. This piece, the Colosseum, by Macenna Hanson held a place very near and dear to my heart. Miss Hanson, you see, was the concertmaster of this very ensemble during the summer of 2015. She approached me at the beginning of the summer of 2016 and informed me that she was now a composition major at the Interlochen Arts Camp. She told me that she had been working on a piece for string orchestra. I offered to read the piece in one of my rehearsals and she enthusiastically accepted the offer. After looking at the score and hearing a midi recording of the work, I offered to spend some time on the piece and see if it might be performable. It became clear very quickly that this piece would be a favorite of the students and myself and we could certainly perform it on the stage of Kresge Auditorium. Of course, Macenna was thrilled and we, in fact, performed the world premiere of that work on our concert. It was such a thrill and pleasure to perform a work by a young composer and see her hard work come to fruition in such a magnificent performance space.

Our fifth and final selection for this concert was Bert Ligon's Bossa Rojo for string orchestra. This is a wonderful, light bossa style piece for string orchestra that features opportunities for teaching articulation, improvisation, and pop style playing for young string orchestras. This piece is a grade 3.5 and is truly a pleasure to perform. The melodies have been stuck in my head for the past several weeks! We decided to feature Interlochen faculty piano instructor, Alejandro Bernard  Papachryssanthou on the electronic keyboard as part of this performance. He added a solo on keyboards that was a true face melter! What a blast! It was a wonderful way to end the 2016 concert season for the Intermediate Concert Orchestra.

Again, I encourage you to check out the recordings of these pieces. I could not have been any happier with our performances. I look forward to continuing to write about repertoire that I select for the various orchestras I am working with in coming weeks and months.

Until next time.

Peace.

Scott

Pedagogy from the podium

This weekend, I have been conducting an Honors String Orchestra Festival at Austin Peay State University in Clarksville, TN. My thanks to Emily Crane and all at Austin Peay for inviting me.  It's been a wonderful event and, as a result of my rehearsals here, throughout the weekend I have been giving a great deal of thought to my upcoming educational sessions at a couple of different conferences. A session that all be presenting in coming months, including at the National ASTA Conference in Tampa, is "Pedagogy From the Podium." This is a session that I began giving many years ago while I was still teaching in Palmyra, PA, based on some of the "best" practices that I had discovered in my daily teaching life. But, as you can imagine, over the years the content and the approach have changed a great deal. 

 Those of you that pay attention to this blog know that last year I was strongly considering the anatomy of any strong pedagogy. I presented a model where there were four components of any pedagogical concept that needed to be addressed. Those components are as follows: 

1. A SYSTEM is developed 

2. The system is SEQUENTIAL

3. There must be strong NOMENCLATURE introduced to clarify the system

4. The instructor provides a HARMONIC UNDERPINNING to any skill that is introduced modified . 

So, my task over the last several months has been to consider the systems that I have developed over the past several years. As this has been in the front of my mind, I've become more and more aware of the myriad of systems that I've developed or utilized over the years. Last year, I spent a good deal of time discussing, creating resources for, and teaching about the system of Finger Patterns that I had acquired from other great pedagogues and modified to suit my particular needs. Continuing on that theme, I have become more and more aware of other systems that have become an integral part of my teaching over the years.  Some of these were developed by others, some I have modified, and others I have developed.

Those of you that attend Pedagogy From the Podium, will get a strong dose of my belief in the model for these systems, and a number of specific systems that you can use in your classroom which utilize the model. I am still weeding out the final content of these sessions, but right now these are the areas that I will potentially be addressing. 

• Ensemble Tuning
• Ensemble Playing Position
• Finger patterns as a vehicle to ensemble intonation
• Rhythmic stability and Inner Rhythm
• Watching the conductor and general ensemble awareness
• Movement and breathing into phrase
• Dynamics and the dynamic nature of ensemble playing
• Spiccato and other intermediate to advanced bow techniques
• Bow speed/placement
• Pizzicato accuracy and technique
• Musical "essence" and the art of self editing difficult passages
• Precepts of bow direction
• Bow weight as it relates to bow placement
• Bow style as it relates to historic era of composition

Obviously, this won't all be addressed in a one-hour session. So, as you can see, some of this will be "weeded out" in coming weeks and months. I hope that you find some of these topics interesting and truly hope to see you at one of the sessions. Please let me know if any of these areas particularly resonate with you, or if there is something missing here that you would like to see.  Here's what I can promise: I will certainly be thinking about these systems and my approach to the ensemble development in the coming weeks and months. I will do my best to offer specific and pertinent content for everybody who attends.

For those of you on the East Coast: stay dry and safe this weekend. To those of you here in Clarksville TN, thanks for an awesome weekend of music making, sharing, and collaborating. You all have been wonderful to work with and I know our concert today is going to be magnificent!

Peace.

Scott 

Thoughts on Accessories for String Players

A couple of weeks ago, I posted some thoughts on my relationship with D’Addario and giving away some strings sets to a few students.  There was a comment on that post that asked me to give some remarks about the importance of strings and other accessories for parents that aren’t string players so that they can make more informed choices with making purchasing decisions.  This is a response to that request.

Strings

The question started with strings.  So, here are some thoughts on strings.  First, families have to start from the perspective of budget.  I know, I am the father of three string players.  Also, in the interest of full disclosure, I am affiliated with D’Addario Strings as an Educational Specialist.  That said, I am affiliated with them because I love their product and play their product.  For almost all of my remarks in the post, you will see one recurring thought:  You get what you pay for!  So, with that said, here are some more thoughts on strings.  First, they all sound different.  And, in the end, sound and tone is what really matters when playing an instrument.  Tone is what keeps you coming back for more. If a player doesn’t like the tone of their instrument, they are less likely to practice, less likely to play for others, and less likely to continue.  You get the idea.  Tone is everything.  Even among the D’Addario products, there are a broad range of price points on strings and a broad range of tonal offerings.  Some strings are brighter, others are sweeter.  Strings also come in a variety of compositions and tensions.  These all impact the tone.    My advice is to try out several types of strings over a period of months and see what you like.  When you find one you really like, stick with it.  Strings do wear out after a period of time.  So a great sounding string today may not sound so great in 6 or 8 months.   For students, I would recommend changing strings every 6 months to one year.  Many professionals change strings much more frequently.  The strings may not even look worn out.  It is the tone of the string that wears out more quickly.   Listen to the instrument when they put on new strings.  It should sound more resonant, and “live.”

Here is my “cut to the chase” advice: If your student is in their 3^rd or 4^th year of instruction, playing on a “step up” full size instrument, playing in a competitive youth orchestra, competing for regional or all-state opportunities, or performing in solo recitals, they should be playing D’Addario Helicore or Zyex strings or strings of another brand of a similar quality.  They should also be changing strings every 6 months or so. Plan for $50.00-$60.00 each time they change strings.  D’Addario sets range from around $20.00 for their Pro Arte sets to around $50.00 for the Helicore or Zyex sets.  I play D’Addario Helicore strings on my acoustic violin and D’Addario Zyex or NS Design Electric Strings on my electric violins.

Bows

Many folks also don’t understand the importance of a good bow to the string players’ tone.  Bows also come in a wide variety of compositions, qualities, and price ranges.  A bow can greatly impact the tone of a violin and a sub-par bow can really hinder a young player’s development.   Again, in the interest of full disclosure, I play Coda carbon fiber bows exclusively and have a relationship with the company.  I find that in the price range up to $1000.00, Carbon fiber really gives the player the best “band for the buck.”  There will be others that disagree with me and really advocate for wooden bows at all price points.  Pernambuco bows are certainly the most sought-after, particularly in the over $1000.00 price range.  You will also find bows made of Brazilwood in the lower price range.  Many folks go right to the bounce strokes when trying out new bows, but there really is more to the bow decision.  I am always thinking about an even tone from frog to tip when trying bows.  I play long tones and listen for power and evenness at the tip and lightness and control toward the frog.  Of course, balance and lightness are also very important when it comes to spiccato or sautillé strokes.  In the end, a better bow allows for a broader range of subtleties on the instrument.   I do not advocate for the under $50.00 fiberglass bow, even for beginning students.  Spending a couple hundred dollars on a carbon fiber bow, even for younger students, should pay huge dividends.  The bow will impact the tone and ultimately, students will want to play/practice more! The Coda Bow Company is on the forefront of research and design in all categories.  I recommend them highly and play their sticks. In the end, like everything, it comes down to budget and getting the best product for your hard-earned money.  Your local luthier can probably really enlighten you on this subject.   I use a Coda Joule Carbon Fiber bow for my improvisatory work and a Coda Custom carbon fiber bow for my classical work.  I also have a Richter Pernambuco stick in my case that I have had for many years and still use it quite often for classical performances.

Rosin

Yes – even the rosin they use makes a difference.  Rosin is the material that affects the feel of contact and friction of the bow to strings.  I did a quick bit of web research and, wow, there is a bunch of information out there!  I tend to like darker rosin.  I am not sure why. It just feels better to me.  I started using it when I was 12 years old or so and have loved the feel of it ever since.  Rosin comes in two basic colors, amber or light and dark.  There are many brands and manufacturing processes associated with rosin.  But, again, it has a huge impact on the way the bow feels against the string.  So, I recommend trying several out over a period of time.  Amber rosin, for me, just doesn’t give me the same touch that dark rosin gives.  The good news is that rosin isn’t that expensive.  It ranges from $2.00-$10.00 or more at the top end.  I use D’Addario Kaplan Dark Rosin exclusively.   I recommend giving your child a new /different rosin for every birthday and Christmas (or other gift-giving holiday) until they find one that really makes them happy.  Then “stick” with that brand. (Please excuse my pun.)

I am sure that there are other accessories that will come up as a result of this post so don’t hesitate to ask me to add to this if you have further or related questions.  I hope that all of this is helpful at some level. 

Peace.

Scott

Strings, Students, and D’Addario

Most of you know that I have a long standing relationship with the D’Addario Company.  I have played their Zyex and Helicore strings exclusively for the past 12 year or so and I really love them.   I think the strings sound great and last forever.   D’Addario puts a tremendous amount of research and development into their product, and their plant is one of the coolest, most impressive places I have ever been.   It is a great American company where the folks they employ all seem to love coming to work each day.  D’Addario sponsors so many events and clinics that are great for students and educators.  They believe in string education and in the importance of quality music educators.  D’Addario has generously supported much of my scholarship over the years, sponsoring many of my appearances around the United States and encouraging me in many ways.  For those that don’t know, Daddario’s brands include D’Addario Strings (guitar and bass strings), D’Addario Bowed, Evans (percussion), Rico (reeds), Promark (percussion), and Planet Waves (electronics).

Over the years, D’Addario has provided a variety of small gifts for me to use in my teaching and conducting appearances as motivational tools for students and teachers.  A student makes great eye contact: they get a cool sticker.  A student takes a chance by playing a passage alone for the group: they get a D’Addario lanyard.  A teacher gives a great answer at a seminar: they get a classroom poster.  You get the idea.  This type of extrinsic motivation works when used in the right way.  People love to get free stuff and will usually step out of their comfort zone to get it!

Lately, I have been keeping a couple extra sets of strings in my bag to give away for just that special situation.  Two such situations have occurred in the past few weeks and wanted to share them with you. 

At a rehearsal a few weeks ago, a cellist broke an A string on her cello.  She was shocked and upset.  She didn’t have another string in her bag and I don’t think this had ever happened to her before.  I asked if anyone in the section had an extra strong.  The young man that was sitting in the Associate Principal position of the section quickly volunteered one of his new spare A strings.  One of my assistants was putting the string on the cello and that new string broke!!  The assistant, a college student, felt horrible and volunteered to buy a replacement string.  I was able to quickly tell her that I would take care of it and the next day was able to give a brand new set of D’Addario Kaplan Cello Strings to the young man.  I explained that it was compliments of the D’Addario Company and that I knew they would want him to have the set.  I also was able to compliment him on his selflessness and willingness to provide a string for his colleague.   In the end, that sense of caring for others and helping out is really what I wanted to reinforce.  D’Addario helped me to do just that. 

I had another situation just a few days after that with a student that was seated at the back of my 2^nd violin section.  She was playing on a standard student quality violin and had a set of very low grade strings on the instrument.  She came to me with concerns about the tone quality of her D string.  I played it and it was very false in tone.  I asked her how old the strings were and she replied that they were new within the past few days.  This was clearly a defective string and it really sounded bad.  I was able to offer her a new set of D’Addario Zyex strings for her instrument and put them on the violin during our next break.  They totally changed the sound of her instrument for the better and she was absolutely thrilled.  Again, this was a great kid, an interested aspiring musician the just got ahold of a subpar set of strings.  Having that great sound under her ear could completely change her musical experience in the future.  I am honored to have this opportunity to share quality strings with students as a result of my relationship with the D’Addario Company and the D’Addario Orchestral product line. 

Thanks to D’Addario for their unwavering support.  The opportunities that they have provided me and others have been huge. They are changing lives every day.

Peace.

Scott

ICO 2014 Concert 2

Hi friends!

Here are some more thoughts on summer repertoire for ICO.  The second concert will be in 3 short days and perhaps many of the parents that read this will be in attendance for the concert.  We had a great rehearsal today and will certainly be ready to give a great performance on Friday.

We will open our performance with the Overture to the Messiah by Handel.  This is the original Messiah Overture and we are using the Schirmer edition.  I like that edition because the Grave section is written with the appropriate double dotted rhythms and it is otherwise very predictable for those of us that have played this work in any variety of settings.  In the Grave section students learn hooked bowing and really have to listen to the ensemble along with subdividing to keep the passage rhythmically clean.  The Allegro is a fugue and each section must count independently and demonstrate a marcato style throughout.  This is a great piece and teaching tool for young orchestras.

Next, we are doing Fantasy on American Sailing Songs, by Clare Grundman, Arr Longfield.  This is a medley of popular sailing songs that is very accessible for young orchestras.  Students play in a variety of keys and time signatures and there are plenty of opportunities for teaching ensemble, rhythm, and interaction between sections.

Our reall challenge piece for this concert is the Minuet from Petite Suite, by Debussy/Arr. Osentowski (Pub FJH).  This is a grade V adaptation of the famous work for 4 hands piano.  This is a real contrast to much of the repertoire that I have programmed over the years for this type of group.  It is very lyrical, requires extremely close listening across the ensemble, and includes of very tricky violin parts.  The key to this one working well is every section having full awareness of their respective roll in the work from measure to measure, phrase to phrase.  (Isn’t that always the case?!) But, really, this one is a challenge and it is a new piece for me as well.  I am looking forward to using this as the centerpiece to our program. 

We will finish our program with a bang with Choreograpy, by Norman Dello Joio, Mvt 3.  This is a classic and oft-used string orchestra piece that was commissioned and written in the 1970’2 by the American String Teachers Association.  This is a fast and furious finale to the work.  I asked the kids what emotions come to mind as they play it and received answers including: angry, determined, important, and anxious, among others.  This will be a fun and exciting way to end our program.

We look forward to performing this program on July 11 at 7:00 in Corson Auditorium on the Interlochen campus!

Peace.

Scott

ICO 2014 Concert 1

Hi friends!

I wanted to take a quick minute today to run through the repertoire that I programmed for my first two concerts with the Intermediate Concert Orchestra here at Interlochen this summer.  My hope is that this post will give parents of ICO students some insight into what their children have done this summer and some of my values as a conductor.  I am also hopeful that perhaps colleagues will find some of this to be helpful as they plan their repertoire for the upcoming year with similar ensembles at their schools or youth orchestras. 

The ensemble that I conduct is a string orchestra with students ranging from 12 to 15 years old.  The playing level is quite diverse with the top students auditioning on intermediate repertoire such as Mozart Concerti, Accolay Violin Concerto, and other similar appropriate solos and possessing a good deal of range and musical background.  Other students are significantly less experienced and it is always a challenge to bring the group together in a way that challenges and inspires all students, without leaving the less experienced folks in the dust.  This concert cycle, the group is quite evenly matched and that has been less of an issue that some other years. 

For each concert, I always try to select a diverse program that includes something traditional and something more contemporary; something very technically challenging and something that doesn’t take as long to learn the notes and rhythms, something lyrical and something fast and rhythmic; and something that features a guest artist or extended instrumentation.  I think that we achieved all of those goals for this concert cycle.

Concert 1

We began our first concert with Overture to Ruslan and Ludmilla, by Glinka, Arr. McCashin (Pub FJH).  This is a wonderful arrangement of the original for string orchestra that really challenges a young orchestra.  We were able to work this up to tempo and do some really great things with ensemble and listening across the orchestra.  The celli and violas get a beautiful lyrical section in the middle and everyone gets the opportunity to play “high, fast, and loud” as part of the fun.  It was a great concert opener and I think it really surprised our audience.  I always like Bob McCashin’s arrangements because he keeps the pieces very true to the original and always challenges the player.  This is listed as a Grade V piece.

Next we did Serenade for Strings, Mvts I, II, IV, by Robert Washburn.  This gem has been around for many years and I hadn’t conducted it for at least 13 years or so.  Dr. Washburn was Professor of Music at The State University of New York in Potsdam for many years and just passed away in November, 2013, at the age of 85.  I had conducted this piece in 1997 with the Maryland Junior All State Orchestra and Dr. Washburn stopped in to hear about two hours of my rehearsal.  He took some time to speak with the students and with me afterwards and it was really the thrill of a lifetime.  His affirmation of my work and encouragement went a long way for me in the early part of my career.  The first movement is in ABA form and is very lyrical, requiring all players to listen carefully to the inner rhythm of the work.  The second movement is in “3” and reminds me of a lullaby.  Again in ABA form, the B section is very warm and “orchestral” in nature.  It is simply gorgeous.  The forth movement is more rhythmic and driving.  To my ear, there is a Native American flavor to it.   Each section gets a feature in this movement and it ends the Serenade with a bang!  This piece is usually listed as a Grade IV work.

We ended our first concert with Cascade, by Bert Ligon.  The piece is in a pop style and calls for a piano and drum set in addition to the string orchestra.  I thought it needed guitar as well, so I called Bert up and asked if he might be able to help us out with a guitar chart.  He graciously agreed and I had guitar charts for the piece within about 48 hours!! (Thanks, Bert!!) This piece is great for teaching a pop style and the importance of syncopation in contrast with non-syncopated figures.  It is also fantastic for teaching and reinforcing dynamics and direction of line.  Every section gets a feature in this piece.  It is listed as a Grade 3.5, but I wouldn’t hesitate to do it with a much more advanced group.  Bert’s music is always so well-written and it feels good to play.  I intend to do with my NCSSM group this fall.

So that was our first concert.  I will write about our 2^nd concert in the next post.  I hope this was helpful!!

Peace.

Scott

My Friend and Colleague, Todd Miller

This article is a reprint from the Cary News (NC) on Oct 18, 2011. It is an interview with my friend and colleague, Todd Miller. He is a real inspiration to me me and many others. You can see a bunch of his guitar pedagogy videos at www.thelessonroom.com, a site sponsored by the D'Addario Co. They are fantastic and this is a great tribute to a dedicated teacher.
Peace.
Scott



Education Matters:
Published: Oct 18, 2011 07:15 PM

Music teacher inspires students to follow their passion

by Anne Woodman
I received a great email recently from Apex High School senior Deanna Metivier. After taking teacher Todd Miller's Guitar I, Guitar II and Guitar Ensemble classes, she is now thinking about studying guitar and music in college.

After talking to many teachers over the years, it seems that affecting the life of just one student like Metivier can be incredibly satisfying and is often the reason people teach.

Miller, who teaches not only guitar but also orchestra and music appreciation, agrees. While growing up in Fayetteville, Miller said his band director, Dave Freeman, was a powerful influence.

Q: So Freeman inspired you to be a teacher?

A: I knew I wanted to be a musician at age 13 when I found the guitar. But I never saw myself as a public school music teacher. ... I studied music performance in college, taught private guitar lessons to 40 students, and had gigs three or four nights a week with pop and dance bands. But after having my first child in 1997 and trying to work nights and be a father, things started not to work so well. I got fascinated with the violin, viola, cello and bass and became a middle-school orchestra director. I loved it.

In 2007, I came to Wake County and served as orchestra director at both Apex and Wake Forest/Rolesville... a commute of 32 miles. I loved both, but I really wanted to become full time at one school. (Matthew) Wight (Apex principal) allowed me to start a guitar program and create a curriculum. He wasn't sure we would have enough interest. But that first semester, we had 137 students sign up for Guitar I.

Q: What do you cover in your music appreciation class?

A: In the past, I think music appreciation classes start on a path beginning with medieval music and take each period of music, which can be dry. Our textbook starts with fun pop music to get kids hooked.

I use something I learned in a Psychology of Music class while I was earning my master's degree at UNC Greensboro. I walk in, write on the board, "All peoples in all times in all places have engaged in musical behaviors." I say it, louder and louder, and then I play "Won't Get Fooled Again" by The Who.

I like a quote I heard, "Reading and math are the 'how' of our lives, but music is the 'why.'"

Q: How much do you use technology in your classroom to share musical concepts?

A: Technology is an incredibly positive tool. I have an iPhone, and it has been amazing. We can listen to recordings of songs we're working on, use it as a metronome or record our performances. Because I'm a floater and don't have my own room, the fact that we have Bluetooth, and I don't have to set something up every time I walk into a different classroom is great. I can set things up in less than a minute.

Q: What are some of the concepts you teach your guitar students?

A: I try to get across to my Guitar I students that if they can read music, it will open doors for them. Many guitarists can't read music, but that ability will help you go far. Part of guitar is accompaniment skills, and the grand finale of Guitar I is to go caroling around the school in groups of four or five.

I tell the students that now they are the family accompanist. Music is meant to be communicated.

Q: In all of the concern about whether we are teaching students enough math and science to be competitive in the global marketplace, is music getting lost?

A: I do feel our orchestra program is in jeopardy. I have no middle-school feeder now, and every child should be able to find out what their passion is and get to experience making great art. For a small percentage, it might even open their eyes and ears to what they want to do. I tell them that there are not enough music teachers. There is still work out there, if that is what they want.

I think people forget the value of liberal arts. You learn so many critical thinking skills. One reason Steve Jobs was so adept was because he understood thhttp://www.blogger.com/img/blank.gife artistic part of what he was doing and used critical thinking all the time.

Another thing Mr. Wight and I have discussed is the serendipity that happened with the guitar program. Kids we could not connect with were coming to school. They wanted to come to guitar class. Not everybody gets excited about science and math, and we have to give kids a reason to come to school. I think I was one of those kids. If it hadn't been for jazz band, I wouldn't have come to school.

I have found my dream job; it's a wonderful life, making music every day.

mail@agwoodman.com
© Copyright 2011, The News & Observer Publishing Company

Strings Without Boundaries

Hi All.

On Tuesday, June 28, I was in Pittsburgh, PA, at Duquesne Universihttp://www.blogger.com/img/blank.gifty, representing NS Design at the Strings Without Boundaries Workshop. This is a great workshop each summer and I was really pleased to be there. As part of the day, I gave 3 presentations.

First, I had the opportunity to speak with the teacher-track students at the conference. This was essentially a Q and A session and we touched on the topics of recruitment for school programs using bowed electrics, the importance of good monitoring for dynamic performances, setting up electric ensembles, and the differences between active and passive instruments. Next, I gave an elective session for students on the nuts and bolts of amplification. Here, we covered some of the same topics for a totally different set of students. These included monitoring, speaker size, speaker placement, use of DI boxes and preamps and other amplification-related topics. Finally, I finished the day with an electihttp://www.blogger.com/img/blank.gifve session of effects-processing. In this session, we really got into the nitty-gritty of reverbs, time-based effects (delays, chorus, and flangers), filter effects (phasers and wah-wahs), harmonizers and pitch shifters, looping, and distortion. We covered a bunch of vocabulary and parameters of all of these great effects as well as practical uses of all of them. If you would like to see some of my sessions on effects, check out thelessonroom.com and search “electric violins”.

All in all, Strings Without Boundaries is a great event and if you are interested in expanding your improvising and alt styles skills, I highly recommend this event. Special thanks to Julie Lyon Lieberman and Stephen Benham for inviting me to be part of the faculty this year!

Peace.

Scott

D'Addario at ASTA

This week, I have been at the National Conference of the American String Teachers Association. It has been a magnificent conference with something for everyone. I have participated in educational sessions, learned a ton, given a few sessions, met new friends, and connected with old friends from around the country in the string education community.

One of the most informative sessions that I attended was "Demystifying Your Strings," presented by my friends and colleagues at D'Addario Strings, Lyris Hung and Fan Tau. In the session, they discussed and explained the differences between the various string cores, wrappings, tensions, and other issues surrounding string technology. Fan is simply one of the most knowledgeable engineers in the world of acoustics and designs D'Addario's strings from beginning to end.

The session was really well attended and incredibly interesting. Lyris and Fan are tremendous colleagues and did a great job with this one. In the video, Fan explains the concept of harmonics and how that relates to a "false" string.

Enjoy.
Scott

The Lesson Room

Hi all!
Today I want to give you a little bit of insight on using the new teaching resource from D'Addario, www.thelessonroom.com.

This new resource is an exciting tool that can be used as a supplement to any solid instrumental music program. It is populated with video and other content that can be used by instrumental teachers, regardless of the method book or curriculum that they are using. Students can find good lessons that cover technique and ideas, taught by master teachers in an easy-to-use, free package.

In the coming months, we will be populating this site with solid video instruction on violin, viola, cello, bass, and guitar that you can use in your classes or as a resource for homework. We also anticipate that teachers will be able to use these videos to enrich their own understanding of the nuances of the individual instruments and techniques. Or, maybe to just pick up a tip or trick to use in their own teaching.

Much of the instruction on violin and electric violin is already there and can be found at this link: http://www.thelessonroom.com/LessonRoomResourceLibrary.Page?query=laird

Our planned content includes the following:

Introduction/Explanation: Scott Laird, NC School of Science and Math
1. Welcome
2. Students: How to use
3. Teachers: How to use

Violin: Scott Laird, NCSSM
1. First Year Technique
a. Playing position – Seated and Standing
b. Left Hand set up
c. Right Hand (Bow hand) Set-up
d. First year finger patterns
i. Upper strings: 2/3, ½, 3/4
e. Basic Note Reading
f. Rhythmic Patterns
g. Long tones
h. Tuning Tutorial (how pegs work, tuners vs. fine tuners, getting in tune)
2. Second Year technique
a. Finding third position
b. Finger Patterns
c. Shifting
d. Major Scales (with or without music)
e. Changing strings

Viola: Scott Laird, NCSSM
1. First Year Technique
a. Playing position – Seated and Standing
b. Left Hand set up
c. Right Hand (Bow hand) Set-up
d. First year finger patterns
i. Upper strings: 2/3, ½, 3/4
e. Basic Note Reading
f. Rhythmic Patterns
g. Long tones
h. Tuning Tutorial (how pegs work, tuners vs. fine tuners, getting in tune)
2. Second Year technique
a. Finding third position
b. Finger Patterns
c. Shifting
d. Major Scales (with or without music)
e. Changing strings



Cello: Mira Frisch, UNC Charlotte
1. First Year Technique
a. Playing position – Seated and Standing
b. Left Hand set up
c. Right Hand (Bow hand) Set-up
d. First year finger patterns
e. Basic Note Reading
f. Bow Placement and use
g. Tuning Tutorial (how pegs work, tuners vs. fine tuners, getting in tune)

2. Second Year technique
a. Extensions
b. Shifting
c. Major Scales
d. Changing strings

Bass: Paul Sharp, University of North Carolina School of the Arts
1. First Year Technique
a. Playing position – Seated, Standing, Bent Endpin
b. Left Hand set up
c. Right Hand (Bow hand) Set-up – French and German
d. Basic Note Reading
e. 1/2 steps, whole steps, introduce 1/2 and 1st position,
f. Early scales: G, C, D, and F and Bb

g. Early thumb position
h. Basic Instrument set-up
i. Tuning Tutorial (how pegs work, tuners vs. fine tuners, getting in tune, harmonics?)
2. Second Year technique
a. Simandl and Rabbath method
b. Advanced thumb Position
c. Shifting
d. Major Scales
e. Changing strings


Guitar: Todd Miller, Wake County Public Schools
1. First year Technique
a. Finger patterns-basic right hand/left hand technique
b. Natural notes on the guitar
c. Open chords primer and 1st song
d. Intro to Tablature
e. Basic note reading
f. Basic finger Picking
g. Basic Strumming
h. Blues in A

2. Second year Technique
a. Strumming Technique
b. Finger-picking Technique
c. CAGED Concept

Various Round Table Discussions oriented towards teaching and pedagogy.

This content should all be posted by the start of the 2010-2011 school year and we hope that teachers and students all around the country and world will take advantage of the content on the site. We have plans for worksheets, hoework assignments and quizzes as well.

It is definitely an exciting time at D'Addario and we look forward to your feedback on this cool site.

Best,
Scott

Midwest Clinic Thoughts - Tuesday

Hi all.
Today, I am the Midwest Clinic in Chicago. It is one of the largest annual gatherings of music educators and music companies. If you are a music educator and have never been to this event, it is really worth the effort to get here at some point.

The string education sessions began this morning with a nice breakfast gathering that was sponsored by the Kjos Publishing Company. It was a really nice event and I had the opportunity to reconnect with many friends from around the country. I was particularly pleased to reconnect with Marvin Rabin, one of the true pioneers in the string ed field. He paved the way for so many of us that are making our careers in public school string education and at age 93, is really getting around well. I had the chance to thank him for the impact he has had on my career. For those of you that are familiar with some of my web-teaching, he planted the seeds for many of the concepts that I teach using finger patterns. (major scales and upper positions) My students at NCSSM can see these concepts put to use on the NCSSM Orchestra page. Those of you elsewhere in the world can see these soon on the D'Addario site: www.thelessonroom.com. I believe that they will be posted very soon.

I also had the opportunity to see Mark O'Connor present a session on his new O'Connor Violin Method. It is available exclusively through Shar Music. I think that he has hit on something really effective here and applaud his efforts to be innovative in the traditional world of string education. There were several performances by students that have studied with Mark in various capacities over the years and they were all fantastic. I am going to check this method out very closely and try it out with my own sons.

Tomorrow, I will be giving a session with Doris Gazda, Matt Turner, Sean O'Laughlin, and Larry Clark. This session is sponsored by Carl Fischer Music and, as always, D'Addario Strings is supporting me in this session. This session is called "Teaching the Nitty Gritty: Who Has Time for Anything More?" and will cover a variety of topics related to technique, literature and enrichment to traditional skills in the string classroom. I think that this will be a lively panel discussion and look forward to sharing this platform with my friends.

Meanwhile, I have just enjoyed a lunch in my room while jotting down this post. Time to head back over to the conference to get more new ideas! More later...

Peace.
Scott

D'Addario on CNN

Hi Friends!
A few months back, I wrote about my experiences while visiting the D'Addario String manufacturing plant in Famingdale, NY. I mentioned how cool it is to be associated with a company that is committed to manufacturing in the United States and to their employees. Well, apparently others have noticed this as well. This past weekend, CNN featured D'Addario for their commitment to keeping jobs and manufacturing in the US. The clip details the Toyota Automation Strategy that I mentioned in my earlier post, commonly known as LEAN. It is a really interesting and enlightening clip.
Please follow this link to check out the video clip on the CNN Website. As always, I am so proud to be associated with D'Addario. They are a great company that makes a great product.
Peace.
Scott

Trip to D'Addario in Farmingdale

Hey everyone!
I am sorry it has been so long since my last post. I have been swamped with the organizational details of my Charity Bike Ride for the National MS Society, "Tour de Teacher" in Durham, NC. The event was a huge success and I will post more info about that event in the days to come.

Today, however, I want to tell you a bit about my recent trip to the D'Addario factory and headquarters in Farmingdale, NY. I headed up there with three goals for the trip: film a bunch of video content for the D'Addario website, take photos for a new set of classroom posters, and serve as guest speaker for the Nassau County Music Educators beginning of year dinner.

We definitely accomplished all of our goals while there. We managed to film a ton of educational videos on both bowed electric string instruments and effects processing and more traditional violin pedagogy that should be helpful to students and teachers, alike. We also got a great start of the photos for these posters. One will be focusing on bow hold and bowing terms and the other will be a fun look at the "Geometry of playing the violin." Finally, the dinner was a wonderful event and it was a pleasure to meet the good folks that are teaching music in Nassau County , Long Island. I was particularly please to meet Martha Boonshaft, wife of Hoffstra Music Professor, noted speaker in the field of Music Ed., and friend, Peter Boonshaft. I think my remarks were well-received and it was a real pleasure to be there.

All of that being said, the part of my trip that will probably remain with me the longest had nothing to do with any of my goals for going. My friend and host, Rob Polan, gave me an extensive tour of the facility and it was really enlightening. First of all, I was struck by the sheer number of employees at D'Addario. Sure, there were business offices like any office building. But it was the folks on the manufacturing line that really struck me. In a down economy, this group was moving fast. They were clearly happy and motivated, pleased to be working for a wonderful employer that cares about quality, efficiency, and the employees. I was struck by the level of artisanship of the ladies that were "silking" the violin strings. (Yes - it is done by hand, folks!) I was struck by the skill and speed of the people running the string winding machines, sometimes creating 3 strings simultaneously. The engineering and efficiency of the plant is simply stunning. (For my students that are considering engineering as a career, this should be a required tour. It was fantastic to see these machines that are made, right there in the plant, to suit the specific needs of the individual products. It was simply stunning from start to finish. I was struck by the number of people that were working, the volume of strings being produced, the high tech engineering that went into the production, and the general spirit of the workforce. Very cool. It made me totally proud to be associated with the D'Addario Company and I appreciate them in an entirely new way today. I have always been proud to be associated with the strings. Now, I am equally proud to be associated with the business model from top to bottom.

One thing that Rob pointed out during the tour is that D'Addario is always looking to be more efficient and has recently adopted a model called "Lean Manufacturing." The idea is that you carefully explore the efficiency of movement on the floor of the manufacturing facility and place workers and machines in the optimum environment for efficient work-flow. I couldn't help but to think that the education community has to do a bit of that, too. We really need to rethink the way that we are delivering information to our students. Are we really using our class-time efficiently? Is the old classroom model still the best classroom model for education as we move further into the 21st century. I truly believe that we must increase of efficiency of content delivery in our classroom. Which, brings me around to one of my original goals for the trip: video content for the web. D'Addario's goal is to provide video content on their website that will make string education more efficient. Students can go to the web to get solid string instruction and content. Then, when they go to school, the teacher can focus on the students individual needs. The teacher becomes the tutor, mentoring the students, rather than repeating content that can be efficiently delivered on the web. Will video content ever replace the teacher? Certainly not. But, when effectively used, teachers can focus on the true task at hand, the individual needs of the student, not repeated content delivery. For more information on this concept, I recommend that you check out an enlightening book about efficiency of content delivery in the 21st century entitled "Disrupting Class," by Clayton Christensen.

For now, thanks to all of the good folks at D'Addario for making me feel so at home for the past 2 days.

I am sure there will be much more to come on this topic.

Peace.
Scott

Festival at the Eno

Hi all!

Happy 4th of July weekend!

This weekend, I am spending a great deal of time a the Festival for the Eno. It is an awesome gathering of musicians, artists, and conservationists coming together to enjoy a beautiful place and event together on a very hot weekend. It is always a blast and this weekend should prove to be the same.

This weekend, I am working with the folks at High Strung Music in Durham, a wonderful little string shop that specializes in bowed string instruments, acoustic guitars, mandolins, ukuleles, and other folk instruments, giving daily seminars on violin improv. High Strung really provides a wonderful service at the Festival. They have guitar repair services right on site at the Festival and daily seminars that include, in addition to mine, beatboxing, learn to play the ukelele, open jams, and others. High Strung is centrally located at the festival and really embody the spirit of the event.

My seminar is a very low key introduction to string improv for those that haven't ventured away from the page before, but if a more advanced improviser comes by, I will give them feedback on their playing and tips and tricks that may help them out. And, if folks prefer, my friend and guitarist Adam Sampieri, and I will just play a little bit and talk about the thought process that goes into generating an improvised solo. I am there to represent D'Addario Bowed Strings and Coda Bows, both of which High Strung carries.

One of the highlights of the day for me yesterday was getting to know the guys in the band, Fiddlefoxx. This is a cool little trio of fine musicians from the Boston area. They feature some fine fiddle playing, acoustic guitars and mandolins, and a really good beatboxer on percussion. Their music is influenced by a variety of styles, but reminds me of some of the early Bela Fleck and the Flecktones stuff. It is really cool and I encourage you to check them out. Also, they are available to work with school orchestra programs and I think they would be a super addition to any program. I know that I am going to try to have them in to the NC School of Science and Math at some point to work with my kids. The beatboxer from the band also gave a masterclass on his art and it was really cool. There were a bunch folks there to check it out and he is really a wizard at the mouth percussion!

My family and I also really enjoyed checking out all of the artists' displays and various booths around the festival. We bought some pottery, learned about the new Mountains to Shore trail, played games, ate a ton, and generally had a wonderful time.

The festival runs for 2 more days (July 4, and 5) and totally recommend that come out and check it out. I'll be giving my seminar at 3:00 each day and would love to see you there. I can't think of a better way to spend some time over the holiday weekend.

Lists

I like lists.

They are clean and clear. They give us a plan of action. They are organized. To me, they make sense. I often say that I live my life in outline form. I constantly make "to do" lists, prioritize my day and actions, develop short and long range goals for my day, for my rehearsals, for my classes. Maybe it is a blessing. Maybe it is a curse. I am not sure. Regardless, lists seem to make the world a bit more clear for me.

If you have been reading my blog for any time, you will note that one of my first entries was with regard to a list of suggestions for becoming a "positive deviant" from the book, Better, A Surgeon's Notes on Performance. More recently, I posted a list of the eight norms of the Net Generation from Grown Up Digital. I even posted a list of things for my students to consider when auditioning for an honors orchestra event.

I was traveling over the past weekend and had a chance to finish up reading Grown up Digital and was struck by another list that I would like to share with you. This list, by Don Tapscott is called "The School 2.0 - Seven Tips for Educators. I will give you the list and briefly remark on each of his points. They are strategies that are designed to help teachers to improve their work in this new digital age.

The List:
Don't throw technology into the classroom and hope for good things. How many times have se see this? Thousand of dollars are spent on technology and we give it a try in the traditional classroom, only to be frustrated and compelled to go back to the old way of doing things. We have to be willing to change the pedagogy. I am seeing this in my Audio Recording and Digital Music Production courses this year. We have so many new sources of information and unlimited opportunities for discovery based learning at NCSSM. I need to force myself out of the old mold of teacher-lecturer and into a new era of student-focused, customized environment. It is for that reason exactly that I am moving these courses into a direction of discovery based learning. Class will be more like a lab next year. kids can get the information from textbooks, Youtube, my online content, Powerpoints, etc. They will even take exams online. The real meat of the class will be the discovery that occurs during class time. I am still working out the details, but am excited for the potential results.

Cut back on lecturing
Simple enough. Let's discuss stuff. Let's DO stuff. I plan to set up class in more of a round-table fashion. As stated earlier, class needs to look more like a lab. I have always started my courses with the statement, "I don't have all of the answers." Now, I am going to put my money where my mouth is.

Empower the students to collaborate
Again, class needs to look like lab. Students can work together and bring their individual experiences and talents to the table. It is not that hard to do.

Focus on lifelong learning and not teaching to the test
I think that this has been a strength of mine over the years. I am an inquisitive guy and like to know how things work. I encourage my students to do the same. As a music teacher at the NC School of Science and Math, I know that most of my students aren't looking to become music majors. They want their lives to be enriched. I'll bet your students do, too!

Use technology to get to know your students
Kids are themselves online. It is their environment. By devoloping online opportunities for collaboration, such as Wikis, Ning sites, and other collaborative online opportunities, kids will feel like you are you are part of their world.

Design educational programs according to the Eight Norms
See my previous post on the Eight Norms

Reinvent yourself as a teacher, professor, or educator.
I am in the midst of this process right now. It is an exciting time in education and I look forward to the opportunities and challenges ahead. This afternoon, I will be filming some music theory lessons for my guitar and Piano courses. They will be online and available 24 hours a day. Yes, I am reinventing myself even today!

I hope that this was enlightening in some way for you. I love my lists!! This one, like many others, sheds some light on the task at hand for all educators today. One step at a time. We will all get there and find new and meaningful ways to connect with and inspire the students of the Net Generation.

Peace.
Scott

TI:ME in San Antonio

Hi all -
This week, I am in San Antonio at the TI:ME (Technology Institute for Music Education) Conference at TMEA. I am giving two sessions this week. One is called "Effective Effects" and is an overview of effects processing for electric violins and exactly what is happening with each of the common special effects that are found in multi-effects processors. So, we will be looking at Reverbs, Chorus, Flangers, Phasers, Wah Wahs, Distortions, etc. I will try to give practical applications for all of these special effects as part of the session. My other session is "Science and Math in the Orchestra Classroom." It deals with many of the possible topics that can be covered in an orchestra class that deal with scientific and mathematical topics. We will look at a variety of topics including frequencies, harmonics and overtones, intervals and scales, kinetic energy and bowing, time signatures and division, compositional techniques, and hearing perception. All of my sessions are sponsored by D'Addario Strings.

Yesterday was a great day and I particularly enjoyed the Keynote session for the TI:ME show. The speaker/performer was Jordan Rudess, the keyboardist for the great band, Dream Theater. First, let me say that I have admired Dream Theater for probably 15 years and I think I have all of their albums. They are a progressive rock band that is amazingly virtuosic and musical at every level. Their music speaks to me in many ways and have been a huge influence in my own music and the music of my friends and musical collaborators, Believer.

In his session, Rudess performed on a Korg Oasis synthesizer with magnificent virtuosity. He then went on to discuss his upbringing as a musician, experiences as a child at Julliard, and musical progression. He also discussed synthesis and his approach to programming his synthesizer to achieve his musical goals. He showed how he could set the syths velocity to achieve a variety of sounds with varied weight on the keys and how this has helped him develop his piano technique. He also showed the audience how he splits the keyboard to achieve his desired effects. His main point, I think, was that as musicians, we need to REALLY learn the technology that we have in front of us. too many of us just"use the presents" and think that is all that our technology offers. We really need to learn the instrument and utilize the programmability of the technology that is at our fingertips in a real way. Then, we can do the homework and customize our instruments to do the things that we desire to achieve our musical goals. I could have listened to him play all day. It was great to see and hear him in person. I was in the front row, about 5 feet from his keyboard. Very cool!

It is great to be here and I look forward to writing another post after Friday's activities.

Peace.
Scott