On Music and Technology, Teaching Awards and Future Collaborations

Last month, I was named the Tech Teacher of the Year. Last week, I got to pick up the hardware on the other side of the country:

The Tech Teacher of the Year Award is the brainchild of Roland Canada, Music for Young Children and Conservatory Canada. It is the first time that this award has been given out. The representatives involved decided to present the award at the Canadian Federation of Music Teachers' Associations (CFMTA) national convention in Halfiax, Nova Scotia, Canada.

The magnitude of the award didn't hit me until I stepped into the ballroom at the World Trade and Convention Centre. The mere thought of standing in front of music teachers from all over North America, many of whom have been teaching for far longer than I, was overwhelming. The realization that I had to come up with a decent acceptance speech was frightening.

Thanks to my previous "lives" - arts marketing and fund development, special events and communications - experience and Divine inspiration kicked in. Ergo, I am familiar with the "lead sheet" of an acceptance speech. All that was left was to decide upon a few salient points while my shaking hands tried to direct my meal into my mouth.

Now I can't remember everything I said. I do remember thanking the sponsors for coming up with the idea and for paying my transportation and accommodation to the convention. I vaguely remember mentioning how difficult it was to put the submission together (my first take was over 10 minutes long!). As well, I mentioned how my students are equally fascinated with old technology, tasking me with finding an old magnetic tape recorder.

My last point is one that I've made several times here: technology doesn't have to be scary. It took me years to get my studio to where it is today. Even then, it wasn't until my involvement with Eric Whitacre's Virtual Choir last year that I upped my game on the music and technology front.

Roland Canada hosted a dinner for the participants who were in attendance at the convention. It was inspirational to just meet and chat with this bright individuals and to express the desire to work together.

When I was able to tell the world that I had won the award, I shared my news on Eric Whitacre's Facebook Wall. I know I shouldn't be surprised that he replied. After all, Eric has nurtured a great relationship with his fans and members of Virtual Choir - to the point that he drops into the odd Virtual Choir Google Hangout and has dinner with 10 VC members who decide to go to Vancouver to catch him in concert:

However, knowing how busy he must be, it's still a bit shocking to get a reply from him.

What's next on the horizon? Who knows? I just know that now that I'm back from Halifax, I have to fight the urge to incorporate all the neat ideas I picked up - all at once.

Learning New Grooves

Are you looking for some fun ways to practice this summer? Check out Jonathan Wilson's website, Groove Window. You can learn to play a useful blues licks and funk grooves, like this one that my brother and I performed last year:

Check out this Groove Starter tutorial:

More Online Tools for Studio Management

This past school year, I experimented with Google Docs for my music studio documents. I started by using forms to create sign-up sheets to studio events. Building a form is extremely easy.

In fact, Google Docs has done such a great job, that I created my 2013/14 registration package online. The registration process is done mostly online (I still am collecting post-dated tuition cheques). The registration letter has embedded links to the Studio Timetable, Tuition Schedule, Studio Calendar an Registration Form.

Processing student registrations used to eat up a lot of my time. Now, I just have to monitor the entries and remind families to submit their fees and completed form by the registration deadline.

The forms are sent as private links to my studio families. Only I have access to the data, which I can import into Open Office Calculator if I so desire.

Data collection has never been so easy!

Here's a great demo by Dottotech on the features of Google Docs:

Becoming an Inside In Musician

To the musician, ears are the mirror to the soul. "The most important things I say in my life may well be whispered," said conductor Carl St. Clair about musical innovation in a 2011 TED Talk. In this presentation, Maestro St. Clair also demonstrates the difference between an "outside out" conductor, "inside out" conductor and "inside in" conductor. The differences are astounding.

Special thanks to my Virtual Choir friend and teaching colleague, Tresa Gilman Davis of Studio Da Capo for showing me this inspiring talk.

More Summertime Practice Ideas

You may be thinking, "Summertime practicing? But summer vacation has just started." True enough, and we music teachers hope to enjoy the summer break just as much as our students.

All we ask is that you don't forget about your musical instrument. After all, you've spend the entire school year studying and practicing - most of you on your parents' dime. You don't want to forget everything you've learned.

I've noticed that if you don't practice music for two months, it takes at least two months to get back to where you left off. One year, I was away on a work-term and didn't have ready access to a piano for six months. That was my first year working towards my ARCT Diploma. It took between six to eight months to get back into shape!

The following articles have some good ideas on how to set up summer practicing goals and a music practice plan for the summer:

Summer practice plan, with the goal of 50 times

There is a Cure for Summertime Blues...Play Music!

Bigfoot, Ogopogo and Summer Piano Practicing has good ideas for music students and teachers. Finally, A Guide to Great Home Music Practice has some good general tips.