Terrific Thursday Link #6

Take the survey! Find out what musical period you belong to by taking What's Your Musical Era? Quiz. Apparently, I belong to the Renaissance period. Yay! That's one of my favourites.

(c) 2006 by Musespeak(tm), Calgary, AB, Canada. All rights reserved.

Saluting Canadian Composers

Canada Music WeekTM takes place later this month (Nov. 20 - 24). Incidentally, November 22 is St. Cecilia's Day (patron saint of music with a very colourful history). Canada Music WeekTM aims to:

• bring to the attention of the public, through various means, the importance of Canadian music;

• emphasize not only Canadian work, but also the significance of music generally;

• introduce contemporary music to Canadian students and stimulate a keener appreciation and understanding of this music;

• encourage music teachers to widen their knowledge and experience of Canadian works;

• support composers and performers of Canadian music.

I've met several wonderful established Canadian composers, including Dean Blair, Roberta Stephen and Joyce Pinkney. Elinor Lawson, my university professor, studied with Violet Archer.

You can find out more about our talented composers by visiting the following links:

• Canadian Music Centre

• The Canadian Encyclopedia

• Wikipedia

(c) 2006 by Musespeak(tm), Calgary, AB, Canada. All rights reserved.

Wacky Wednesday Fun Link #5

This week's fun link is Name that Instrument. Listen to the audio clip and identify the instrument that made the sound...if you can. Enjoy!

(c) 2006 by Musespeak(tm), Calgary, AB, Canada. All rights reserved.

Musing about Music Improvisation

Earlier this month, one of my junior intermediate students attended the Young Composers' Workshop. The clinician, Robert Rosen, was wonderful with the students. He took them on a "soundwalk" and asked them to describe several sounds using music, such as an alarm bell, a water fountain and a door slamming. They did remarkably well. There's a close relationship between composing and improvising. Mr. Rosen said that the first step to composing is improvisation, while one student described composing as "improvising with an eraser".

I eagerly employed some of the activities used at the workshop. I told my students two things: "do not be afraid to use more than one note at a time" and "do not be afraid to use different parts of the piano". This week, I have been treated to some witty improvisations about puppies playing, kittens fighting over a toy, someone rollerblading down a hill, a creepy walk through a haunted house, a lazy summer day, a child snoring and dramatic thunderstorms.

Here are some interesting articles about improvising:

• Free Improvisation

• Piano Improvisation Tips - Enjoy the Process First!

• Music Improvisation Tips

Happy exploring! (c) 2006 by Musespeak(tm), Calgary, AB, Canada. All rights reserved.

Music Teachers Helper

Lord knows we teachers need all the help we can get. Private music teachers have anywhere from five students to over 60. That means we need to keep track of each student's curriculum, payments, etc. etc. Some families require more communication than others. Some are more technologically savvy than others. I've got my trusty Quickbooks, Palm Pilot, website and e-mail that I use for communicating with my students' families and keeping track of things. But for those teachers who don't have these resources, Music Teachers Helper can assist with scheduling, invoicing, bookkeeping and more.

There is even a blog for teachers.

Thanks to my colleague Heidi for this link.

(c) 2006 by Musespeak(tm), Calgary, AB, Canada. All rights reserved.