Diggin' the Laser Therapy

Maestro laser.jpg

After six months of laser therapy for his canine arthritis and I.V.D.D., Maestro is still enjoying the benefits of this non-invasive treatment.

Paralyzed Hedgehog Gets Wheelchair

This seven-month hedgehog had an accident that left his hind legs paralyzed. Thanks to Exootic Vets, the creators of his custom-made wheelchair, this paralyzed hedgehog can walk once again:

Snow Day Activities and Reflections

After attending Otafest Aurora last weekend, I went to visit with family in High River and to pick up Maestro. The roads were fine at the time, but everyone knew that a storm was on its way.

Sunday night, we watched the snowstorm roll in. The swirling wind hid the landscape from view.

By morning, I was faced with either braving the treacherous roads back into the city (and the roads were equally horrendous in Calgary) or declare a Snow Day and reschedule music lessons to a non-blizzard day. I chose the latter.

What does one do with a Snow Day? The following is a short list of snow activities for adults that I came up with:

• read

• clean the house

• reorganize a room, drawer, closet

• cooking or baking

• call or write family or friends

• play a game

• office work

• sleep

• spend time with family

• hobby

• watch a TV show or movie

• pray/meditate

• start your Christmas cards and letters

• put up the Christmas tree

For my Snow Day, I wound up interviewing attendees so I could complete my reviews of Otafest on Examiner.com and my J-Blog. I also did a bit of tabletop gaming, trying out Castle Panic and Ticket to Ride. It was also a good day to take lots of naps, too. It was a great day.

Have I left anything out? What are some snow day activities that you have tried (or would like to try)?

Exploring Unusual Musical Instruments

Leonardo da Vinci's viola organista has been making the rounds throughout various social networks. Polish pianist Slawomir Zubrzycki brought da Vinci's conceptual drawings to life, constructing this harpsichord/cello to life and delivering the world premiere performance last month:

After showing my students some of the footage a few weeks ago, I began to wonder what other strange and unusual musical instruments existed. This is a short list of six unusual musical instruments that I came across in my travels:

Unusual Instrument #1: Theremin Cello

Also known as the "Fingerboard Theremin", the Theremin Cello is comprised of a plastic film fingerboard. When you press upon said fingerboard, a sound is generated:

The Theremin Cello was invented by Russian physicist Leon Theremin. He's best known for another strange (more famous) instrument that is named after him: the Theremin.

Unusual Musical Instrument #2: The Otomatone

When I first learned about the Theremin Cello, I was struck by how similar the sound production was to the Otomatone. This is a video I showed my students during the Music and Technology group class last year:

The otomatone hit the market in 2009. This strange instrument was developed by CubeWorks Company of Japan.

Unusual Musical Instrument #3: Singing Stones

These sound eerie! According to Odd Music, Singing Stones is made up of 100 river rocks. These are hung from a sound box with music wire.

To play the singing stones, the strings are manipulated by hand. The musicians wear rosin-covered gloves.

Unusual Musical Instrument #4: Pikaso

It took lutenist Linda Manzer  two years to make the Pikaso for guitarist Paul Metheny. This strange musical instrument has four guitar necks, 42 strings and two access doors:

Unusual Musical Instrument #5: Xaphoon

Call it a mini or portable sax. At any rate, I want one.

Originally made of bamboo, the Xaphoon was created by Brian Wittman of Maui. Now, there are injection-molded versions which retail for approximately $120 USD:

Unusual Musical Instrument #6: LEGO Harpsichord

My inner geek is intrigued by the idea of having a functional musical instrument comprised of LEGO. This version, designed by Henry Lim uses wire strings. It really sounds like a toy piano. Please visit Mr. Lim's website for photos and an audio sample.

There are countless more unusual musical instruments. You can find out about some of them at Odd Music

What does pizza have to do with studying music theory?

"Pizza" probably isn't the first word that comes to mind when you think about studying music theory. Now, it's probably the first thing my students will think of whenever they study music theory. The idea of hosting a pizza music theory party came from my colleague, Dorcas Ng. Whenever she shared pictures from her music theory and harmony study sessions, it looked like the students were having a great time studying and eating pizza.

This is my first year teaching music theory as a group class. It didn't take long for me to realize that my Basic Rudiments / Theory 1 class would need coaching on certain areas, in addition to extra help on how to study music theory. It didn't take much convincing to tell them we should have a music theory study party with pizza.

Three out of four of my students in the class attended the music theory party this past Saturday. The party lasted for 2.5 hours. We got to a slow start because everyone slept in. Then, of course, the weather.

Each student bought study snacks to share. I purchased two 12-inch pizzas from Sobeys from the deli section.

The class was also part of an experiment. In October, the students drafted up rules of conduct for the studio. Each time a  student exhibited good manners as per "the rules", I added a marble into the Good Manners Jar. If they filled it up to the line (which they did), then I would get them a special dessert for the music theory study party.

The first hour of the music theory study session was dedicated to review. I zoomed in on the typical troublespots: the Circle of Fifths, intervals, rhythm and chords.

My students came up with a unique mnemonic to remember the Circle of Fifths:

We then took a 10-minute break, which gave me enough time to prepare lunch. One student played a game, another jammed on a keyboard, while the third student sketched.

The next part to our "How to study music theory" session was dedicated to working through a practice test. It was open book and I allowed my students to ask each other questions. This way, they could start developing their self-study music theory strategies.

During lunch, we chatted about non-music topics, such as everyone's plans for the weekend. We also discussed history, travelling and inventions.

The final part of the music theory study session was dedicated to vocabulary. My students took turns being the Quiz Master. It was a delight to listen to them give each other hints:

Students A & B: FORTE! FORTE!

Student C: I can't think! You're both too loud.

***

Student A: Rall - en - ta - - - n - - - d - - - - o - - - - - -

Student B: To get slower?

I took a snapshot of a couple of other cute definitions, mispronounciations and study helps that they came up with:

For homework, they are to complete the practice test. On Tuesday, they will write an in-class final examination.

Two of my students will write a music theory examination through either Royal Conservatory of Music or Conservatory Canada. The other two will continue to the next level before writing the official examination.

Afterwards, I asked each of my students if they gained a better understanding of music theory during the study session. The answer was a resounding "YES!" They also had a good deal of fun, whether it was when they were developing the Circle of Fifths mnemonic, drilling vocabulary or telling me, "Are you writing that down? You should post that on your Facebook."

Music theory has been one area that my students have called "boring". Teaching music theory in a class setting was my first step to changing things up. Hosting the music theory study / pizza party was another. It is my hope that the two changes make studying music theory a bit more interesting and enjoyable.