Select Page

How to teach music… in perfect harmony

by | Jan 9, 2012 | A Cappella, Music

Discussion group

“How to teach music… in perfect harmony”
at the London A Cappella Festival 2012
14:50-15:30 in The Wenlock Room
Saturday 14th January, Kings Place, London

The last few years have seen a sharp increase in people’s interest in singing. From X-Factor and Pop Idol, to SingStar and Rock Band, to High School Musical and Glee, it’s clear there is massive public interest in singing and vocal groups.

Unfortunately it seems so far like the message of each of those franchises is centered squarely on celebrityism and pop star success – rather than developing real musical ability.

Can this widespread enthusiasm be harnessed to really drive music education forwards and encourage a new generation of truly talented musicians to emerge?

This week the London A Cappella Festival is held at Kings Place, curated by The Swingle Singers and Ikon Arts Management.

I’m proposing an informal discussion group as an #LACFextra, on the topic of a cappella for music education, tentatively entitled “How to teach music… in perfect harmony”. Not so much “How can we teach a cappella music?” as “How can we use a cappella to teach music?”

Some initial suggestions for discussion topics:

  • Why use a cappella for music education?
  • What areas of teaching music could a cappella be relevant to?
  • What specific benefits are there to using a cappella music for teaching?
  • Why isn’t it already more used?
  • How has it been used? Any successful experiences?
  • How can technology bolster a cappella in music ed?
  • What can we do to accelerate music education using a cappella music?
  • What potential collaborations between music ed. professionals/companies and a cappella groups are there?

The discussion will be open to everyone, and we’re hoping we might even entice a few of the festival performers to join us.

Details of time and location will be announced later this week, but the discussion will be at Kings Place during the day on Saturday and run for 30-40 minutes.

UPDATE: The discussion will take place in The Wenlock Room of Kings Place, from 14:50-15:30 on Saturday 14th.

If you’re interested in this topic, please:

  1. Leave a comment below to say you’ll come along (and suggest any further discussion points)
  2. Help spread the word using the social media buttons below, or by linking to this post and using hashtag #LACFextra.
If you’re not currently planning on attending LACF2012… Why not? Read a bit about last year’s festival and change your mind!

Sincere thanks to Jessica from Ikon Arts for supporting this LACFextra event.

Back to school

by | Sep 29, 2010 | Music Theory

As of this week I am officially a student at Berklee School of Music – and that’s not something I ever expected to be saying!

I’m enrolled in their Music Theory Specialist program, as an online course of study. It’s the first time I’ve done formal, structured online learning, and I’m very interested to see how well the class interaction and live events work. Also whether I can successfully fit it around my day-to-day schedule which recently is particularly busy and unpredictable.

Berklee Music

So why am I studying music theory? Well, there are two reasons, both of which I feel a little awkward admitting to. But what better for the inaugural post on a newly launched blog than some embarrassing confessions?

First confession: I didn’t take music as a subject at school, just instrumental lessons. I’ve never taken a theory exam. I have accumulated a lot of theory knowledge over the years (and especially in the last year or so as I’ve been doing more ear training) but I have this suspicion that there are big areas I simply don’t know about; and probably should!

Second confession: It’s to give me confidence. Both in terms of having really solid music theory (which I think is incredibly liberating as a musician, improvisor, or arranger) and for the sake of having a real qualification from a respected institution. However dedicated and enthusiastic an amateur musician you might be, it’s hard not to feel intimidated when talking to ‘real’ musicians – i.e. those who’ve studied music formally to a high level. This course will hopefully be a step towards closing that gap for me.

I’m really excited to get started. Even though it’s nothing like auditioning and then being an in-person student at Berklee College, I’m proud to be attending in some sense. Based on the syllabus I’m hoping to find my first course, Music Theory 101, quite straight-forward, but I’m really not sure.

To put myself under a bit more pressure and get another chip off my shoulder, I’ve also registered to take my Grade 5 Theory exam in November: the standard exam that all serious music students take at school in the U.K., which I somehow managed to weasel my way out of! Again, I’m hoping the material won’t throw me for too much of a loop, but you never know until you dive in.

I’ll be posting a bit here about my experiences studying music online and any awkward theory shenanigans I encounter along the way.

If you’ve studied a lot of music theory, or have experience with online learning and have tips to share – drop me a line!