Music Matters chapter four

Public-facing note taking on Music Matters by David Elliott and Marissa Silverman for my Philosophy of Music Education class. What is education? The etymology of the word “education” from its various Latin roots gives a good overview of modern senses of the word: Educationem: rearing children, animals, plants and promoting physical development Educare: to train or mold …

John Dewey on music education as experience

If I’m going to understand progressive philosophies of education, then I need to understand John Dewey. So here we go. Dewey is a progressive hero. He was a supporter of women’s suffrage, a founding member of the NAACP, and was ahead of his time on the importance of multiculturalism. Contrary to what I had always assumed, he did not invent the …

Music education at the grownups’ table

I was asked by Alison Armstrong to comment on this Time magazine op-ed by Todd Stoll, the vice president of education at Jazz at Lincoln Center. Before I do, let me give some context: Todd Stoll is a friend and colleague of Wynton Marsalis, and he shares some of Wynton’s beliefs about music. Wynton Marsalis advocates for  jazz as …

Designing music learning experiences with technology

This semester I’m working as a research assistant to Alex Ruthmann at NYU. The job includes helping him with a new joint music education and music technology  class, Designing Technologies & Experiences for Music Making, Learning and Engagement. Here’s the bibliography. The central class project is to create a music education technology experience — a lesson …

Listening like a musician

The jazz educator Marc Sabatella, author of the classic Jazz Improvisation Primer, has a nice philosophical approach: all of us are musicians. Some of us are performing musicians, and some are listening musicians. I support this attitude wholeheartedly. I think that musicality is like walking and talking: almost everyone is born capable of learning how …

How to promote flow in music students

Continuing my research into the use of games in music education, I found this: Custodero, L. (2002). Seeking challenge, finding skill: Flow experience in music education. Arts Education and Policy Review, 103(3), 3–9. The best music education happens in states of flow, as described by Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi: the feeling of energized focus brought on by …

The Nirvana effect

I’m currently working on a book chapter about the use of video games in music education. While doing my research, I came across a paper by Kylie Peppler, Michael Downton, Eric Lindsay, and Kenneth Hay, “The Nirvana Effect: Tapping Video Games to Mediate Music Learning and Interest.” It’s a study of the effectiveness of Rock Band …

Teaching the studio as instrument

Matthew D. Thibeault. Wisdom for Music Education From the Recording Studio. General Music Today, 20 October 2011. Stuart Wise, Janinka Greenwood and Niki Davis. Teachers’ Use of Digital Technology in Secondary Music Education: Illustrations of Changing Classrooms. British Journal of Music Education, Volume 28, Issue 2, July 2011, pp 117 -­ 134. Digital recording studios …

Catch my presentation at the Ableton Advanced Users Meetup

On November 1st, I’ll be presenting strategies for using Ableton as a music teaching tool at the Ableton Advanced Users Meetup sponsored by Shocklee Interactive and Tekserve. The lineup also includes AfroDJMac, Brian Jackson, Ben Casey, Thomas Piper, DVS and DJ Juice E. Be there!