References for "The Music Man"

Our all-school musical this year is the old favorite, "The Music Man".  Like the majority of musicals available and acceptable for performance by school groups, the show is set in the past.  It is filled with references to things unknown to the high school student of today, and also many references were unknown to me as well.
Did you know that a "noggin" is another name for a cup?  Is it good or bad for a man to be referred to as a "masher"?
I set out to collect information on the references by looking for each in an online dictionary, and then copying and pasting definitions for a information sheet to post at rehearsals.  Luckily, after filling two pages tediously in this way, I found "De-FUN-itions for The Music Man"!!!  The site even has the references divided into each act and scene...what a terrific tool! 

5 Songs for 7 Continents

Recently, a third grade teacher colleague asked me for any ideas on musical activities to reinforce her student's learning the seven continents.  Always, I tell my students that being smart isn't necessarily knowing everything, it's knowing where to find it.  Easily, I found these useful possibilities on teachers.net, emailed them to her, and felt like a hero...I heart the information age!

Worthy Websites for Music Ed: "VoiceAcademy.org"



shirt by zazzle.com

 This site was recommended by a colleague and it's not what I initially expected at all...but that's not necessarily a bad thing! I was anticipating a site dedicated to vocal training for young singers, but Voice Academy's focus is on the vocal health of TEACHERS and site is described as a "no cost self-directed virtual school built for the vocal health of US teachers"!

Ironically, I was recently reading an article about teachers who battle severe career-ending vocal problems such as polyps or nodes. The goal of the Voice Academy is to "develop an outreach for the hard-working voices of schoolteachers...based on compelling research showing a high incidence of voice problems in the profession."

Worthy Websites for Music Ed: "Metronome Online"

Every music teacher, whether they teach privately or in a school setting, knows the importance of a metronome to help their students keep a steady beat and tempo. A metronome is a practice tool that produces a steady pulse (or beat) to help musicians play rhythms accurately. The pulses are measured in beats-per-minute (BPM). Most metronomes are capable of playing beats from 35 to 250 BPM. Common uses of the metronome are helping you to maintain an established tempo while practicing, and learning difficult passages.

Worthy Website for Music Ed: Creating Music

Wouldn't I love to be a teacher who has access to class computers for music??!! There are so many great ways to reinforce your lessons with Morton Subotnick 's Creating Music site!  Because I don't have access to computers for our music class, I recommend this site for students and parents to explore on their own time at home, and include it on a list on my edline page.  The goal of the Creating Music website is to "provide an environment for children to experience creative play in the creation of music, with the same ease they have been able to enjoy with toys, drawing tools, building blocks, puppets, etc." I recommend this site for students in grades K-3.

Some of the highlights of this site are:

Worthy Website for Music Ed: Noteflight

 



Noteflight is a fantastic resource for music educators.  Noteflight® is an online music writing application that lets you create, view, print and hear music notation with professional quality, right in your web browser. You can work on a score from any computer on the Internet, share with other users, or embed into your own pages. Anyone can sign up for a free account, or purchase a Noteflight Crescendo enhanced membership.  Any of the notation that I've included on my blog to illustrate a rhythm or melody that I use is embedded here from Noteflight.