To practice effectively, one must first know how to practice. The practice process is affected by one's ability to set goals, design strategies, self-assess, and to have an aural image of the music being learned. The author proposes a model reflecting the factors involved in practice and proposes a number of strategies that can be used to…

The ability to apply knowledge rests at the core of the educational experience and is an important aspect of all teaching. In music education, many experiences are structured so information gained can be related to another activity, but such transfer can be difficult. When students learn to transfer information and knowledge to new situations,…

Today, concert, jazz, and marching bands thrive in most communities as part of the schools in the United States, and many teachers and students of these groups are women. According to data collected by the U.S. Department of Education's National Center for Education Statistics, girls outnumbered boys in instrumental ensembles in the years 1990,…

In this article, the author presents John Philip Sousa's all time hit, "The Stars and Stripes Forever". It is one of the most recognizable pieces of American music. Wherever John Philip Sousa and his band appeared, this march was likely to be played. According to American poet and educator Eli Siegel (1902-78), who first articulated the…

The builder of a pipe organ describes the process. (DB)

Recent changes in musical synthesizers include decreasing the size, height, weight, and cost while increasing the capabilities and ease of control. Recent developments have upgraded live performance capabilities. Changes include polyphonic capabilities, sound recall, touch-sensitive keyboards, various keyboard playing modes, and digital…

For the past century and more, music education in the United States has focused primarily on Western European music traditions. Despite considerable efforts to include music from other regions and peoples in the curriculum, traditional music from world cultures is still not greatly represented. The benefits of a curriculum that incorporates…

All the general music books the author has seen teach the pentatonic scale, and achieve success with it, by having students play only on the piano's black keys. The trick to preventing this exercise from sounding simplistic or uninteresting is to teach improvisation in the A-flat Dorian mode. Using A-flat as the tonal center puts that center right…

Presented is a step-by-step method of preventing and correcting corrosion of pivot rods, springs, pads, and keys in a flute. (KC)

Tips for the traveling musician on the safe transportation of his/her musical instrument. (SJL)

Rather than focusing on specific brands of timpani, these guidelines for repair cover mechanical problems of a general nature: pedals, dents, unclear tone, and squeaking. Preventive maintenance is discussed. (Author/SJL)

The author presents a simple maintenance program for woodwind instruments which includes the care of tendon corks, the need for oiling keys, and methods of preventing cracks in woodwind instruments. (KC)