American composer Ruth Crawford Seeger grew into the role of music educator as a consummate musician with a deep interest in connecting children to their American musical heritage. This article examines the contributions of Ruth Crawford Seeger to American music education, principally through examination of primary and secondary sources and review…

Discusses the importance of teaching improvisation. Defines improvisation as the spontaneous generation of melody and rhythm without specific preparation or premeditation. Answers reasons for not teaching improvisation. Suggests training the ear, providing models, allowing for imitation, developing performance facility, guaranteeing success, and…

Examines music creativity from a cross-cultural perspective. Delineates the difference between creativity and re-creativity giving cultural examples of each. Discusses the differences between composition and improvisation and analyzes the language of musical expression. Describes the cultural traditions of musical creativity in India, China, Iran,…