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Online Sessions for Educators by The Abolitionist Teaching Network

11-04-2020

The Abolitionist Teaching Network is offering two online sessions for educators looking to continue the work of unlearning racist practices in the classroom. BIPOC are invited to attend Freedom Fridays with Noor Jones-Bey on November 6 (and every first Friday), 8–9 p.m. EST. The workshop will offer art forms such as poetry, movement, music, writing prompts, and more to help you through the month. Learn more and register here. And on Thursday, November 12, 8–9:30 p.m. EST, you can attend an online event titled, “No Matter Who Wins the Election, We Need an Abolitionist Agenda.” Panelists include 2018 and 2019 National Teachers of the Year, ATN cofounder Bettina Love, and more. Register here.

El Sistema Programs Share Their Resources

11-03-2020

As a result of the pandemic, El Sistema programs are launching initiatives that aim to share their learning more widely. Play On Philly is opening its resources and programming to students in non-Sistema programs across the country—not just in Philly. Read more about how they’re doing it here. Similarly, the Harmony Program in New York has developed an original series of YouTube-based beginner music lessons for learners ages 7–10, called “Harmony at Home.” This free, year-long series consists of weekly, 30-minute lessons in music fundamentals from prominent artists, including Joshua Bell, Anthony McGill, Jamie Bernstein, and Imani Winds. No instruments necessary.

Royal College of Music Offers Three-Day Course on Teaching Young Musicians

10-15-2020

The Royal College of Music in Stockholm and El Sistema Academy in Sweden are teaming up to offer a three-day course on developing musicianship in young people, titled “Subject didactics for teaching children and young people in orchestral playing and choir singing.” Taught by Ronny Linderborg in collaboration with Ron Davis Alvarez (Artistic Director of El Sistema Sweden), the course will take place January 29–31. This offering is free of charge for citizens in the EU, in the EEA states of Norway, Iceland, Lichtenstein, and in Switzerland, though citizens of other countries will need to pay the registration and tuition fees. It is promising to see El Sistema receive continued recognition and prominence at higher learning institutions, so please share this widely and consider signing up yourself. The application period ends on October 15; read more about the course here.

SphinxConnect and LEAD Applications Open

10-07-2020

Things are (always) busy over at Sphinx. Registration is open for SphinxConnect, their annual convening of artists and leaders who advance diversity in music learning. Happening January 28–30, 2021, this year’s theme will be Unity. Also, applications are open for the next LEAD cohort, due by October 20. LEAD (Leaders in Excellence, Arts & Diversity) is a two-year professional empowerment program that annually selects ten arts leaders of color to work with a distinguished faculty; LEAD includes mentorship, networking, and leadership retreats at top institutions nationwide. Finally, now is the time to apply for the 24th Annual Competition for young Black and Latinx classical string players. The deadline to apply is October 20, 11:59pm EDT.

Crisis Relief Grants

09-18-2020

With funding support from the Australian Government through the Office for the Arts, the Support Act has expanded its services to offer Crisis Relief to music industry professionals impacted by COVID-19. Musicians and arts workers were hit hard by the pandemic, and these grants are an opportunity to help those still working to make ends meet. There is no deadline to apply; please share with any Australian musicians or music workers you know. Click here to learn more.

Music to Save Humanity Announces Global Virtual Video Project

09-16-2020

Music to Save Humanity is launching an online music project in collaboration with Ballet for All Kids and the Pacific Academy Foundation Orchestra, inviting instrumentalists from all ages and levels, from beginners to professionals, to participate in an online performance of Tchaikovsky’s Nutcracker Suite. View their first installment here, and consider contacting them at info@musictosavehumanity.org to get involved. They are looking to extend and strengthen their network and are working on more collaborations as part of the Global Virtual Video Project. These videos will be used as outreach to communities that may not have access to the performing arts during this pandemic, including children’s hospitals, assisted living facilities, community organizations, and foundations that support the blind and disabled all around the world.

OECD Quantifies the Cost of Quarantine for Young People

09-16-2020

Economists from Germany and the U.S. have just published a paper with the OECD (Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development) that quantifies the cost of the pandemic in lost time and lost learning for young people. They conclude that worldwide students will lose 3% of their lifelong earning potential, and this impact is disproportionately higher in lower-income areas. If schools are not able to reopen quickly and well, the damages will be worse. They stated to the press, “We are frankly concerned that nobody has been talking about these issues.” This is essential reading for arts leaders and program directors—both as a tool to help your advocacy and leverage fundraising, and as a reminder to embrace bold action for your students.

Side By Side: Digital Video

09-16-2020

Back in June, El Sistema Sweden and the Gothenburg Symphony Orchestra were forced to adapt their annual Side by Side music camp to COVID times, transitioning an event that usually hosts over 2,500 young musicians into an entirely virtual experience. Having long desired a digital platform to complement the in-person camp, they hit the ground running. The result? Side by Side Digital, a virtual music camp that hosted 700 participants from 30-plus countries. Their performance of The Lion King’s “Circle of Life,” put together by Christer Hedberg from &friends, combines self-filmed clips with camp recordings from the Concert Hall. In the words of ES Sweden, “‘Circle of Life’ represents for us in a very brilliant way the basic idea behind Side by Side—that music can unite us beyond all boundaries.”

Decolonizing the Music Room

09-16-2020

A new organization has been launched in the U.S. to address the racial inequities in music education. Decolonizing the Music Room is a non-profit organization that aims to use research, training, and discourse to help music educators center the voices and experiences of Black, Brown, Indigenous, and Asian people, challenging the historical dominance of white Western European and American music, narratives, and practices. In their own words: “We at DTMR aim to disrupt the minimization and erasure of non-dominant cultures and identities in the field of music education to build a more equitable future through our work.” Resources include suggested reading, podcasts, firsthand accounts from other music educators, video blogs, and more. We are resharing this The Ensemble resource for our international readers, as music educators across the world continue to look beyond the Western canon.

ITAC Introduces the Knowledge Sharing and Digital Learning Project

09-16-2020

The ITAC Collaborative goes all year round, extending the work of the ITAC Conferences. Earlier this year the ITAC Collaborative invited (and financially supported) six Innovators to lead projects designed to add tools, share resources, and build connections supporting the global teaching artist field. Creative Generation was selected to produce the “Knowledge Sharing and Digital Learning Project,” which addresses the gap in research and resources produced by and for the field of teaching artistry. The project will engage volunteers in the field from a cross-section of countries to collect, validate, and disseminate tools, resources, and creative/scholarly research in several capacities. As part of this project, an international Advisory Committee has been assembled from practitioners who applied from around the world. Find out more about the project and its international team of teaching artist advisors here.

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