My guest writer today is renowned New Zealand born composer and music educator Christopher Norton. Christopher is well-known for his Microjazz series; a collection of jazz piano books for students of all levels which has sold well over a million copies worldwide. More recently, he has written Micromusicals for schools, and he continues to compose…
Tag: Music Lessons
Composing: An underrated tool in teacher’s toolkits, by Jenni Pinnock
My guest writer today is British composer and teacher Jenni Pinnock, who is based in Cambridgeshire. Jenni is a busy composer and her works have been performed worldwide. She also runs a private teaching practice, and here, she offers teachers and students a few inspired ideas for incorporating composition into lessons. “There is nothing greater…
Cadenza International Summer Music School
When the academic year ends Summer schools begin, and they now appear to be more popular than ever. Students have so many options to choose from that it must be a challenge deciphering which might offer the most inspirational learning experience. I will be spending two weeks in Shropshire this year (from July 22nd –…
Intervals – training or teaching?
In my second guest post of this new series, George Bevan (an organist, choirmaster and Director of Music at Monkton Combe School), pictured below, writes about his experiences whilst teaching intervals, and offers some suggestions for effectively tutoring this important skill. I hope this may be useful for all who teach instrumental music exams. It…
The Kodály Method: a useful way to study music?
In the last blog post I examined the importance and value of the Suzuki Method. Today I am continuing my exploration of various music educational systems by highlighting the Kodály Method. Unlike the Suzuki, this Method focuses on studying singing, pitch and musical notation rather than learning an instrument, however, these elements are crucial to…
Melanie Spanswick 