Here I Go Again

I'm setting up for another summer at camp.

A different kind.

This summer, I get to be one of the music guys with Casey at chapel. That's not my only job, but when I think of one of the big things I get to do, that's the first thing that comes to mind, among others. I'm so excited I can hardly stand it. I GET TO DO MUSIC with one of my good friends at Center Lake!

I think I'm going to love my job a lot. AGAIN.

I've been at this worship team thing for nine years between vocals and playing at church and at Hope. You'd think I'd feel ready for just about anything when it comes to worship band stuff but I still feel like I'm approaching something brand new.

I was watching a DVD the other day that Pastor Chris loaned me to screen for the church about worship bands. Paul Baloche was the primary teacher on it and one of the things he talked about right at the outset was this idea that in a worship band, being in WORSHIP to God must be the objective. Creating beautiful music and something artistic are absolutely part of the equation, and I firmly believe those are part of worship. In fact, the Psalms talk about playing skillfully to the Lord. Music can be a powerful way to set the mood of people towards thinking about God when maybe they weren't before. And I'll be honest-worshiping God through music is one of my favorite ways to do so.

But that's just it.

I remember once being taught at a worship workshop at church a couple years ago that as a member of a worship band, we have to be worshipers FIRST. As people who lead, we can't ever let it be about ourselves and we have to be just as much a part of the congregation. That's probably my biggest prayer for this summer.

I want to give absolutely everything I can to help make some awesome music for camp. But more importantly, to be a worshiper of our God with everyone that sets foot in the chapel's doors with them.

They DID it! THEY DID it! THEY DID IT!!!!!

The feeling hasn't really worn off yet.

This must be what it's like to meet your students, work with them like crazy on something, wonder if it will come together when it's showtime, and then you wait to find out the judges' ruling, and BAM!

I seriously couldn't be more proud to have been a small part of it.

I got thrown into the Solo & Ensemble cycle rather late this year, as it seems a lot of things happened with my teaching work. But the experience was well-worth the effort. My co-teacher asked me to work with two of the students here at Ludington in prepping for State Solo & Ensemble, which meant not only did I not get to work with them at Districts, but I had less time to work with these students and my first experience as an instructor/accompanist at S&E is at the state level! So no pressure at all to deliver.

But funny how things work out.

Out of the seven Ludington HS planned to take to state, I ended up only working with one of them, which kept things fairly simple for learning music, even if scheduling got a little bit tricky. In the end, it worked out quite well and I thoroughly enjoyed getting to basically teach voice lessons for a spell with this student. What was really refreshing was he took it all in and WANTED to take something out of it-I didn't sense he was merely parroting what I was teaching/saying, but thinking it through and sharing his own thoughts and watching the final product take shape. (And, might I add, I discovered at the festival that he also wants to be a music teacher! THAT makes me happy!)

The result? When it came for performance, EVERYONE gave pretty much everything they had despite a normal amount of anxiety. And the best part?

EVERYONE also earned an overall Division I rating, including one of them earning a straight Division I. I couldn't be more excited or proud of what was accomplished!

That, right there, is part of why I love teaching. Working with singers that WANT to sing, that WANT to get better, and WANT to go farther. And celebrating the victory together is the sweetener on top.

New instrument

Teaching as your job has a very obvious benefit. I'm not rolling in it by any means, but I HAVE made some money. I promised myself that I wouldn't go crazy, but I did want to treat myself to ONE thing nice. To something I've always wanted, and if it could help me, then all the more reason to get it too.

And I made my decision. I've wanted to learn to play the acoustic guitar for quite a while now. I'm not sure how long it's been, exactly. I admired my friends back at Hope who knew how, though I was plenty satisfied (and still am) with the ability to play the piano, and it keeps me busy right now. Playing for two of my students for State Solo & Ensemble has me occupied.

The other weekend, while Jack was home, he, Bill, and I went down to "the toy store," as we love to call our local music store and checked out guitars. We looked at a few, tried them out, and although none were really bad, I wasn't pleased with any until I found it. My instrument. I was drawn to it by sight and wanted to know if its beauty was beyond skin-deep. So we asked to test it and Bill & Jack liked it too. After waffling for a little bit, I finally bit the bullet and went for it.

And now, I have one! And I'm seriously geeked to learn how to play it! My fingers are killing me but it's okay. I can't wait to play music.

SPRING BREAK

It feels like a million years since the last time I've posted anything on this. Mostly because...

Several days after talking to Ben (refer to the previous post), I got a teaching job in the Ludington Area School district for the rest of the year. It's only one class at the middle school. But it's definitely a start, and if it dovetails into a teaching job either in Ludington or somewhere else, it'll be great. And I've had a chance to dip my feet into the water of working with students in middle school drama, middle school choir, and high school choir. It's been an absolute blast. Plus, I get to go with two of the high school singers who will be singing at State Solo & Ensemble in April. So I get a little bit of experience coaching/accompanying them like a voice instructor. My work really is a little bit of everything!

It's had its challenges, working mostly with middle school students, but I enjoy my job.

And on top of that, I had the wonderful surprise of working the final Quiz Bowl meet down in Newaygo. I was a little bummed that I didn't get to moderate, but in working Jordan's room, we made it like the WSCC tourney. Awesome. Plus a little extra cash is nice.

In other news, life in church music never fails to take its twists and turns. "Unfailing Love" with the Paynes was awesome. So was "All Because of Jesus" with Nate & Bob. I'll admit I was a bit frustrated with "Glory" and doing that with Lifted Voice, but it seemed to turn out well. I'm SERIOUSLY looking forward to the planning process/putting together "Desert Song" with the Paynes and everyone else involved. Hopefully it'll be fairly smooth, sound amazing, and most importantly, glorifying to God and minister to everyone who hears the song (yes, I'm geeked!)

And I might be headed to Center Lake for the weekend in April (maybe?!)

Life is good.

Oh how life changes in a week

I was talking to Ben just on Monday night. It was awesome because,

1. I miss my friend. College relationships are a blessing and a bummer. I love them, hate them, love to hate them, and thank Jesus for them so much.

2. We got a chance to ask each other how we could pray for one another. I mentioned stuff on my end about, amongst other things, teaching and finding a job.

Two days after that, I get a voicemail related to a part-time job at LUDINGTON. Two days after THAT, I actually HAVE said job. Two days from now, I start.

I couldn't be more thankful to, first of all, be WORKING, and second, in MUSIC EDUCATION, for the first time in about two years. It's such a great feeling to say, "HEY! I'm WORKING. I'm a TEACHER!" If this dovetails into a real, honest-to-goodness "big person" full-time job, it'd really be my dream come true.

But for now, I'll be thankful for what I do have. God answers prayer. (And I have to lesson plan REALLY FAST!)

Wednesday, 25 November 2009

Jobs and Playing

As I sit here writing (and enjoying the fact that I'm blogging on a more regular basis again, regardless of who reads or doesn't read it), I have a number of thoughts bubbling in my head.

I'm eagerly anticipating sending off a REAL job application to an institution here in town. Like the kind doing what I want to do-teaching music to young bright minds. That sounds like so much fun to me that I can barely contain my excitement at just the thought of printing a résumé, cover letter, application, having references together, packing it up in an envelope, putting the postage on it, and sending it away and having someone even think about all that. It gets to be a drag after a short time (especially if you have to do it lots of times), but there's a certain sense of exhilaration the first time you're doing it for real. Especially now that I'm really starting to get that restless feeling of wanting to teach MY students. MY kids.

The second thought I had spinning around had to do with practice tonight. Bob had mentioned with a certain degree of irony I think on Sunday how strange or ironic that the youth are leading music on the very first Sunday of Advent and on Communion Sunday. I personally don't understand why there is a certain taboo with Advent, Communion, or why the youth would be "banned" from playing on any particular day if needed or the calendar was arranged so. If we played and sang to the Lord, with joy, as skillfully as we can (and don't sell the youth at our church short-it sounded great tonight), why isn't THAT really good enough? Isn't that what worship through music really is?

I really don't understand it myself.

Friday, 16 October 2009

I'm STILL a Choir Conductor at Heart...

It's kind of discouraging to not be teaching right now. This time of year, I'd love to be working towards choir concerts and the like. Watching the Purdue Varsity Glee Club (it's so strange to hear that Purdue doesn't have ANY sort of school of music at all) brought back memories of Chapel Choir... tour... and singing. Oh gosh how I'd love to be in the midst of the fall rush with Chapel Choir and Collegium Musicum. It's Fall Break this weekend for a lot of universities and I'd be making a mad dash either for home or with friends. I still need to visit the crew in Grand Rapids. Time to make a road trip with N-Sto, I guess.

But I'm realizing that God, in His wisdom that is infinitely greater than mine, doesn't want me to be at university or teaching right now. I've dreamed of teaching choir for a while... and then strayed away from that for almost a year between other things, discouragement, and the like.

But I keep coming back. And back. And back again. I still can't get the image of myself as a choral conductor out of my head. As much as I have enjoyed the other things I do, at camp, at church with the youth group, at church with the worship team... I want to do something with choirs again. I miss it.

In the meantime, aagh. I press on. I've been doing a little teaching at the piano and I need to get some publicity up for teaching voice lessons HERE, though I'm still a little unsure how to do it on the cheap (NO, I'm not posting classifieds). I still need to meet with the folks at the Cartier Mansion - it sounds like such an awesome gig and now that I'm prepping for a wedding, I should have more music ready for evening entertainment soon.

Stuff with the worship team is going in an exciting direction recently, too. I love how it's progressed and I hope we continue doing so. Now that we're putting into practice some of the ideas that we learned at the workshop, I'm seeing some more obvious progress. It's great!

Wednesday, 25 February 2009

The Lifespan of Praise & Worship Music

So recently, I've been working on adding some more stuff to my computer's library of praise & worship music for when I'm helping leading music at church and at camp, too. Needless to say, my archives have grown significantly since I've started keeping and looking for music a bit over a year ago when I started helping lead at InterVarsity at Hope College. I'm kind of proud of myself, but it also frightens me, because like any teacher, especially in the fine arts, I'm an unbelievable pack rat.

When Lifted Voice, the youth praise band at church, leads music on Sunday mornings for the congregation, we tend to mix styles a bit. We definitely tend to lean towards modern and more updated styles, but we usually throw in an old hymn, and often, a throwback song from the early 90s or even earlier. I've been adding those too my library too, because... well, that's what a library is, after all. But it has had me thinking a bit, too.

One of the songs Lifted Voice did probably back in November that I just uncovered in the living room was a song that I remember doing when I was in... 3rd grade? It was new then, but I can tell by praise and worship music standards, it's vintage. I looked it up on YouTube and it definitely sounded like it, too. I couldn't help but laugh a little bit. I even went all geeky on myself and listened to another song in the same key from one of the Hope Chapel CDs to just de-tox my ears and my brain, something that I think I'd rather use for a service anyway.

That little analysis, as it were, really made me marvel at how short of a lifespan a praise and worship song really has. The song I listened to after this vintage one was a modernization of an old hymn. One that's several centuries old, actually. Maybe this "step forward," the "progress" in church music, isn't so much progress after all.

Monday, 24 November 2008

More Than I Bargained For

The call from Mr. Thomas was kind of out of the blue. He asked if I was willing to play for the MCC H.S. production of Cinderella. I thought for a second of La Cenerentola, that opera by Puccini, until he said it was by Rodgers and Hammerstein. A little more reasonable. I didn't have a lot of time to answer, but I asked for a few details and if I might see the music first.

We'd have a full pit orchestra. Three nights of rehearsal so I'd have some familiarity with the music. Not a lot. Three day performances. One for the high school students, one for the middle school students, and one for the elementary school students. Then the two evening performances. The question is, was I up to the challenge?

And... it WAS tough. This score was an orchestral reduction, which are a trick to play. There are more notes than any pianist, no matter how talented, can actually play. It's simply physically impossible to play all of them. It requires reading a ton of notes, distilling them into something that's playable and still sounds like something that the cast will recognize (since my instrument was amplified into the house as well as the stage) and not make TOO many mistakes. The last part, I'm not too sure about but Mr. Thomas was pleased. Together, the pit orchestra pulled it off.

And by God's grace, the jobs are coming in faster now!

-Elementary school program in Muskegon on December 12
-(Follow the Star on December 13 & 14) - NOT MUSIC
-Lifted Voice leads music at church
-Wedding at Church on January 4
-Ludington Campus Life coffehouse on January 9

I'm almost worried I'm going to start double-booking myself soon...

Saturday, 15 November 2008

Lessons on Spirituality... from Igor Stravinsky?

I'm a bona fide geek. I've sang in choirs continuously for going on 11 years except for a two-month hiatus, I earned a degree in vocal music, and I even bothered to keep a membership with the top dog of choral societies: the American Choral Directors' Association (the ACDA). If that's not geeky, I really fail to see what is.

I always get excited when the new issue of the Choral Journal arrives in the mail. Usually there's something pretty sweet in it. One month, there was something about Eric Whitacre, who is becoming the first major icon in choral music from the 21st Century. Another time, there was a feature on Bach, which gets most classical musicians excited. But one issue a couple months ago caught my attention because of something that wasn't actually the focal point of the article. At least, not completely, anyway.

The featured article was about Igor Stravinsky's choral music. The man is most famous for composing ballets and working with Sergei Diaghilev on The Firebird, The Rite of Spring and Petrouchka. He wrote some other stuff, too, but those are the really big ones. He wrote choral music, too! According to the article, because Stravinsky always considered himself Eastern Orthodox, the choral stuff requires a measure of understanding of Eastern Orthodox spirituality, specifically the Russian Orthodox Church.

The article described the Russian Orthodox Church as, "characterized by its cosmic approach to life." This church, rather than focus on the individual, centers around the community of believers. When the person becomes "filled with the Holy Spirit," (the language used by the author) all of life becomes spiritual. To partition life between spiritual and secular, your church life and your life outside of church, is irrelevant. All life is spiritual. The Russian Orthodox take this worldview from theosis, a central doctrine to their church. The basic idea behind theosis is summed up by, "becoming 'god by grace.'" The believer supposedly doesn't lose his sense of self but is joined with God in a union. Russian Orthodox means of theosis are prayer, participation in the church sacraments, and "the Orthodox Christian way of life." Again, it's viewed not individually but as part of a community of believers-something that has become a bit foreign to mostly individualistic Protestants in the West.

As far as Igor Stravinsky's choral music's concerned, the Mass he wrote is of particular interest because the author described it as, "[Roman] Catholic in form, in spirit and in stylistic elements Stravinsky's Mass can be viewed as Orthodox." Igor Stravinsky sought, in his own words, to compose "very cold music, absolutely cold, that will appeal directly to the spirit." So much for the appeal to the emotions and individualistic experiences that are held on a pedestal in the Western traditions. He considered the Credo, the statement of belief, the most important of the movements. The power is in what the text states, not the power of the music or people getting captured by the harmonies or a riveting motive.

Don't get me wrong, I'm not trying to assault Western Christianity with Eastern traditions. Even though we don't have ALL the answers, neither do our Russian comrades. I seriously question the concept of theosis in particular. To say that we BECOME "god by grace" when we become Christians is missing the point. Jesus promised in the Gospel of John (chapter 14-AMAZING chapter) that the Holy Spirit would dwell INSIDE us. Theosis vs. Holy Spirit's indwelling are vastly different. I tend to agree with the latter, though theosis is some interesting food for thought. The Wikipedia article on theosis is quite fascinating.

That said... here's what I think we CAN learn from the Russian Orthodox Church.

• Igor Stravinsky sought to write music that got to the heart of the matter. He didn't want to bother with a Mass that was so grand in scale that it was a concert piece. His music wasn't the worship. It wasn't a show. That's what HAD happened to Masses in Western and Central Europe even as far back as the late 18th Century, and Stravinsky was determined to not let his music be a spectacle. Rightly so. It should never be a show. It is simply ONE ASPECT of worship to the triune God during the church service.
• More importantly, the service itself wasn't compartmentalized from the rest of the congregation's life. There is no "church" life and "rest of the week." Though I doubt the Russians get that perfect, either, I think that's something worthy of keeping in mind.
• Finally, I see the Russian Orthodox tradition reminding us that we don't walk alone. Community is important to them, and we would be wise to hold that in higher esteem than we do in our indivdualistic, "walk my own way" society. Dietrich Bonhoeffer has a few things to say about that, too.

Discuss.

Tuesday, 28 October 2008

Thank you, Hope.

It was good to visit Hope. I needed to visit people. I needed to goof around with Ross. I needed to meet with Dr. Randel. I needed to have her answer some questions for me. I needed to see the campus. I needed to laugh at the shuttle bus. Yes, Hope College now has a bus (for real). I'm still in shock. I needed to take care of some business and have a little closure on some things. And as usual, I needed to have someone be rude to me so the whole thing wouldn't be a bed of thornless roses. And to make the whole experience complete, I needed to get rained on.

But there's definitely a sense of... the place has moved on. Hope College and Holland, Michigan, while they are special to me, aren't my home anymore. Unless I were to move there for a job, or for Western Theological Seminary, or back to Hope for another baccalaureate degree (umm, no?), I know that those places aren't home anymore. It just ISN'T. It's another place, where I marked out a valuable four years of my life and I've now closed the book and opened a new chapter somewhere else.

I think Dr. Randel made it a bit clearer to me where my path lies, though. "Can we talk about graduate school, please?" And the thought that kept sticking in my mind is what she said about what her life is like now. "My life now as a professor isn't all that different. It focuses more now on teaching, but I still do my research when I'm not doing things related to teaching. It's not that different from graduate school."

Music education, while it is something that I will always advocate for, and value, has slowly changed for me. That sounds, more and more, like something that I want. In fact, I think that's probably more what I've always wanted all along. I've wanted to teach at a higher level. And in fact, I think the preparation in the music education program at Hope may come back to be the most helpful thing for teaching if I do in fact want to teach at the collegiate level. I remember ranting about professors who have no teaching ability because they have no idea how teaching works or qualities of a teacher. I know if I want to be a professor, I don't want to be one of them.

The question is now... where to begin? Where would I like to go? What do I want to study? And... how do I reach Dr. Randel's elusive goal that she laid for me: NOT PAYING FOR GRADUATE SCHOOL? Is this the next step? Or does God have something else for me first?

Comments(1)

Just keep following God's lead! sounds like an interesting visit to hope!

Buhcaw

Wednesday, 21 May 2008

It's over.

My time is up. Student teaching has officially ended, as of Monday night's concert. I said good-bye to over 850 students (who had the most? Did I?), 150 at this concert.

I faced some final frustrations that I didn't expect right up to the end. But that's life, I guess. They still pulled through and Ross and his folks offered some opinions as outsiders that affirmed what I've believed all along about how I taught. I stand behind how I work and although I may have done a few things differently, I don't think I worked with the choirs WRONG.

A few cool thoughts: one student said before the concert, "Good luck, Mr. Racey. I hope you do well."
"I will if you sing for me."
"I will, Mr. Racey!"

And afterwards, another one came up to me and said, "Mr. Racey... are you done?"
"Yeah, I am."
"Hey. Thanks for teaching us in choir."
"My pleasure."

I didn't get to say good-bye at Holland Christian like I wanted, which frustrates me endlessly. I think I was more just torn away, but I guess I made more of an impression than I thought. My prayer is that the students leave this school year and the student-teacher relationship that we formed together better than when we started.

And now, another adventure is about to begin as a camp counselor. Will any of the boys among my 850 students be in my cabin or at Center Lake this summer? Will they face the scenario of having to call me "Tyler" instead of "Mr. Racey?" Only God knows at this point.

Wednesday, 30 April 2008

Learn from the experts today!

Today was an observation day. I watched North Shore Middle School's bands hard at work preparing for the parades for Tulip Time in the morning with Ms. Root and then two of Mr. Bird's choirs at Holland Christian High School. And that was fun-I've never watched a marching band practice before!

I've also seen how my reputation has gone before me, to an extent. One of the students from the 8th grade play remembered me right away. I wouldn't expect to hear, "Hey Mr. Racey," from one of the band kids, but I guess I shouldn't be too surprised. He's one of North Shore's finest and sharp as a nail.

As I watched Mr. Bird teaching, I couldn't help but hope that my students would end up singing with him. I hope that they stay in choir and enjoy it, because even in those two rehearsals, I can see why kids can come to like him. He's fun. And his program is successful. It's clear. They're doing good music.

I also met a student who's an older sibling of one of my students. It was funny, but maybe the word I'm looking for is remarkable. This fellow was everything I'd expect him to be: in voice timbre, musicality, looks, and even mannerisms. Growing up, even though I know I didn't look a thing like Jordan, I drew comparisons from teachers to him all the time because of the way I acted and how I would think. Having lived with that so much, I learned not to do the same to this older brother today because I could just tell he and my 8th grade student get the "You're just alike!" bit all the time, and that grows old. I hope as a teacher that I don't do that to students. They're all different. But I quietly thought to myself how the simlarities were uncanny. It's cool.

Seeing Mr. Bird and what he can do with such a large group of students gives me hope. Students can do great things with music. And I don't care what I'm being told, about this whole nonsense of, "You need to go for elementary." I won't give up something that I have a passion for that easily. I love it too much, and I've watched with my own eyes what can happen when good things are produced. I will continue to dream.

Thursday, 24 April 2008

Random Teaching Thoughts

1. My middle schoolers are resilient creatures. They have adjusted to my methods remarkably well, even though I don't work exactly like my mentor. One example is in performance. I have stuck to my guns when it comes to never, EVER singing with the students in performance, and they know that. 7th and 8th graders have come to realize that, and they pulled it off in Lansing at the State Capitol. My 6th graders at South Shore just pulled it off yesterday for Grandparents Day, and I'm proud as punch. They were great.
2. Teaching recorders takes grit. You have to be prepared for lots of overblowing on the first day because the students are going to use too much air and they take time to figure out how little is required, and a few might even find it funny (note to self: DON'T LET THEM. IT ISN'T, AND IT ISN'T GOOD FOR YOUR SANITY TO LET THEM.). Keep the headache medicine nearby for the end of the day.
3. Music theory CAN be an interesting unit... provided there's a fun goal in mind. I just successfully finished a six-week unit on music theory to students in grades 1-3, and they LOVED it. The trick was to make writing songs the end goal, and my oh my, did they run with that. I was a little sick of playing elementary music compositions by the end, but to see the delighted responses by the end was worth it all. And engagement level in some of my students when they were independently working to correct and adjust their pieces was priceless-something I wish I could have recorded on a video and uploaded to TeacherTube.
   

So hard to think that my student teaching is almost coming to a close.

Wednesday, 23 April 2008

Who was the teacher who made the most positive impact on you?

Being a teacher myself (well, almost... I'm almost done student teaching), this is an EXCELLENT QUESTION! I love it. But, it can be an incredibly difficult one to answer. Here are a couple of teachers that made some major positive impacts on me.

1. My junior/senior high school choir teacher. Ms. Sopha single-handedly taught me how to love singing in choir. Though my initial experiences with choir concerts were not ones that I would be proud of or would like to relive (I was lying on the floor, coloring!), she showed me what a joy it is to sing in an ensemble. As I progressed, she continued to cultivate my love to sing and helped convince me of the idea of pursuing a music degree. And now look. I'm just about a week away from a bachelor of music in vocal music education.
2. My fifth grade teacher. Mrs. Carney was just one of those teachers who you knew cared about you. Fifth grade was a ridiculously loaded year when it came to homework and my parents wanted to scream when they saw how much work I had all the time. I did, too. But there was so much fun to be had in fifth grade, too, and I have Mrs. Carney to thank. The medieval unit was one of them. Outdoor Ed. was another. I still will never forget how happy I was to see my teacher at my high school graduation open house. What a great moment.
3. My piano teacher when I was growing up. Mrs. Lathouwers REALLY taught me what it was to love music. I was caught by my parents always plunking away at the piano and they finally got me to take piano lessons, and even though there can be a certain stigma surrounding them, not with Mrs. Lathouwers. She had that genuine love for students that comes from inside. You can't just replicate that in a factory and learn it. It has to be discovered inside. There's a reason why I took lessons from her from 4th grade all the way through senior year of high school and found it so hard to say good-bye after my final lesson. I still miss her, and I know what I learned from her will go with me and be used the rest of my life.
4. My college voice teacher, choral conductor, and advisor. Dr. Richmond picked up where Ms. Sopha left off and first put me in my place. I needed a serious ego check as far as my musicianship was concerned. I was WAY out of line and he was just the person for the job as far as that was concerned. Once that was taken care of, then we could set to work actually improving my singing. He didn't do too bad-I'm all set to graduate, I feel comfortable conducting choirs, I think I can conduct an orchestra with some confidence, and I think I can sing!

Currently Listening Sacred Treasures IV: Choral Masterworks, Quiet Prayers O Weisheit see related

Thursday, 21 February 2008

What is my method of choice?

In elementary music, there are tons of different methods to choose from. Zoltán Kodály's methods & Carl Orff 's Schulwerk are two classic examples. Another that is a little less-frequently used and sometimes not seen until even college comes from Émile-Jacques Dalcroze. Shinichi Suzuki's methods have grown since World War II, and a big one that's certain to become more influential at Hope with our new music education professor are Edwin Gordon's methods.

Sticking to one method is unhealthy, so my hope is always that a good music teacher synthesizes a variety of methods in the classroom to teach elementary students about music. However, it's natural to gravitate towards a particular method that resonates with you. I think I'm finding mine.

ETM. Education Through Music. Singing and games. Singing games. They're so engaging, but they're fun. They're what I would call truly exuberant. "Sing joyfully!"

I tried my hand at teaching students ETM games for the first time today. I actually had neither song or "choreography" in my methods references, so I had to refresh them with Mr. DeBoer, but thankfully my memory wasn't TOO dusty and after about one lesson, things started to go pretty well.

It's really fascinating to see differences from one class to the next. Some catch on so fast and get it almost instantly. Others need more practice. But, that's music. And that's what makes it so cool.

But the thing about these ETM games was... every set of students were collectively engaged. Once they started to get the hang of what to do, they got into it. Fast. And they wanted to keep doing it. It's fun.

And isn't that what music should be?

I think I believe in ETM.

InterVarsity's larger group gathering was just plain sweet tonight. I'm not sure what it was, but I sensed something bigger tonight than just Ross, Nik, and I simply singing in front of our friends. We prayed that the Holy Spirit would be at work and that it wouldn't be us. Was that what I noticed? I know one thing's for sure... the old school music definitely can still reach people. I love songs like "Better is One Day" and "Beautiful One" and all, but it was great doing our own take on songs like "Be Thou My Vision" and "Be Still My Soul." Mmm...

Be still, my soul... and be my vision, O Lord of my heart.

Tuesday, 05 February 2008

I must be doing something right

"Character is what you do when no one is watching."

I learned that little maxim from Mr. Kirby, my teacher for 7th grade P.E. and Strength & Conditioning in 10th grade. Today, Mr. DeBoer heard me say that to my students. I guess he liked it enough that I heard him say it to another class later in the day. It made me happy-teaching really is an exchange of ideas not only from teacher-to-student and student-to-teacher but teacher-to-teacher.

I know Mr. DeBoer is still watching me most of the time when I'm working with the students, but occasionally he steps out of the classroom to give me some time with the students by myself. I'm pretty sure he listens for a bit before coming back in. But I can never be sure who else is listening, I guess.

Apparently the teacher in the room across the hall overheard me busily teaching the students about Johann Sebastian Bach, the Brandenburg Concerto No. 2, and a piccolo trumpet. She made a comment to Mr. DeBoer that was what I needed to hear.

"You have a good student teacher in there."

Yes, I CAN do this. I don't care what last semester brought and what happened. If I can get a comment like that from a colleague in the building who isn't a music specialist, I must be doing something right.

Thank you, God. I think my prayers, my family's prayers, and my friends' prayers are finally starting to get some answers. Some badly needed answers.

Tuesday, 29 January 2008

Hey Jeremy, teach the kids loops!

As a teacher, I have officially begun to always look for ideas for things to use in my classroom. If I think something might be useful for a lesson, I'll run it by my mentor teacher.

Today was no exception. Though it wasn't in the plan, we taught the students about GarageBand and loops in modern music, especially popular music.

As we were teaching, I thought to myself, "Wouldn't it be cool if they could hear an example of a loop used in a professional musician's song?" So I ran the idea by Mr. DeBoer and during lunch, brought the CD to school and had the afternoon classes listen to it.

Yes, that's right. Jeremy Camp was part of the lesson today. His use of loops in "When You Are Near" was a great example for the students to hear how they're utilized.

Who'd think my musical tastes would one day help me in teaching?

Currently Listening Beyond Measure By Jeremy Camp When You Are Near see related

Saturday, 12 January 2008

Dwell in the present

I'll admit it. Getting this semester underway hasn't been easy. Leaving home from Christmas break is always hard, but staring my last semester at Hope in the face is a scary prospect. After Hope is my first blank prospect.

I guess that's not completely true. I'll graduate and go out into that place called "the real world" and get a job and begin "life after college." It sounds simple enough, and in some ways, I suppose it is.

But that's what makes it scary. For 22 years and a little over 4 months now, my life has been more or less been pretty clearly laid out. I knew what was ahead. No real surprises. First came preschool (ahhhh, good old Brookhill Montessori Preschool... that place is still near and dear to my heart). My time there came to end, but I knew I'd start kindergarten at Franklin Elementary where Jordan had gone. The family and I fretted over where I'd go after second grade, but once we settled on Foster Elementary (go Bulldogs!), then the sailing was smooth. Foster for four years through sixth grade. Then to OJ DeJonge for 7th & 8th grade. Then Ludington HS. I was an Oriole.

Even college, really, was a laid out path. Making a decision was a bit more difficult, but I pretty much knew I was going to college and that the next four years of my life had something to do with being away from home for about 8-9 months of the year with summers probably at home and Christmas breaks. The choice to come Hope was the most difficult part, but that became easier soon enough.

Recently, I've been overwhelmed by the unknowns. Student teaching is a big enough unknown itself-the other field placements will be dwarfed by this semester, so I really want to do my best, give it everything I can, and learn everything I can from it. I was encouraged by the first day-I think being placed with Mr. DeBoer was the right move. But I already am looking past it, maybe too much. What lies beyond student teaching and graduation, when my time at Hope is over?

Friday was a good "push" into the semester. It was a nice kick start, a healthy dose of life back at Hope and a good reminder of what I missed over break. I flirted with disaster and was almost late for class (yikes? oh yes), but lunch after Chapel proved to be a truly enjoyable experience. Communion must really be my ultimate value because I took this gathering in like a sponge-Becky & Jeannette (who was off from school because of a blackout) had the brilliant idea to ask Zach if he wanted to have lunch. He and I both jumped at that opportunity, since we've turned into an "urban tribe" with his work schedule quieting down and Brandon abandoning meal plan. Before I knew what happened, I come back from Nykerk and discover Anne putting buffalo wings in my oven, Jeannette & Becky have pizza, pop, & Crazy Bread waiting, Zach & Brandon wondering where I've been, and Jon calling on the phone asking what we're doing for lunch. Needless to say, I went crazy to have a gathering of my friends in my living room for lunch. It was grand.

(Something to ponder: what is it about eating together that is so special? I still can't explain it and I really wish I could.)

That felt like a warm-up to the evening, though. I learned an interesting lesson over the afternoon: the Wal-Mart in Holland has a pitiful selection compared to Meijer, especially when I'm looking for something specific. It almost made me late for dinner with Nate, Brandon, and Nik! And who'd want to miss a dinner with them?! The four of us proved that men know how to cook, and not only that, we can rescue food from the brink of disaster/inedibility.

Case and point: Nate's baguette was two days old. Unfortunately, the ones from Meijer's bakery are supposed to be eaten soon after you buy them, or they harden to about the consistency of your average baseball bat. Not exactly something your dentist would probably recommend for your teeth. Thankfully, I remembered an old trick I learned from days back in the kitchen at the Manor and put that sucker in the microwave for a minute with... a glass of water. Yes, a glass of water. The result? Not only did the bread soften right up to something much more palatable (and non-soggy), it was good and hot, too! So we didn't have to chop it into croutons for that chicken Caesar salad. Add some bubbly cider, a bowlful of chopped Fuji apples, some conversation about the Bible Studs, and a hefty dose of prayer, and you have the makings of a great dinner and evening with some of my best friends.

I got demolished in Blokus by Jon, Eddie, & Tyler, and laughed a little too hard messing around with Nik's Flarp with Jon, Brandon, & Nik. But that stuff proved that inside every well-adjusted college guy's sense of humor is someone who can laugh at farts. Yup.

The real highlight of the night, though, was back in Nykerk, sort of on a whim. Jon asked Nik and me if we wanted to join him for an evening at Jeannette's apartment for worship in singing with some other people. Since I don't often hear about them, I usually don't end up going to these impromptu musical worship gatherings, so I naturally jumped at the chance. Being the cold, yucky night that it was, Nik grabbed his guitar and we took my car back over to campus, only to end up walking from the mini Dow parking lot. So much for close parking.

What a night of music it was. Some of my favorite people were there! Jon. Becky. Jeannette. Analisa. Nik. Zach. Laura. Steven & Joanna. Noah & Kristen. Laura. And we had a roomful of instruments, to boot. Zach, Nik, & Jon all had guitars with them, Steven dug out a double bass, Noah knew where to find the unlocked percussion stuff, Zach pulled out his cello from his locker, and we had two pianos to work with, too. The fun kicked off around 10:30 and I honestly didn't watch the clock or really care. I only left at 1:00 A.M. because I couldn't handle staying up any later. But it's a great reason to stay up that late, and some of the best company I could ask for.

Yes, I'm looking at unknowns beyond this semester. But like last night, I'm trying to take my dad's advice into consideration and just live in the present. That's where I am, and last night, that's where I dwelled. And I knew it felt right.

Currently Listening Kingdom of Heaven By Iestyn Davies (connter-tenor), Catherine Bott (soprano), Harry Gregson-Williams Crusaders see related

Wednesday, 09 January 2008

Song Titles

Ashley puts up all kinds of interesting stuff on Facebook notes. This looked kind of fun, but it's kind of tough. How much can you communicate using song titles (anyone remember that game from Whose Line is it Anyway?)? For an added challenge, whittle it down to one artist? I tried it with my favorite artist.

1. Choose a band/artist.
Jeremy Camp

2. Answer ONLY with the titles of songs.

3. Are you male or female?
This Man

4. Describe yourself.
One Day at a Time

5. How do people feel about you?
Revive Me

6. How do you feel about yourself?
I Am Nothing

7. Describe you ex-boyfriend/ girlfriend.
Nothing

8. Describe your current boyfriend/ girlfriend.
Nothing (sense something?)

9. Describe where you want to be.
Restored

10. Describe how you live.
I Wait for the Lord (trying, anyway... this one's hard)

11. Describe how you love.
Beautiful One

12. What would you ask for if you had just one wish?
Understand

13. Share a few words of wisdom.
Open Up Your Eyes

14. Now say goodbye:
(I'll) Take You Back... (always)