Massachusetts Music Teachers Association Spring Newsletter 2016

Massachusetts Music Teachers Association

Spring Newsletter

2016

President’s Message Dear Colleagues, June 2016 The last two years have gone by so fast, and I am coming to the end of my term as MMTA President. I am so grateful to have been supported by a hardworking and professional board. I am honored to be part of the legacy of MMTA and to see the success of our programs at the state and national levels. At the final board meeting of my term, which takes place on June 10th, we will vote on a new Board and I am grateful to the members that are remaining and also to the newly appointed members who have agreed to take on Board positions which support our organization. Did you know past MMTA president Alison Barr had an article published in the April/May issue of the American Music Teacher, the national publication of MTNA? Her perspectives on teaching were illuminated in her article entitled, “Wild Rider in a Strange Land — Sustaining Relevance in the Independent Studio. Did you know that MTNA has now hosted three webinars? The first one had 300 attendees and the third one had over 700! Many members have been asking for this development and it seems to be off to a good start! If you missed them, they can be found at www.mtna.org in the member area.

Did you know that our state sponsors student programs that are competitive and non competitive? Look on our website under student programs on our state website, www.mmta.net, and you can read about the Bay State Contest, the Judged Festival, the MTNA State Competition, and the MAE program.

Our MMTA annual social event will be a luncheon for our state members on June 18, 2016 at 89 Columbus Ave Waltham, MA. This is the home of Past President, Vera Rubin, and a wonderful setting. We will be honoring longtime member Maria Reeseman with a Lifetime Achievement Award. For newer members, this is a great way to meet your colleagues in an informal setting. Please don't be shy about attending! Allison Barr will be collecting RSVP's. There is no need to bring anything. Lunch will be provided!

This year's MTNA National Convention took place on April 2-6 in San Antonio, Texas! It was a very good setting for the conference, with ample space for meetings, concerts, exhibits, and sessions. The Conference hotel was set on the San Antonio Riverwalk, which was a beautiful place to walk or to take a ride along the river. The opening concert, Time for Three, was inspiring -- two violinists and a bass player who had very creative arrangements (mash-ups!) intertwining classical and popular music. One of my favorites was Stairway to Heaven combined with Dido's Lament form Dido and Aeneus. They

made a lot of fans, including myself, and completely sold out of their CD's after the performance. I attended the Young Artist winners’ recital of the MTNA Competition in San Antonio and got to see the Young Artist Brass National Winner, Elmer Churampi from Massachusetts. His playing was brilliant! The closing concert of all Beethoven performed by pianist, Emmanuel Ax, was polished and masterful.

There were ten teachers from Massachusetts in attendance at the National conference this year and we gathered for a social hour and made new connections, welcoming two new teachers to MTNA, Audrey Collins and Elysses Kuan! Also, I returned home with a suitcase full of music! The composers I met and the new publications that we read through together also inspire my students. I have found that the energy and ideas that I bring home from the convention are energizing to both my students and myself and well worth the time and expense invested in the journey.

To encourage members to attend these national conventions, we have increased the enrichment funds available for attendance. The application may be found on our website, www.mmta.net! I hope that even more teachers will come to next year's conference in Baltimore, MD! If you have been interested in becoming more involved in the community of music teachers in our state, don't hesitate to contact me or any of the MMTA Chairs and Officers found on our website. There are many opportunities to assist throughout the year. The time commitment need not be large, but the connections you can make with your teaching peers is invaluable. Thank you for allowing me to serve the state as your President! Best Regards, Dorothy Travis MMTA President

MMTA Annual Social Event It’s not too late to RSVP for our MMTA annual social event! Please contact Alison Barr - [email protected] - if you can attend our luncheon on Saturday, June 18, 2016 at 89 Columbus Ave., Waltham, MA., the lovely home of Vera Rubin We’ll start at 11:30 a.m. Please join us in honoring Dorothy Travis, 2016 MMTA Teacher of the Year, and longtime member Maria Reesman, who’ll be receiving a Lifetime Achievement Award. A lunch will be provided, so there’s no need to bring anything. This is a great way to meet other members or to reacquaint with those you haven’t seen for a while!

Reports from MTNA 2016 San Antonio Conference Attendees

Members who received funds from the MMTA Teacher Enrichment Travel Fund have submitted the following reports, in appreciation.

To the Board of MMTA: Thank you so much for the funding you provided for my participation in the 2016 MTNA Conference in San Antonio. From the opening session by Robert Duke on Saturday, April 2nd to the last session on Wednesday, April 6th, I discovered new ideas for developing repertoire (the 40 Piece Challenge by Elissa Milne), was inspired through Seymour Bernstein’s enlightening master class, and came home with new methods to use with Generation Z (Pete Jutras’ session on teaching iLearners; The Learning Styles of Generation Z.) After decades of teaching, the MTNA national conference continues to offer new ideas that refresh my teaching. Julie Knerr introduced a thoughtfully prepared method series (Piano Safari) which I am excited to try. David Cartledge shared his prompts and exercises for getting students to talk about music at all levels. Kevin Richmond, a kindred spirit who teaches and performs pieces for prepared piano played some new pieces I didn’t know about. Kevin Chance reminded me that there are many repertoire alternatives to some of the standard literature. I also heard duet teams perform music, unknown to me, in the Duet competition. I especially enjoyed the warm, sunny weather in San Antonio, a charming city, filled with history and excellent restaurants. The conference’s highlight was the Massachusetts gathering, filled with some new faces, familiar colleagues, simpatico conversation and lots of fun. Thank you again for the funding that helped pave my way to the MTNA 2016 convention in San Antonio, Texas! Elizabeth Ann Reed May 6, 2016 To the Board of MMTA: The MTNA Conference in San Antonio was far and above one of the best conferences I’ve attended! And I’ve attended pretty much all of them since 1980 – two in DC, at least two in NYC, Wichita, Austin, two in Salt Lake City, Portland, Oregon, Seattle, Miami, LA, Anaheim, Little Rock, Atlanta, two in Chicago, Denver – the list goes on and on. You MUST consider, first, serving MMTA as a volunteer, and second, applying for the most generous travel grant, so that you may attend one of these conferences. I attended many sessions that were inspiring and came back with renewed energy and will to surmount some specific challenges facing my studio. I came back musically refreshed and mentally rejuvenated. The photo below says it

all! My colleagues are so dear to me, so inspiring, so devoted to making our profession better and making themselves the best teachers possible. Thank you ALL! And please continue below the photo to read Lydia Reed-Guertin’s report. Alison Barr May, 2016 Left to right: Seated: Betty Reed, Esther Ning Yau, Selen Erkan (from New Jersey) Standing: Lydia Reed-Guertin, Cindy Null, Bert Yocom, Ellyses Kuan, Alison Barr, Audrey Collins, Beth Dubuisson and Dorothy Travis

Report on the MTNA National Conference, San Antonio, Texas

April 1-6, 2016

Dear MMTA Board,

The MTNA 2016 Conference in San Antonio, was truly an inspiring educational opportunity and I am very

grateful to MMTA for sponsoring a portion of my expenses through the enrichment grant. There were

many highlights to this trip, attending several daily sessions about varying topics, observing master

teachers, Seymour Bernstein and Marvin Blickenstaff, listening to a lecture recital on Alberto Ginastera

given by Eduardo Delgado, and of course shopping for new music materials in the conference exhibit.

My students are always excited when I travel to the conferences, especially when they hear that I meet

and speak to living composers! This year I bought new compositions and materials written by Jennifer

Linn and the Piano Safari method program written by Dr. Julie Knerr and Katherine Fisher.

There were several pedagogy sessions that gave me insight into the learning process and style of today's

students including opening remarks by Robert Duke, a well known professor from the University of

Texas, speaking to "Advanced Pianism Isn't What it Used to Be" and Editor in Chief of Clavier Companion

Pete Jutra's session "Teaching iLearners: The Learning Styles of Generation Z". Dr. Julie Knerr's "130

Strategies for Effective Teaching" was also fantastic! She shared 45 of these ideas, teaching students of

all levels and making efficient use of the lesson time through a clear organizational approach. Other

highlights of the week include the technology session that I attended by Linda Christenson, "Engaging

Music Apps for ANY device" and "Extended Piano Techniques" by Kevin Richmond exploring music of our

time.

Finally, on a personal note the food, hotel and entertainment could not have been better, especially in

the presence of my fellow roommates and MMTA members: Alison Barr and Betty Reed. Together we

enjoyed spending time with our other Massachusetts friends in attendance, Bert Yocom, Cindy Null,

Dorothy Travis, Esther Ning Yau, Ellyses Kuan, Audrey Collins and Beth Dubuisson. I hope to see an even

stronger Massachusetts turnout in Baltimore next year!

Respectfully Submitted,

Lydia Reed-Guertin