Musicing

We need an elementary and middle school music method that reflects the rich and complex American musical heritage without making it subordinate to elite European classical traditions. I am envisioning a method with American Roots Musicing and American Popular Musicing at the heart of instruction. Students might choose to explore elite European classical music, but […]

In his comment on a previous post, Joe wondered how to define “country” music. As I understand it, country music never has been clearly separated from other popular musics and it has always been evolving. Rather than a presentation of country music’s history, country music education might involve more of an “exploration” and “discovery.” In […]

We had a meeting of the GRIME (Gender Research in Music Education) SRIG (Special Research Interest Group) here at MENC in Milwaukee today. Patti O’Toole, the first chair of the SRIG, spoke a little bit about its history. I enjoyed her discussion very much and felt that it alone was worth the $225 conference fee […]

I grew up listening to country music–Hank Williams, Loretta Lynn, Tammy Wynette, Merle Haggard, Willie Nelson, Jim Reeves, etc. Of course, we also had a good dose of American folk music. Mom played the guitar and sang; Dad played the accordion. My brothers and sisters all learned guitar and I, being the rebellious one, learned […]