~ WHY MUSIC? from the Music Achievement Council (NAMM)
I. Music is a Science. It is exact, specific . . .
II. Music is
Mathematical. It is rhythmically
based . . .
III. Music is a Foreign
Language.
Download
the "Why Music? file
~Why we are who we
are -- and why we do what we do
Dr. Karl Paulnack is director of the music division at the
Boston Conservatory and frequently performs on the piano. On
September 1, 2004, Dr. Paulnack gave a welcome
address to the parents of incoming students at the Boston
Conservatory. His message points to the value of music in today's
society and reminds us of why we study music. The opening paragraph
of his address is as follows:
One
of my parents' deepest fears, I suspect, is that society would not properly
value me as a musician, that I wouldn't be appreciated. I had very good
grades in high school, I was good in science and math, and they imagined
that as a doctor or a research chemist or an engineer, I might be more
appreciated than I would be as a musician. I still remember my mother's
remark when I announced my decision to apply to music school-she said,
"you're wasting your SAT scores!" On some level, I think, my
parents were not sure themselves what the value of music was, what its
purpose was. And they loved music: they listened to classical music all the
time. They just weren't really clear about its function. So let me talk
about that a little bit, because we live in a society that puts music in
the "arts and entertainment" section of the newspaper, and
serious music, the kind your kids are about to engage in, has absolutely
nothing whatsoever to do with entertainment, in fact it's
the opposite of entertainment. Let me talk a little bit about music, and
how it works.
One of the first cultures to articulate how
music really works were the ancient Greeks. And this is going to fascinate
you: the Greeks said that music and astronomy were
two sides of the same coin. . .
To read
more
Download
Dr. Paulnack's welcome address
If you enjoyed
reading Dr. Paulnack's welcome address you might
also want to listen to him speak on the importance of music and how it
works. This recording was taped at the Arlington Street Church in
Boston and is about 19 minutes long. It is located at the church's
website as a free podcast at http://www.ascboston.org/downloads/podcast/080824.mp3
~What Can Your School’s
Band Program Offer Your Child?
The
Gemeinhardt Company, a manufacturer of flutes and
piccolos, recently completed several research projects in which parents of
band students from across the country were asked to list the major benefits
they felt their child had received by being in the band program in their
school. Fifty percent or more
parents participating in the project listed the following responses: . . .
To read
more
Download
"Why Band?" file
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