MusicFriends Newsletter, October 2005

Music Quote of the Month

"It's good to make good music."
~New Orleans' Louisiana Philharmonic Orchestra Principal Conductor Klauspeter Seibel after the benefit concert held in Nashville that was performed by LPO and hosted by the Nashville Symphony

Music Booster Tip
Be sure to let your local newspaper know the results of major regional and state music competitions to highlight local achievements. Often newspapers will print those results in their local news sections or might do a follow-up feature story. Photos may also be accepted. Be sure to coordinate with the music director to make sure contacting the media is appropriate.

If you have a music booster tip to share, please send it to MusicFriends to be included in the next newsletter.

National Anthem Project Update

  • 50-State Road Show to kick off in 2006! Coming to a city near you!
  • The National Anthem Across America map is now online!
  • Is your city an All Star City? Is your state an All Star State?

    For Music Students
    GRAMMY JAZZ ENSEMBLES -- High school singers and instrumentalists are encouraged to audition for the Gibson/Baldwin GRAMMY Jazz Ensembles. Selectees will receive an all expenses paid trip to Los Angeles, January 30 through February 9, 2006, to participate in high profile GRAMMY Week performances and recording sessions and to attend the GRAMMYs. Information on benefits and the more than $2,000,000 in college scholarships available to selectees is located at http://www.GRAMMYintheSchools.com. Application deadline: October 22, 2005.

    CALL FOR ENTRIES: VSA ARTS YOUNG SOLOISTS AWARD - Calling all rock stars & hipsters…virtuosos & divas…jazz bands and blues brothers…musicians of all styles! If you are 25 years old and under and have a disability, you are eligible to apply for this annual music award. Two recipients will each receive $5,000 and will perform at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington, D.C. Download guidelines and an application. Deadline: December 1, 2005.

    2005 HERSHEY’S ALL-USA HIGH SCHOOL BAND ANNOUNCED - 100 superior musicians from across the country were chosen as the 2005 Hershey's All-USA High School Band. View finalists and get information about the program at this site. Information about the 2006 program will be posted soon so stay tuned.

    For Your Music Teacher
    Become a National Anthem Project All Star School! Did your local school have a National Anthem Project event? Are they planning on having an event? If so, they are eligible to become a National Anthem Project All Star School and receive formal recognition and a certificate. To register, go to the web site to sign up!

    The Education Commission of the States has announced a new database to compare arts in education policies in different states. From this database, you can generate profiles of the state policies for arts education in individual states, create comparisons of specific types of arts education state policies across several states and view compiled reports on state policies for the arts education. This tool is also offers recommendations to help arts education advocates capitalize on media coverage to promote and protect arts education in schools

    Music Education in the News

  • A Higher Key -- The Return of Elementary Music
  • Nebo, UT Parents Fight for Music Program
  • Is it curtains for the arts in California's public schools?
  • As arts education suffers, so do students in Illinois

    Advocacy News, Action, and Alerts
    Support music education in your area! Tri-M is a musical honor society for grades 6-12. Tri-M members are the best candidates to become music teachers. Tri-M members who do not become music teachers are poised to become community leaders and music education's strongest advocates.

    Often there is interest for a Tri-M chapter, but not the funding. Please consider sponsoring a Tri-M chapter or approaching a local business to do so for the low price of just $300. Businesses sponsor little league teams, so why not music education? Amazing results for music will come of it! Please use this flyer and get in touch with your local middle and high school music teachers. He or she will be thrilled to have your support.

    For more information on Tri-M, please visit http://www.menc.org/tri-m, or e-mail patw@menc.org

    Music Fun Fact
    What do sunspots have to do with a Bach violin sonata? See (and hear!) the latest "Amazing Fact" on NASA's award-winning children's Web site, The Space Place to find out about the unlikely connection between sunspot activity 300 years ago and the special qualities of the music played today on violins made around that time.

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