The visibility and popularity of marching bands at Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) represents a multi-generational tradition of marching and musical excellence. With performances that reach national and international audiences through large viewership, HBCU marching band culture is elevated to artistic prominence with each…

Anthony Johnson Showalter (c. 1853-1924) was a music educator, gospel composer, publisher, and considered a pioneer in gospel music and education in the late nineteenth century and early twentieth century. Showalter is notably mentioned in numerous texts and studies related to gospel music; however, little data has been collected regarding the…

The Naval School of Music was founded in 1935 in response to the poor performance level of the U.S. Navy's bands at that time. The school evolved from an adjunct operation of the U.S. Navy Band into a tri-service institution serving the Army, Navy, and Marine Corps with dedicated facilities, courses for musicians and band leaders, and courses to…

In this article, David Forrest probes Ahmad Sarmast (Founder and Director of the Afghanistan National Institute of Music, Ministry of Education, Afghanistan) about the development of the Institute, its sponsorship, the range of local musicians and music educators that work there, and the student population.

After getting her master's degree from UCLA, Nancy Wills dreamed of starting a school-based guitar program so she could teach students to make music on the instrument she'd loved since she was a kid growing up outside of Yosemite, California. She had a strong belief that guitar was perfect for schools, ideal for individualized playing but also…

According to the Austin-based Amati Foundation (a nonprofit group that supports programs for the stringed arts), over the past several decades the number of public school districts offering instruction for violin, viola, and cello has plummeted, from as high as 80 percent in 1960 to less than 19 percent today. Lack of public funding for stringed…

This book is the first comprehensive resource devoted to steel band pedagogy, it is a must-have for anyone involved in the steel band idiom today. Written primarily for educators, the book addresses a wide variety of topics, including instrumentation, personnel, basic pan technique, repertoire, and rehearsal strategies. This informative text…

This publication provides orchestra teachers with techniques for conducting, choosing repertoire, program development, recruiting, playing styles, and preparing for competitions. It is the latest in MENC's popular Spotlight series, comprising articles that have appeared in state MEA journals. It is made up of 9 sections, and has a total of 53…

Teacher applies a creative approach to teaching music to elementary school students. (RK)

Beginning a community youth orchestra can be one of the most rewarding--and draining--experiences in music education. Forming a group requires administrative expertise, interpersonal skills, expert musicianship, and a lot of elbow grease. The author used all these attributes and skills when he founded the Spanish Fork (Utah) Chamber Players…