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Volume 14 - Issue 1 - September 2008

WE ARE All Music's

WE ARE All Music's CHILDRENbymJBuellWelcome back for a fourth season of Music' sChildren contests!If I had to pick the one common thread, agolden tie that binds absolutely all of theirstories, it's hearing music in their childhoodhomes, regardless of whether they camefrom musician families .. . radio, with mornand dad's records a close second, andrelatives who sang together for fun.September's Child is ... ?CLUE: Make new friends but keep the old; oneis silver and the other's gold!Trumpeting a si lver anniversary this season,but still rubbing shoulders with his old friendthe euphonium, September's Child probablyhas lots to say about the social benefits ofbeing in a band.Think you know who September's child is?Send your best guess tomusicschildren@thewholenote.comWholeNote MarketPlacePIANO LESSONS• Over 40 years in business.• Any level and age.• Extremely effective, low-costpreparation for RCM exams,competitions, concerts, etc.- ./ • From for Y, hour.~ • Immediate results, or you don't pay!Vladimir Dounin 416,321-5627bethebestinmusic@yahoo.com9 Love To Sing?1 •All styles • All Levels • Beginnersand Children welcome • Excellentfor public speakers, actors, etc.Breathe new life into your voice with a unique andsensible kinesthetic approach to vocal pedagogy.Call Pattie Kelly for private lessons: 905-271-6896info@vocalsense.ca www.vocalsense.ca ,CLAIM YOUR VOICEOrganic and functional vocal training togain access to your full range, resonanceand vocal freedom. For singers, publicspeakers, teachers, clergy, or if you justwant to enjoy using your voice.Sue Crowe ConnollyHamilton Studio Toronto Studio905-544-1302 41 6-523-1154"1966 ... prior to a parade as amember of the Whitby Junior Band"Be sure to always send us your mailingaddress, just in case your name is drawn!Winners will be selected by random drawamong correct replies received by September15 2008.Are you hoarding a treasured old photo?Suggestions welcomed. (Music's Childrengratefully acknowledges all of Music'sChildren . You know who you are.): .... '.;:jI, • • - ..... -,7".... .,EducationSinging LessonsSing with technical ease and vocal beau~Opera - Pops - Broadwaywww.JanetCatherineDea.comcall now: (41 6) 429-4502NORTH TORONTO INSTITUTE OF MUSICPrivate instruction and exam ~preparation by qualified teachersin the heart of Toronto.• Piano • Voice • Guitar • Strings• Woodwinds • Percussion • Th eory• Music Theatre • Pre-school550 Eglinton Avenue East4 l 6-488-2588 www.ntimusic.com,.; , Ji All Ages Ji All Levels Ji All Styles::a·? Ji Motivating Beginners' Groups~ Ji Private LessonsPIANO KEYBOARD GUITAR VIOLIN FLUTE SAX CLARINET DRUMSYAMAHA 41 24MUSIC SCHOOL 6·2 ·5590www.yamahamusicschool.ca Ql YAMAHAMUSICAL LIFESUMMER REFLECTIONS onthe current state of music edby Sterling BeckwithTHJs YEAR'S CELEBRATIONS of R. MurraySchafer's 75th birthday bring irresistibly tomind the days, half a lifetime ago, when thewhole music world looked to Toronto withadmiration and respect. Not, to be sure, forany premature success in replicating a Viennaor a Juilliard or even a Bayreuth on Canadiansoil; but because forward-looking new waysof involving ordinary schoolchildren in thediscovery of music as a creative adventurewere being actively developed and practisedhere, under Schafer's inspired leadership.(See his remarkable book The Thinking Earfor full and fascinating documentation.)How much of that spirit is still alive heretoday? And where should one look to findits impact? These questions were much onmy mind when I was invited, earlier thissummer, to check out what some Europeancolleagues have been doing lately to fosterchildren's musical creativity, in ways thatalso take advantage of the latest computerwizardry to further enliven the musicmakingprocess and heighten its appeal to today'skids. (Adapting the technology for just thispurpose happens to be a longstanding researchinterest of mine, although Schaferhimself, a well-known technophobe, mightview it with some suspicion, if not outrightdisapproval.)My first stop was at the Sonic Playground(Klankspeeltuin), a suite of roomsinside the city of Amsterdam's sleek newwaterfront Music Palace (Muziekgebouw aan't 11), crammed with a unique collection ofcleverly engineered sound-activating contraptions,each designed to catch the imaginationand engage the participation of those youngsters(aged 7 through 11) lucky enough toshow up for one or more 90-minute visitsduring the school year. They may come ontheir own, in small groups, or with wholeclasses, not just from schools all across thecity but from outlying areas of Holland aswell. There are even a few times whenadults are allowed in to play, and workshopstailored to particular interests can also bescheduled.We are all immersed in sounds almosteverywhere we go, and there is usually littleany child can do to influence them or fendthem off. But if you can turn particularMAESTRO DANIEL*Twenty years teaching Classical Vocal Techniquein Toronto* Specialty: Training and developing the large operaticvoice, "a dying breed" according to theN.Y. Times, Nov. 5, 2005* Vocal rehabi litation: Removing andrepairing faulty vocal habits* Guaranteed resu lts*416- 927-9800 www.nscvs.com48/?ona/d /? /?andTeacher of Voice froduction for5peak.ing and Classical 5inging23+ R.o!;ial York Rd. +16-255-5982WWW. THEWHOLENOTE.COMMARJORIE SPARKS VOICE STUDIOMarjorie Sparks B. Mus., B. Ed.Classical training for private voicelessons, university entrance auditions,RCM exams, competitions andperformances. All levels welcome.For more information see our website.STUDIO LOCATION416-893-8648 550 Eglinton Ave. E., Torontowww.marjoriesparksvoicestudio.com mheitshu@sympatico.caS EPT EMBER 1 - O CTOBER 7 2008

sounds instantly on or off just by steppingon or hitting or stroking something in aspecial way; if the sounds themselves areunusually arresting and varied; and if, wheneveryou and your friends do keep still, youcan actually hear the stillness-then you'vegot the beginnings of a powerful linkagebetween your own body's restless activity,on one hand, and a shareable world of potentialsonic events whose pattern of occurrenceis both increasingly predictable andmore and more under your control, on theother.That seems to be the guiding principlebehind most of the installations in Holland'sSonic Playground. And since musicmakingis typically a group enterprise, each installationis designed to accommodate more thanone would-be "composer" at a time. Childrenare thus encouraged to cooperate andinteract while working out their team soundprojectsinside a shared listening-space. Forexample, in one darkened area of the Playgroundcalled Kosmix, a wide black dancefloor is dotted with different-sized circles ofwhite light beamed from overhead. Jumpingor tiptoeing around among those circles ishard for any kid to resist, especially sinceeach time you move to step on one and thusinterrupt its beam of light with your body,the particular ringing or percussive soundcurrently assigned to that spot is automaticallytriggered. Result? A giant super-drumsetyou and your friends can play simply bydancing back and forth over it, finding ormaking up your own visual and musicalpatterns as you go.A central facility such as the Sonic Playground,and the innovative child-friendlycomposing games and musicmaking environmentsit has built, are well used and highlyclassroom use, thanks to the initiative of afew of the centre's brilliant young researchers,and with the blessing of the nation'sMinistry of Culture and Communications.Meanwhile, the ever-practical British managedto bypass all such comings and goings,by putting a delightful set of children's composinggames on the BBC's web site, wherethey were freely and immediately accessibleto any youthful members of the wired generationwith a yen to make their own kind ofmusic. (That is, until the BBC's wholeonline digital curriculum had to be scrappedin 2007, in response to protest by the educationalsoftware industry.)To whom should we in Canada be looking,I wonder, to create and make availablemore such resources for our own kids toexplore? Of course, not everything that'sgood for kids has to be computerized, norvice versa. It takes a special kind of visionto build facilities and programs that are genuinelymind-opening and child-friendly. Andthe temptation is strong (even in Amsterdam!)to just sit each kid down in front of ascreen running a commercial program likeGarage Band, and call it a day.Though our various high-profile musicfaculties seem to be prospering, they couldhardly be expected to support R&D of thisunconventional kind, preoccupied as they areby filling their enrolment quotas for futureperformers, with perhaps a few musicologiststhrown in. Would local music teachers'associations be interested? What about facultiesof Education-any hope there? Perhapsan enlightened retailer or manufacturer couldhelp? Surely there must be at least a fewcommitted composers or improvisers willingto share their expertise with kids, as MortonSubotnick has done with his Making MusicSonic Playground - Kosmixr" j lJIJJ rICD-ROMs and Creating Music website.Might the Ontario Science Centre, TVO, orthe CBC be persuaded to contribute furtherresources, as part of their expanded culturalmission?Certainly our New Music community islarge, ambitious, and technologically sophisticatedenough to embrace such a challenge.Who knows? If we can pool our talents,coordinate our disparate efforts, and keep ourfocus on supporting children's creativity,Canadians might again find themselves at theleadingedge of2lst-centurymusiceducation.Piano LessonsIn Your Own HomeBy Experienced andHighly Qualified Teachervalued by the members of -------------------------, Peter ArthursAMUZE, Amsterdam's livelyconsortium of music educators andinstitutions. The French, as onemight expect, have taken a differentapproach. At IRCAM, theirhigh-tech Paris centre for "researchand creativity in music andacoustics" founded in 1969 withgovernment support by PierreBoulez, some of the most advancedcompositional software isbeing re-packaged and taken outinto the hinterland for everyday416-239-4637Violin and Cello age 3 and upSuzuki Headstart ages 2 - 4Music & Movement, Theory,Rhythmic Reading, OrchestraEtobicoke.suzuki@ sympatico.caPreparation forRoyal Conservatory of MusicPiano and Theory ExaminationsAnd Musical EnjoymentLimited number of spaces available.(416) 450-6115{!Canadian Jazz Vocalist& Recording ArtistADI BRAUNNow accepting a limited number of newvoice and piano students-all styles and levels -- preparation for exams & auditions -"Every singer on the planet should take at leasjone vocal lesson from Adi Braun her techniqueis a wonder to behold. " - Jamyz Bee, JAZZ FM91For more information please call 416 . 651 . 8116ad1@adibraun.com www.ad1braun.comTHEORYCOMPOSITIONIMPROVISATIONPIANOORGANComplete RCM curriculum -written and practicalplusClassically-based improv techniquesIndividual or small group lessonsConvenient downtown locationEXPERT INSTRUCTION TAILORED TO INDIVIDUAL NEEDSROGER BERGS (Mus. Doc.)-U. OFT. MUSIC FACULTY416.535.8563 RB ERGS@ SYMPATICO.CASEPTEMBER 1 - O CTOBER 7 2008 WWW. TH EWHO LENO TE.COM 49

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