How do you get to Carnegie Hall? There are many more ways than practicing.
For one, by simply attending certain New York City schools.
Carnegie Hall’s music education wing, called the Weill Music Institute, brings thousands of students and teachers from New York City schools to the Hall to perform pieces alongside master musicians. These musicians help students compose music using the institute’s own online curricula, which was developed with support from EDC.
“Youngsters need opportunities to create and respond to music as well as perform it,” says EDC’s Bill Tally. “Using this curricula, K–12 students play audio, video, and Web-based games. They can also visit the Online Resource Center that was created by EDC to provide access to the institute’s rich music education resources.”
As part of the project, Tally and Project Manager Alice Anderson are conducting a study with K–12 music educators, called the Weill Music Institute Evaluation. The results of that survey will help Carnegie Hall shape its online resources for music teachers. Carnegie plans to make online resources accessible and useful for music educators across the country.
“Music curricula like this help remind teachers that listening and responding thoughtfully to music—not just mastering skills for performance—are crucial parts of music instruction,” says Tally.
In a related project, Weill Music Institute is working with a Harlem school on K–8 music instruction that exemplifies New York City’s Blueprint for Teaching and Learning in the Arts, a citywide framework for arts teaching. For this project, Tally is part of the team in charge of designing music skills curriculum, resources, and assessments for grades K–2. Taking the lead from the classroom teachers and curriculum designers, EDC will help pilot and revise workable assessments that music teachers can include in their instruction. This work is gaining importance, following Carnegie Hall’s partnership with the New York City Department of Education on a variety of federal grants, says Tally.
Both EDC/Carnegie Hall projects were created to help students graduate with a solid foundation in music skills, as well as broader habits of listening and responding to music across cultures.
“We are finding that K–12 music educators often feel they are on their own when it comes to figuring out exactly what to teach and how to teach music in school,” says Tally. “Educators welcome Carnegie’s curriculum resources to help engage students and build musical skills.”
Originally published on October 18, 2010