In a previous webinar, we shared tips on exploring the vast repertoire library included with SmartMusic. But what if the music you want your students to play isn’t in SmartMusic? What if you want them to play your school’s fight song, or an exercise you’ve developed yourself?
It’s easy get additional music into the new SmartMusic.
Marching band season is upon us. That means there’s a lot of music to learn, and SmartMusic can help. Sending your students an assignment to learn a new piece means you spend less of your together time learning notes and rhythms, and more time taking the music further.
Great candidates for SmartMusic assignments include:
Hard music – send students the trickiest bits of music you’ll perform at marching contests Stand music – quickly learn the pop tune you’ll play in the stands or for the dance team Fight song – make it easy for freshmen to have it ready at the first practice Warm ups – easily get everyone on the same pageIf it’s clear that having this music in SmartMusic is a great benefit, all that’s left is learning how to get it there.
When you try the new SmartMusic for free, you and your students receive full access to the entire SmartMusic Repertoire Library for 30 days.
Since the library is so vast, you might wonder where to start. To help make the most of your free trial, we’d like to provide you with a guide.
This month we’ve added 11 new ensemble titles to the SmartMusic Repertoire Library. Included are pieces for choir, concert band, and jazz ensemble. View the complete list.
New SolosAs we mentioned previously, we’re constantly adding solos to new SmartMusic. Typically these solos are also available in classic SmartMusic (where they do not include on-screen music notation).
Last week’s SmartMusic Year-End Checklist offered tips to help you efficiently wrap up SmartMusic for this school year, and set you on the right track for next fall.
This week we’re sharing an archived webinar on the same theme; perfect if you’d rather listen than read! Topics covered include:
Account management The end-of-year process Re-enrolling students for the next school yearAgain, the emphasis is on efficiently closing up shop in such a way that you can most easily start up again in the fall.
This month we feature Frank Ticheli’s bright and joyous Sun Dance. This uplifting grade 3 piece is suitable for middle school through college and community bands. To view the score and hear the recording simultaneously, first click the play button:
Then follow along in the score by clicking the full-screen icon in the bottom right corner of the score window below.
The school year is almost over! As you count down the last few weeks (or days), you’re likely considering all sorts of year-end activities. While you check in school instruments, make plans for summer repairs, and organize your music library, it’s also worth taking a few minutes to make sure your SmartMusic account is ready for summer break, too.
We are continually refining new SmartMusic based on feedback from you. Next week we will address a very popular request; we’re adding visual feedback to indicate when a student has played a note early or late.
To clarify what will change, let’s review how this feedback has worked previously in new SmartMusic.
At first glance, the end of school year might seem like an odd time to talk about getting SmartMusic up and running. However, if you’re thinking about implementing new SmartMusic for the first time next fall, now is a pretty good time. You might even consider setting up a trial run with some of your returning students – it’s a great way to get them to practice more over the summer.
You’ve heard us say that SmartMusic is great for differentiated instruction. But what does that mean exactly? In this article, we’ll share some specific ways SmartMusic can help you meet the needs of every student.
AssessmentFirst, let’s talk about assessment.
Formative assessment is a term used to describe the techniques that teachers use to conduct in-process evaluation of the progress students are making.