#63 – YouTube and Composition Workflows, with Dr. Scott Watson

Dr. Scott Watson (Professor of Music at Carin University, band director, composer, and YouTuber) joins the show to talk about his favorite technology, tips for rehearsing honors ensembles, his favorite young band compositions, and more!

Subscribe to the Blog…

RSS | Email Newsletter

Subscribe to the Podcast in…

Apple Podcasts | Overcast | Castro | Spotify | RSS

Support Music Ed Tech Talk

Become a Patron!

.bmc-button img{height: 34px !important;width: 35px !important;margin-bottom: 1px !important;box-shadow: none !important;border: none !important;vertical-align: middle !important;}.bmc-button{padding: 7px 15px 7px 10px !important;line-height: 35px !important;height:51px !important;text-decoration: none !important;display:inline-flex !important;color:#ffffff !important;background-color:#000000 !important;border-radius: 5px !important;border: 1px solid transparent !important;padding: 7px 15px 7px 10px !important;font-size: 20px !important;letter-spacing:0.6px !important;box-shadow: 0px 1px 2px rgba(190, 190, 190, 0.5) !important;-webkit-box-shadow: 0px 1px 2px 2px rgba(190, 190, 190, 0.5) !important;margin: 0 auto !important;font-family:’Arial’, cursive !important;-webkit-box-sizing: border-box !important;box-sizing: border-box !important;}.bmc-button:hover, .bmc-button:active, .bmc-button:focus {-webkit-box-shadow: 0px 1px 2px 2px rgba(190, 190, 190, 0.5) !important;text-decoration: none !important;box-shadow: 0px 1px 2px 2px rgba(190, 190, 190, 0.5) !important;opacity: 0.85 !important;color:#ffffff !important;}Buy me a coffee

Thanks to my sponsors this month, Scale Exercise Play-Along Tracks.

Show Notes:

App of the Week:
Robby – AnyTune / Downie
Scott Watson – NotePerformer

Album of the Week:
Robby – Arch Echo – You Won’t Believe What Happens Next!
Scott Watson – Barbers Overture to School for Scandal: https://youtu.be/Q387-LXIHUA / Stravinsky Octet for Wind Instruments: https://youtu.be/YyqLnP0hOnI

Where to Find Us:
Robby – Twitter | Blog | Book
Scott Watson – Twitter | Website

Please don’t forget to rate the show and share it with others!

More on Scott

Dr. Scott Watson is Professor of Music at Cairn University (Langhorne, PA), teaching undergraduate and graduate courses in music composition/arranging, music education and technology. For 35 years he was an instrumental and elective music teacher in the Parkland School District (Allentown, PA), first as high school Director of Bands, then as coordinator of the elementary band/strings program across the district. He is a frequently commissioned composer with more than 100 published pieces for band and strings at all levels that have been performed around the world at venues including the Academy of Music (Philadelphia), the Midwest Clinic (Chicago) and the White House (Washington, D.C.). He is an exclusive composer/clinician for Alfred Publications and a contributor for their Sound Innovations band series. Watson has presented numerous workshops/clinics for music educators, frequently serves as guest conductor/clinician for honor/festival bands, and is the author of the highly regarded music education text, Using Technology to Unlock Musical Creativity (©2011, Oxford University Press). To learn more, visit www.scottwatsonmusic.com.

6 Music Podcasts I Love

This is a followup to my post about my favorite tech podcasts from a few weeks ago.

There are a handful of music shows that are in my regular rotation. They span the topics of performance, conducting, theory, musicology, and pedagogy

Sticky Notes: The Classical Music Podcast

Great show for people who want to learn more about classical music, regardless of experience level with it.

Sound Expertise

Will Robin has conversations with scholars about music. This show goes deep, but I find it really approachable no matter how much experience you have with the weekly topic.

The Third Story

Leo Sidran hosts long-form interviews with musicians from various backgrounds. I particularly enjoyed the interviews with Cory Henry, Becca Stevens Louis Cole.

He really gets the guests to open up and reveal their humanity, intimate accounts of their life experiences, and creative journey.

The Brass Junkies

This is one of the few instrumental music education shows that doesn’t feel like the air has been sucked from the room when I listen.

This show features candid, personal, conversations with brass musicians from all over, about their professional journey and pedagogy.

Everything Band Podcast

Mark J. Connor does an excellent job interviewing band teachers, performers, and composers of music for winds and percussion.

UpBeat

This is an awesome podcast about conducting, with great industry advise and interviews with conductors from all over.

I may be a little biased because I went to school with one of the hosts, John Devlin.

The show is great and the parody ads are hilarious.

METT Episode #17 – Talking About the Weather, with Chris Cicconi

Dr. Christopher Cicconi, Assistant Professor of Music Education, and Director of Bands and Orchestra at Towson University, joins the show to talk about selecting meaningful repertoire for your ensemble. We also talk about score study with iPad Pro apps, involving yourself in your music teaching community, and yes, I go on a tangent about my favorite new weather app.

<div class="
      image-block-outer-wrapper
      layout-caption-below
      design-layout-inline
      combination-animation-none
      individual-animation-none
      individual-text-animation-none
    ">




    <figure class="
          sqs-block-image-figure
          intrinsic
        " style="max-width:999px">







      <div class="image-block-wrapper">
        <div class="sqs-image-shape-container-element



          has-aspect-ratio
        " style="position: relative;padding-bottom:84.58457946777344%;overflow: hidden">







            <img src="https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5595df9ce4b0ce9ff9ecd1a8/1601906714231-C88BQJMIWJW7ADRPTTOH/CleanShot+2020-09-23+at+20.27.54.png" alt="CleanShot 2020-09-23 at 20.27.54.png" width="999" height="845" style="display:block;object-fit: cover;width: 100%;height: 100%;object-position: 50% 50%" loading="lazy">

        </div>
      </div>






    </figure>


</div>

Show Notes:

App of the Week:
Robby – Weather Line and Carrot Weather
Chris – Fidelity

Album of the Week:
Robby – Trust in the Life-force of the Deep Mystery – The Comet Is Coming
Chris – Game of Thrones Highlights – Spotify Playlist | Mad Max: Fury Road Soundtrack

Where to Find Us:
Robby – Twitter | Blog | Book
Chris – Towson University Profile Page

Please don’t forget to rate the show and share it with others!

Subscribe to Music Ed Tech Talk:

Subscribe to the Blog

Subscribe to the Podcast in…
Apple Podcasts | Overcast | Castro | Spotify | RSS

Thanks to my sponsor this month, MusicFirst.

Robert Sheldon conducts the Regional Repertory Wind Ensemble

This past weekend, I had the pleasure of working with Robert Sheldon as he conducted the Regional Repertory Wind Ensemble. The RRWE is a Maryland based honor band that I have assisted for the past seven years. Early each summer, the organization finds a composer/clinicain/educator to come in and direct the audition based group on a concert of their own compositions. Many conductors have worked with the group over the years, all of whom are master composers, educators, AND conductors. Sam Hazo, Frank Ticheli, Richard Saucedo, and Brian Balmages have all worked with the group.  

<div class="
      image-block-outer-wrapper
      layout-caption-below
      design-layout-inline
      combination-animation-none
      individual-animation-none
      individual-text-animation-none
    ">




    <figure class="
          sqs-block-image-figure
          intrinsic
        " style="max-width:2500px">







      <div class="image-block-wrapper">
        <div class="sqs-image-shape-container-element



          has-aspect-ratio
        " style="position: relative;padding-bottom:100%;overflow: hidden">







            <img src="https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5595df9ce4b0ce9ff9ecd1a8/1497826971781-XQOSC2FFX001QVHTKBTP/IMG_6785.JPG" alt="IMG_6785.JPG" width="2500" height="2500" style="display:block;object-fit: cover;width: 100%;height: 100%;object-position: 50% 50%" loading="lazy">

        </div>
      </div>






    </figure>


</div>

Working with Robert Sheldon is a real treat. His music finds a way of strongly connecting to the students. It is just so fun to play! I can hear and see how naturally they gravitate towards it in performance. One of the things I really admire about Sheldon is that he is a real instructor. His years of teaching experience have crafted him into someone who is really able to rehearse an ensemble, assess where the problems are, and immediately give just the right feedback to get the musical result he wants. And he gets these results without ever once raising his voice, putting a student on the spot, or diminishing their efforts. In every interaction he was complimentary, patient, and spoke deliberately. When he needed   students to step up, he would always find a way to make them feel great as a member of the ensemble before first offering a suggestion.  His manner of offering suggestions was much like  dangling a carrot just far enough in front of them that they would want to sit up a little straighter, put their instrument in playing position sooner, reach for the peak of the phrase, etc.

I witnessed expert music teaching this weekend. And for that I thank Mr. Sheldon for his involvement with the ensemble.