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Professional Development

TEACHING TIPS

SELF CARE

MASTER EDUCATOR COLLECTIVE

CONFERENCES

Use Fusion to Engage Students

Combine two or more genres of music to bridge the gap between music your students know and the realms of classical, jazz and world music.

First-Year Money Advice I Wish I Had

Make a financial plan and stick to it — your future self is depending on you.

Band Director Reboot

All educators can benefit from the lessons offered by a veteran music teacher who returns to the classroom after 18 months, determined to keep his energy, passion and joy at the forefront.

School band practicing outside.

FOOTBALL AND BAND: A MATCH MADE IN HEAVEN?

Build teamwork and collaboration within your music program and throughout your campus community by working with athletic coaches and spirit team directors.

Young female cellist playing.

REDUCING PERFORMANCE ANXIETY

How can we help our students deal with nerves and anxiety before a concert, competition or performance?

Teaching Tips

Looking for new – or new to you – ideas? Check out these teaching tips.

CHECK OUT TIPS

Let Students Take Control During Rehearsals

Challenge your musicians to handle score study and rehearsals on their own — and even perform without you conducting them — in a unique and effective teaching model.

Music Class is the Ultimate Life Skills Workshop

In your classroom, students can learn skills far beyond music that will help them prepare for the future.

Thinking About Grad School?

Considerations, modalities and majors — decisions you must make to become a “master” of your domain as you pursue a graduate degree.

Apple sitting on stack of books with nearby stack of ABCs spelled in blocks.

The ABCs of Classroom Management

These 26 tips will help you connect with your students and make your music class run smoother.

Computer mouse on top of sheet music.

Try this Creative Composition Activity

Ignite creativity with this lesson, which teaches composing and arranging as well as sight reading.

Teacher showing student how to play trombone.

Practice Effectively: Go Slow to Go Fast

Help students play music at a high level with slow practice and gradual increases in music difficulty.

Self-Care

Sharing your expertise and encouraging the next generation of musicians takes a toll. Some ideas for self-care here.

BROWSE SELF-CARE

Band Director Reboot

All educators can benefit from the lessons offered by a veteran music teacher who returns to the classroom after 18 months, determined to keep his energy, passion and joy at the forefront.

Stop Trying to Be Your Old Band Director

It’s perfectly acceptable to borrow and copy teaching techniques from a mentor, but at some point, you need to forge your own path to best reach your students.

You Don’t Need to Have It All Together

Students don’t need a perfect teacher — they need a present one, so just keep showing up.

8 Hard Realities of Teaching

If you’ve encountered these challenging teaching situations, don’t be discouraged. Instead, look at them through a positive lens!

Master Educator Collective

Experience. Commitment. Expertise. Meet these educators and learn more about what makes them masters of their craft.

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Meet Yamaha Master Educator Dana Sedatole

From serving as a head band director teaching beginning 6th grade instrumentalists to addressing the needs of over 20,000 music educators as president of the Texas Music Educators Association, Dana Pradervand-Sedatole has done it all! Her methodology of keeping fundamentals at the core of her teaching has led her students to become more responsible for […]

Meet Yamaha Master Educator Dr. Sarah McKoin

Dr. Sarah McKoin is a passionate educator dedicated to discovering art at any level of performance. She serves as the Director of Bands and Division Chair of Conducting and Ensembles at Texas Tech where she oversees all facets of the University band program, including four concert bands and two athletic bands as well as mentoring […]

Meet Yamaha Master Educator Dr. Dennis Llinas

Vitality! Fervor! Passion! Understanding! Dr. Dennis Llinás doesn’t hide his emotional investment in anything that he does. As an educator, conductor, and composer, Dennis deems music to enrich the lives of everyone involved in the music-making experience … not only the music-makers but the audience members through inventive and engaging programming. He approaches his life’s […]

Conferences

ASTA, MEAs, MTNA and PASIC – find out about these and other conferences for music educators here.

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