Category: Conferences

Composition, Conferences, Music Camps

MTNA 2012 Conference | Session on Composition Camps

Joy Morin

The last session of the conference I attended was a wonderful one!  It was called:

Get Out of That Musical Box: Teach Students How To Compose!

Dianne Higgins gave a delightful presentation about the summer composition camps she holds each year.  It has been a great success even since the first year she tried it!

The first year, Dianne emailed her students and friends to ask for donations of keyboards, headphones, computers, and other equipment she would need.  She was surprised with the response she received, and only had a few things left to purchase.  Over the years, she has upgraded her equipment and now has 5 computer stations with small MIDI keyboards, and some keyboard/headphone stations too.  She has a separate room in her house for these stations.   Continue reading “MTNA 2012 Conference | Session on Composition Camps” →

Conferences

MTNA 2012 Conference | Session on Ethics for Music Teachers

Joy Morin

Wednesday morning of the conference, I attended a session called “it’s More Than Just Being Nice” by Kathy Strickland, the Washington State Ethics Chair with help from Amy Grinsteiner.

Kathy covered a variety of topics about our responsibility as teachers.  Here’s some of her points:

  • Treat students with respect.  Don’t accept just the talented students.
  • Teach concert etiquette to parents and students.
  • Do not copy music!  It’s legal in the case of a one-time educational session (after which the copies should be destroyed).  But in most other cases, it is illegal.  And when teachers pass on illegal copies to students, we make them complacent in the crime.  Continue reading “MTNA 2012 Conference | Session on Ethics for Music Teachers” →
Conferences

MTNA 2012 Conference | Local Associations Forum Meeting

Joy Morin

Monday afternoon at the conference, I attended a wonderful session on teaching students with disabilities.  Click here to view Natalie’s thorough notes!

After that, I attended an open forum for discussing ideas and solutions for local associations.  To start, a representative from the Fox Valley Association of Wisconsin told us the story of how they applied — and won! — to become the MTNA Local Association of the Year.

There are three criteria for being MTNA Local Association of the Year:

  1. Active in community.
  2. Professional growth for teachers.
  3. Big projects/goals.

Click here to view the application form for the MTNA Local Association of the Year award.

After the Fox Valley Association told us about their success, a discussion was begun among the attendees about the sharing of ideas and problems of various local associations.  Here’s a few comments that people made that I jotted down:  Continue reading “MTNA 2012 Conference | Local Associations Forum Meeting” →

Conferences, Professional Development, Studio Business

MTNA 2012 Conference | Getting Started With Online Marketing

Joy Morin

On Monday of the conference, I attended the Faber Exhibitor Showcase and the Keynote Address given by the wonderful Benjamin Zander!  Natalie has already posted notes on these sessions that are very similar to mine, so I’ll let you read her summaries here and here.

The next session I attended was given by the MTNA Collegiate Chapter at Butler University called:

Getting Started With Online Marketing

The presenters began by stating: “First impressions are everything!”  Nowadays, that first impression is often online.  We need a good first impression so that it will turn into a phone call.  Continue reading “MTNA 2012 Conference | Getting Started With Online Marketing” →

Composition, Conferences

MTNA 2012 Conference | WSU’s Adopt-A-Composer Program

Joy Morin

On Sunday morning of the conference, I attended the Alfred Exhibitor Showcase and the Keynote Presentation given by Norman Horowitz and Melvin Stecher.  My notes are very similar to Natalie’s from Music Matters Blog, so I will let you read her summaries here and here!  (We somehow attended a lot of the same sessions…great minds think alike!)  🙂

After that, I attended a session given by the MTNA Collegiate Chapter at Washington State University (WSU) called:

Composition and Creativity: Collaboration With Living Composers In The Private Studio

This session was about the annual Adopt-A-Composer Program that that WSU uses for their Piano Lab School (where piano majors teach students in a supervised setting).  A year in advance, they choose and approach a composer, explain the components of the program, and negotiate terms.  If the budget allows, some years they commission a work or two.   Continue reading “MTNA 2012 Conference | WSU’s Adopt-A-Composer Program” →

Conferences, Studio Business

MTNA 2012 Conference | Prof. Studio Institute: Legal Issues

Joy Morin

3:00pm – Ignorance Is Not Bliss: Legal Issues for the IMT

Led by Lee Galloway, Beth Gigante Klingenstein, and Scott McBride Smith.

Conferences, Studio Business

MTNA 2012 Conference | Prof. Studio Institute: Financial Success

Joy Morin

1:30pm – Financial Success: Taking Control of the Present and the Future

Led by Lee Galloway, Beth Gigante Klingenstein, and Scott McBride Smith.

Why are independent music teachers (IMT) so underpaid?  Beth had quite a list of contributing reasons!   Here’s a few:

Conferences, Studio Business

MTNA 2012 Conference | Prof. Studio Institute: Finding Students

Joy Morin

11:30am – Finding & Keeping Students

Led by Lee Galloway, Beth Gigante Klingenstein, and Scott McBride Smith.

This session involved a lot of discussion as a group.  Attendees raised their hands to share ideas for finding and keeping students.  Here’s a few ideas that I jotted down:

Conferences, Studio Business

MTNA 2012 Conference | Prof. Studio Institute: Creative Curriculum

Joy Morin

10:30am – The Creative Curriculum

Led by Lee Galloway, Beth Gigante Klingenstein, and Scott McBride Smith.

Make a plan for yourself, to focus on (1) continual growth, (2) quality, and (3) innovation.  As Peter Drucker once said, “We now accept the fact that learning is a lifelong process of keeping abreast of change. And the most pressing task is to teach people how to learn.” Continue reading “MTNA 2012 Conference | Prof. Studio Institute: Creative Curriculum” →

Conferences, Studio Business

MTNA 2012 Conference | Prof. Studio Institute: Studio Documents

Joy Morin

Here begins my notes from the 2012 MTNA Conference in NYC!  I had such a wonderful time, and I learned so much.

Saturday is always an optional day at the MTNA Conference.  For an extra $75, you can attend Pedagogy Saturday or choose the Professional Studio Institute track.  I chose the latter, which was led by Lee Galloway, Beth Gigante Klingenstein (author of The Independent Piano Teacher’s Studio Handbook), and Scott McBride Smith.

9:00am – Studio Documents That Work!

Having studio documents is important for professionalism, to protect yourself, to save time, for marketing, and for organization.  Some documents you should consider having for your studio:

  1. Mission Statement – a statement of the purpose for your life or career.  It establishes goals and can help you stay focused.  It has four parts: (1) What you do; (2) Who your target market is; (3) What benefits there are for them; and (4) What benefits there are for you.  Example: I bring joy to others, enriching lives through the gift of music in a fun, energetic, and inspired environment. Continue reading “MTNA 2012 Conference | Prof. Studio Institute: Studio Documents” →