Barton
Polot
is Assistant Professor of Music Education and Music Technology at the University
of Michigan
1999 MSBOA
Music Technology
Conference
Thursday 21 January
8:00 A.M.
to 4:00 P.M.
Washtenaw Intermediate
School District
|
|
BARTON
POLOT
  sk
music teachers the greatest challenge inherent in teaching music technology.
The answer isn't the technology! Indeed, today's tech-savvy students have
no trouble clicking the mouse, choosing menu items, or pressing buttons.
The challenge in music technology is the music students make. The challenge
is creativity.
The biggest breakthrough in MIDI technology is the powerful ability it
affords the user to create music — sound by sound, layer upon layer,
idea after idea. The technology facilitates this process, promotes it,
and rewards it. In its history our profession has never had a greater
tool for teaching musical creativity. The challenge lies in how we teach
our children to make their own music and how we assess their productivity.
The 1999 MSBOA Music Technology Conference focuses on the exciting
and daunting issue of creativity.
Creativity. Music Education. Music Technology. At the intersection of
these three spheres you can find no greater expert than Peter Webster.
 The
conference is pleased to welcome Peter
Webster as keynote speaker and clinican. Dr. Webster is Professor
of Music and Coordinator of Music Education at Northwestern University.
A specialist in instrumental music and quantitative research, Dr. Webster
has taught in public schools of Maine, Massachusetts and New York. He
is coauthor of the book Experiencing
Music Technology and the accompanying CD-ROM
(Schirmer Macmillan, 1996), and the author of Measures of Creative
Thinking in Music, a set of activities designed to study the creative
music aptitude of children. He has written many book chapters and journal
articles on creative thinking, music education research and policy, psychology
of music, assessment, and technology.
The Washtenaw Intermediate School
District will again be our host and co-sponsor. Previous attendees
agree that WISD's facilities, west of Ann Arbor, Michigan, near I-94,
are an ideal setting for this high-tech event. Its conference rooms are
versatile and are wired for audio, video, and computer connectivity. Their
computer laboratory
maintains 12 Pentium PCs and 12 Power Macintoshes for instruction and
hands-on exploration. Parking is ample, on-site, and free.
 Attendance
at last year's conference was among the best ever. Keynote speaker
David Sebald
provided an entertaining, thought-provoking keynote and two instructive
clinics on multimedia. Exit surveys were again highly positive.
In previous years attendance has surpassed 200. The planning committee
and volunteers are prepared for a large turnout this year. In order to
maintain a smooth operation, we are limiting attendance to 200 participants,
and will provide lunch only for pre-registrants.
You will want to pre-register.
|
 |
|
Expect to see a conference brochure in your mailbox shortly. In it you'll
find a complete list of events and presenters, directions
to WISD, and a pre-registration form. Additional information and registration
forms are available from MSBOA and
the Michigan
MusicTech Web site. Please register early and tell your colleagues and
friends. Registration, including lunch, costs just $35.
The MSBOA Music Technology Conference is Thursday, January 21, 1999,
8:00 A.M. to 4:00 P.M. See
you in January!
|
