Here’s the newsletter for April 2024…
April 1, 2024
Greetings, Colleagues!
SIDE BY SIDE ~ PARTNERS IN MUSIC
Sunday, April 21, 2024 ~ 3:00 pm
Immanuel United Church of Christ
Freewill offering will benefit the IUCC music fund.
Please share with others and help us spread the word! We need 2 or 3 individuals to serve as ushers. Any volunteers??
RMTA SPRING GENERAL MEMBERSHIP MEETING: Friday, May 17, 2024 at Yocum Institute for the Arts, 3000 Penn Ave., Reading PA 19610. 9:00 am/Executive Committee Meeting; 9:30/Social; 10:00/General Membership Meeting; 10:15/Presentation. We’ll be in Studio 5. Bring your own beverage; we’ll supply snacks. Please join us, and bring a friend! Non-members are welcome, too.
Instead of a jazz workshop, we’re going have a forum on “Teaching Composition….where to begin” with Terry Cocci, Ginny Thorpe and Carmen Carpenter.
ELECTION OF OFFICERS: Voting will take place at our May General Membership Meeting. Hope you can attend. Here’s the slate of officers:
President – Millie Eben
Secretary – Holly Altenderfer
Treasurer – Lindsay Evans
Past-President – Barbara Lanza
SPRING FESTIVAL WRAP-UP: The final count for Saturday’s adjudication was 48 students with 19 of the qualified students performing in Sunday’s Honors Recital. A great day overall despite the rain. Participating teachers included Holly Altenderfer, Dorinne Bilger, Millie Eben, Jim Neher, Mimi Fairbanks, Jenny Frecon-Smith and Silvia Atmadja. Thanks to Lindsay Evans for serving as piano monitor for the day and helping with set up and tear down.
ADULT MUSIC SALON: We had a lovely adult music salon at Debbie Pyle’s home studio on March 24 with several students and teachers performing for us. Thank you, Debbie, for hosting this year!
NEW IDEAS OR PROJECTS? If you’d like anything discussed at either the Board or General Membership Meeting in May, please send me the item and I’ll include it on the agenda.
WELCOME NEW MEMBER! Join me in welcoming Carla Buterbaugh, piano teacher in Shillington. Another slightly revised member list is attached.
CLEARANCES: Jenny Frecon-Smith will be in touch with those teachers whose clearances have expired. This are needed for anyone participating in our student events.
PMTA STATE CONFERENCE: June 14-16, 2024 at KUTZTOWN UNIVERSITY!! I will be attending if anyone wants to join me.
RECITAL SPACE: Looking for recital space? WCR Center for the Arts might have a few openings left for the spring season. Contact them via their website HERE. The Highlands also has a lovely recital space – contact their activities director for availability.
PLANNING MEETING: Once our new Executive Committee is in place, we’ll schedule a June planning meeting, most likely on a Friday morning at my home (2052 Cleveland Ave., West Lawn). This meeting is open to anyone who wants to attend. Just let me know if you’re coming so I have enough chairs on hand.
RANDOM NOTES
APRIL IS JAZZ APPRECIATION MONTH: To celebrate, attend one of the Berks Jazz Fest events! My favorite has always been the Monday night student jazz jam sponsored by RMF. Hosted by my husband, Mike, it features local students performing with the artists of the festival. Starts at 7pm at the DoubleTree and it’s free. For more information about Jazz Appreciation Month, CLICK HERE.
DID YOU KNOW?...There is a NATIONAL MUSIC MUSEUM in Vermillion South Dakota! In 1966, when the University of South Dakota hired Professor Arne Larson, the university had to agree to an unusual precondition: provide space to store the professor’s collection of 2,500 instruments. Larson’s son later developed the storage facility into a museum, which opened to the public in 1973. Now it boasts more than 15,000 instruments! Road trip, anyone?
MUSIC APPRECIATION CLASSES AT YOCUM INSTITUTE: Yocum is developing a series of classes for our 55+ population. Being offered this spring are two four-week classes, “Nature in Music”, and “Remarkable Women Composers.” Click HERE for more information and to download a flyer for distribution.
TEACHING TIP: Crossing midline is an important developmental skill that children need to establish in order to be able to do things such as writing, cutting, tying their shoelaces, playing sports and much more. Piano study is an excellent activity to cultivate that skill, but it’s important to recognize when the child is having difficulty and to be able to work around the struggle. One quick and effective way to engage both sides of the brain is clapping – clapping the rhythm of a piece,
clapping along while the teacher plays, or even playing Patty Cake. For more information, visit these websites:
o Teacher Starter
o Brain Gym Exercises
o Kid Sense
Send me YOUR teaching tips to include in future newsletters!
Stay inspired!
Millie
mgeben@mac.com
610-334-4635
