NC Music Educator Conference Edition 2022

O
rchestra
Ryan Ellefsen, Chair
uncp.edu/music • music@uncp.edu • 910.521.6230
I
hope you are all off to an incredible start to your school year. I
always liken the beginning of the year to a ship leaving harbor.
The preparation for a safe journey can be tedious and repetitive,
but knowing you are ready (but never done!) brings a reassuring
calm to one’s mind. Those first days of laying the foundation,
going over the handbook and establishing classroom norms can
seem mundane, but that feeling is offset by the energy of students
buzzing in the hallways. Slowly, but surely, the ship pushes off and
though slow at first, the momentum of the school year picks up
and before you know it, you’ve settled into a groove that allows you
to focus on the students.
As we look at the music many of us will prepare for our
students, I challenge all of us to be sure we are programming
music that is reflective of our student body and our communities
as a whole. While you might feel like you have to program entire
concerts of underrepresented populations, that certainly isn’t the
case.
If you haven’t thought about programming in this way before,
start small and build up your library so that you’ll have options
in the future. Lean on your colleagues for quality literature
suggestions that are composed by diverse composers. Ask a trusted
colleague to look at your plans for the year and to offer alternatives
to your current pieces. We inspire the next generation of music
educators – seeing a composer’s name on the music in front of
them that is representative of a class’s diversity can inspire a young
musician to continue in music.
Fortunately, there are some wonderful resources at our disposal
as we select new music. The Composer Diversity Database works to
encourage the discovery, study, and performance of music written
by composers from historically excluded groups. The site includes
works for not only orchestra, but for wind band and choral
ensembles too.
Dr. Kaitlin Bove has created an incredible program called
…And We Were Heard which has a database of composers as
well as consortium opportunities for new music to be regionally
premiered by participating groups. You can read more about it
here: ... And We Were Heard. Once you have the music in the
students hands, it’s up to you how much or little you want to talk
about the composer, but we all know that when a connection is
made, sparks can fly and personally, I love to see it when sparks fly.
I also truly love the time that I am able to spend with my
colleagues at the NCMEA Professional Development Conference. I
do hope you will attend this year, starting with our board meeting
on Sunday afternoon, November 6, and the North Carolina All-
State Orchestra at 4:30 that same afternoon.
On Monday, we have some fantastic sessions lined up featuring
a variety of musical styles. As is tradition, our NCHO All-State
director, Dr. Hardwick, will join us Monday morning, followed by
a wonderful slate of presenters with sessions ranging from Musical
Selections from the African Diaspora, to Old Time Music, along
with performances by the Myers Park High School Orchestra,
the East Henderson High School Orchestra and the Triangle
Philharmonic Orchestra. Other sessions include Katie LaBrie
with How to Win Rehearsals and Influence Students, Kimberly
Zimmerman on Creating Classroom Culture, Tim Nowak on
Improv and Janice Swoope with Operation Connection: Connect
B4 Curriculum. I think there is a little here for everyone and I
can’t wait to see you all enjoy these days with me.
Finally, this is my last article as your Orchestra Section chair.
It’s been a wonderful experience to serve in this role and I hope I
have served the section well. For those who have been here before,
you know that two years is not nearly enough time to complete
all that you want to accomplish. Your new section chair starting
in November is Joseph Walker, associate orchestra director at
Durham School of the Arts.
That also means we will need to
elect a new NCHO/Orchestra Section
chair at conference during our board
meeting on Sunday. Please join us and
consider nominating either yourself
or a colleague for this role. It’s very
rewarding. And be on the lookout
for nomination forms for the 2022
Teacher of the Year, as well as the Hall
of Fame/Lifetime Achievement Award.
I hope you all have a fulfilling
school year and I look forward to
seeing you all in November.
UNCP is one of the most affordable universities in
North Carolina. With NC Promise, undergraduate tuition
at UNCP is $500 per semester for in-state students and
$2,500 per semester for out-of-state students.
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