NAfME Collegiate: Resources

Music Organizations You Should Know

NAfME (National Association for Music Education) – WMEA’s national affiliate
Among the world’s largest arts education organizations, NAfME is the only association that addresses all aspects of music education. NAfME advocates at the local, state, and national levels; provides resources for teachers, parents, and administrators; hosts professional development events; and offers a variety of opportunities for students and teachers. The Association orchestrates success for millions of students nationwide and has supported music educators at all teaching levels for more than a century.

MTNA (Music Teachers National Association)
MTNA is the preeminent source for music teacher support, where members embody like-minded values and commitment to their students, colleagues and society as a whole, while reaping the rewards of collaboration, continuity and connection throughout the lifetime of their careers.

ASTA (American String Teachers Association)
A nonprofit organization for string and orchestra teachers and players, helping them to develop and refine their careers. The organization provides a vast array of services, including instrument insurance, an award-winning scholarly journal, discounts on publications and resources, annual professional development opportunities, and access to collegial network of colleagues throughout the string profession.

ACDA (American Choral Directors Association)
A nonprofit music-education organization whose expressed purposes outline the associations dedication to the advancement of choral music.

NATS (National Association of Teachers Singing)
The largest professional association of teachers of singing in the world. Driven by its mission statement, NATS offers a variety of lifelong learning experiences to its members, with workshops, Intern Programs, master classes and conferences, all beginning at the chapter level and progressing to national events.

NAMM (National Association of Music Merchants)
A not-for-profit association that promotes the pleasures and benefits of making music and strengthens the $17 billion global music products industry. Our association — and our trade shows — serve as a hub for people wanting to seek out the newest innovations in musical products, recording technology, sound and lighting. NAMM’s activities and programs are designed to promote music making to people of all ages.

NEA (National Endowment of the Arts)
An independent federal agency that funds, promotes, and strengthens the creative capacity of our communities by providing all Americans with diverse opportunities for arts participation.

Wisconsin Arts Board
The state agency which nurtures creativity, cultivates expression, promotes the arts, supports the arts in education, stimulates community and economic development and serves as a resource for people of every culture and heritage.

WMEA (Wisconsin Music Educator’s Association) – NAfME’s state affiliate
A nonprofit organization which supports music education by representing the shared interests and needs of Wisconsin music educators and fostering their professional growth in a global society.

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Music Advocacy Resources

Arts Wisconsin
“The only organization concerned with, and speaking up for, all the arts in Wisconsin!”

Americans for the Arts
Their mission is to increase private and public resources and advance public policies that create a climate in which the arts can thrive and promote participation in the arts by all Americans.

MusicFriends
Developed by MENC as an advocacy program to keep music alive in education systems

SupportMusic.com
Music advocacy site made possible through a partnership of MENC and NAMM

Encore Music Lessons – Article: “The Benefits of Music & Music Education”
The benefits of music and music education from a company that provides music lessons. This site contains MANY useful facts and statistics.

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Useful Acronyms and Terms

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College Degrees & Careers in Music

Do you see yourself playing onstage and sharing your moving experiences through your music? Or rather, do you see yourself training and nurturing young musicians as you direct the high school band? Do the healing possibilities of music amaze you, or would you rather work composing the soundtrack of the latest movie or video game? Any of these leanings can be nurtured through one of several paths of study in the music discipline.

Visit NAfME Collegiate’s Music College and Career Resources page for more information on various degrees and job posting resources.

12 Questions to Consider as you select a program in Music:

1. What is the musical emphasis of the school? Do they focus on historical classical orchestral/operatic music, contemporary classical music, jazz studies, world music, or commercial music?
2. Is the school of music part of a university/college, or is it a conservatory?
3. Which programs/studios are the biggest at the college– do more people graduate from in the area music education, music performance, or another area?
4. How many music students attend the program?
5. How many students would be in your studio? Are there multiple teachers for your instrument/voice type?
6. Is it possible to meet your studio teacher before enrolling? (In many cases, studio teachers require a meeting/in-person audition before acceptance.) As this is the person you’ll be taking weekly lessons with for the next four years – you want it to be a good fit.
7. Will your private lessons be with the main faculty member for your instrument/voice type, or with a graduate student?
8. What is the reputation, training and background of the studio faculty?
9. What ensembles are available for you to participate in (orchestras, wind ensembles, jazz bands, chamber ensembles, choirs)?
10. If you want to be in music theatre or opera, how do the music and theatre departments work together at your prospective program?
11. For Music Therapy and Music Business, what are the career-building opportunities (internships, mentorships, etc.) offered?
12. What do administrators/ instructors feel distinguishes their school from competitors?

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Information on CMP

What is CMP?

Comprehensive Musicianship through Performance (CMP) is a planning process which can be applied to any level and type of music performing group.  The process leads to a program of teaching and learning which emphasizes the interdependence of musical knowledge and musical performance.  The CMP model is not a curriculum but rather a means to start looking at the ensemble rehearsal period as a learning laboratory–a laboratory where students can work toward achieving the standards and develop an understanding of musical concepts such as expression, melody, rhythm, harmony, texture, timbre, and form by involving students in a variety of roles including performance, improvisation, composition, transcription, arranging, conducting, rehearsing, and analyzing music.

Benefits

The CMP process can assist in selecting good music literature, planning effective rehearsals and concerts, clarifying long term goals and short term objectives, developing new teaching strategies, and applying appropriate assessment of learning.  Students will be actively involved in the learning process as they become more musically independent.  Learning experiences for students can be personalized to include roles such as performing, improvising, composing, conducting, and analyzing.

History

The Comprehensive Musicianship through Performance Project (CMP) was initiated in Wisconsin in 1977 as a means of assisting teachers with the development of “performance with understanding” in school music programs. The project began with a group of respected music educators from diverse school districts and a project steering committee which facilitated development.  The teachers and steering committee developed and field tested a process for planning and carrying out instruction in performing groups which has demonstrated that the school music performing group can be an effective way to develop lasting musical skills and concepts.

The original need for the project was documented by the writing and research of many educators including, among others, Charles Benner, who concluded after a research project in 1972 that “in order to have an impact on musical behavior, there must be a planned effort by the teacher to enrich the performing experience with additional kinds of musical understanding.”  The need is even more critical today with the trend toward outcome based education and the call for verification of the development nature of music learning.

CMP Model

The CMP Model was developed through a careful examination of the teaching/learning process in music performing groups. The learner and the music are central to the CMP planning process. Though the five components of the model are equally important, planning instruction can begin at any of the points. For instance, the selection of music is often a starting point for planning but the decision about what music to use maybe based on assessment of student needs or previous learning. Assessment is appropriate before, during or after the process of study. A desired outcome may be identified through the assessment process or outcomes maybe stated in a local curriculum guide. It then becomes the task of the teacher to select music which is appropriate for working toward that outcome. Analysis leads to recognition of those music elements that need to be learned to develop true Comprehensive Musicianship Through Performance” (or true understanding through performance). Strategies are the ways in which the teacher attempts to bring the music and the performer together so that quality performance and meaningful learning can take place simultaneously.

Learn More About CMP in Wisconsin »

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State Teaching Standards and National Music Teaching Standards

Wisconsin State Standards
A summary of the Wisconsin Educator Standards and the Wisconsin Academic Standards is provided on the WSMA website. View the Standards »

Download: Wisconsin’s Model Academic Standards for Music (pdf) (Source: Wisconsin DPI)

National Music Teaching Standards
National Core Arts Standards (includes the National Music Teaching Standards)
The national core arts standards are a process that guides educators in providing a unified quality arts education for students in Pre-K through high school. This interactive website, presented by the National Coalition for Core Arts Standards, provides an accessible method for teachers to access the standards that apply to their own classrooms and easily print the materials. View the Standards »

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NAfME Collegiate Chapter Resources

Recruiting

Recruiting is an essential element for all chapters. NAfME suggests the following techniques for the basis of recruiting and membership growth. Visit the NAfME Collegiate Recruitment page for more details.

• Start early.
• Activate membership at the end of the summer.
• Roll out the red carpet for freshmen.
• Use school resources to recruit members.
• Hang welcome signs.
• Inform and publicize.
• Set up an NAfME registration table.
• Establish special registration times.
• Host a back-to-school party.
• Retain members through personal contact.
• Explore non-traditional target populations during membership drives.
• Enlist the entire music faculty in advocating Collegiate membership.
• Have faculty members write letters of support.
• Inform the administration and ask for their support.
• Relate chapter activities to the annual state conference.
• Invite state, division, and national leaders to meetings.
• Be enthusiastic.
• Maintain a professional image.
• Evaluate potential leaders carefully.

Fundraising

Listed below are possible techniques for raising funds at your NAfME Collegiate chapter.

• Provide music for special occasions and celebrations
• Sell t-shirts, sweatshirts, buttons, and bags
• Sponsor a dance for community residents
• Sponsor a raffle
• Sponsor a book and music sale with items donated by chapter members
• Sell coffee and doughnuts or other refreshments between classes
• Sell items at a music festival
• Advertise coupon books
• Present a concert for scholarship or chapter funds
• Establish membership dues
• Deliver musical telegrams or greetings for birthdays, holidays, and other special occasions
• Hold a tournament

Chapter Handbook

The NAfME Collegiate Handbook features resources for school chapters including chapter structure, member benefits and services, chapter activities, and more.

*** For more Chapter Resources and ideas visit the NAfME Collegiate Resources page ***

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