The following contribution is a part of the Journal of Popular Music Education’s special issue on Modern Band. For this special issue, JPME and APME are collaborating to publish some of the practitioner-based articles on the APME website so that these articles are open access and available to practicing teachers.
by KRISTEN GILBERT
Introduction
I began my musical journey as many of us have – through traditional participation in band, marching band, jazz band, orchestra, and chorus. Day after day, I would sit in band rehearsal dreaming of what it would be like when I became a teacher. I was fortunate to have inspiring role models, fantastic musical opportunities and to live in an area rich in a vibrant and flourishing arts community. During that time in my life, popular music was never on my radar as something that I could one day be teaching. My plan was all laid out – be a band director and direct all the ensembles that come with the job. As a classically trained pianist and flautist, I took it upon myself to learn any instrument I could and enjoyed doubling in jazz ensembles in high school and college. I even played electric bass, but never guitar. The most “popular music” I got to perform in band were medleys from the movies, Broadway or The Beatles. Jazz band provided me with a more “popular music” experience. In college, I had a much more diverse experience, but again – popular music was glazed over in terms of experience and education. I could play a mean crumhorn in the Renaissance Band, but guitar technique class was reserved for string majors first. The closest thing to instruction in popular music in college was playing in one of the jazz ensembles and taking a jazz history class. However, I never thought anything about it until now.
Fast forward nineteen years and I found myself being thrust into unfamiliar territory – middle school general music. Throughout college, I had never received any curricular training to prepare me for this new adventure.
Working Outside of the Comfort Zone
The middle school years are without a doubt, a bubble of time that is rife with uncertainty and self-doubt. As music educators, we try our best to make positive connections, build relationships and to give memorable experiences to our students; all while juggling the many hats we wear. When one thinks what middle school general music looks like, personal visions and interpretations can vary. Traditionally speaking, you can expect basic music theory, basic music history, basic music appreciation. However, frequently middle school music teachers are left to their own devices when it comes to curriculum, and we often find ourselves pulling from a variety of resources. My first year in middle school I was doing what I could, but I knew that I was doing a disservice to the students. I tried my hardest to make my lessons engaging, and they thoroughly enjoyed working with music technology, composition and “reverse” music history – but something was missing.
In 2016, Grace VanderWaal won America’s Got Talent, and suddenly I had an influx of students bringing in ukuleles asking me to teach them how to play. It was about then that I realized I needed to respond to my students’ requests. I purchased my first ukulele and turned to YouTube to give me the basics; I was hooked, and the rest is history. That same year, I was given the opportunity to lead the middle school jazz ensemble. I felt confident in my knowledge and expertise to lead the group, as I had spent 16 years directing the high school jazz ensemble, and had several years of experience as a performer of jazz. I knew that I could teach a student to play bass, drums, keys, whatever they wanted – except guitar. What I was not prepared for was a sudden increase in interest from student guitar players asking to join the jazz band. I had no idea what to do with them, for in all of my years leading the high school jazz ensemble – I never had a guitar player in the group. Naturally, I handed them the guitar chart and chord guide, and they looked at me with wide eyes and said, “we don’t know what this means.” They had figured some riffs on their own but had never learned chords. The best I could do was to explain what the chord chart was and wish them luck. I felt defeated, and I felt like I was failing my students. Students were looking to me for guidance, and the discomfort and disappointment I felt with not being able to help them was overwhelming. Up until that point in my career, I felt that I had known what to do and how to do it, and now I felt like I had no idea what I was doing; and to say that I was working outside of my comfort zone is an understatement.
Shortly thereafter, I received an invitation to attend a Little Kids Rock Modern Band 101 workshop at a nearby college. I signed up knowing nothing about guitar, and I hoped that I would leave the workshop with some resources to give to my students and maybe get some pointers about ukulele as well since our shipment of ukuleles was about to arrive at any time. What I wasn’t prepared for was the profound effect that this workshop was going to have on my teaching after that day.
Music as a Second Language
At my first workshop, we learned about the teaching methodology called “Music as a Second Language” (MSL) that is utilized by Little Kids Rock teachers and was created by its founder and CEO, David Wish. Through the five central tenets of MSL, students acquire music the same way they learn a second language – via listening, approximation, intermediate fluency, fluency, reading & writing. These tenets, partnered with Little Kids Rock core values of improvisation, composition, student-centric learning, approximation, and scaffolding – have created a dynamic, culturally responsive, successful teaching method and philosophy. That experience centered around making music immediately and giving us methods that encouraged obtainable moments of success. What intrigued me most was that through iconic notation students would be able to interpret and perform music without having to read traditional notation first. Just like an infant vocalizes and makes sounds as they learn to communicate, musicians should be able to explore and learn through approximation. During the workshop, I had no idea what I was doing on guitar, but through hands-on instruction, exploration, approximation, and scaffolding, I was able to learn and play several chords on the guitar quickly. I felt like a rockstar, and more importantly if I felt this way I knew that my students would feel the same way. During the workshop, we also discussed how to scaffold and approximate for our students as well as how to encourage them to have a voice and choice in their music education and experience. This was profound for me, for as a student I had never been given the choice of what I wanted to learn and work on; this decision was always made for me. I have come to now believe that there needs to be a healthy balance where we as music educators can help expose our students to quality music of varying genres while also allowing them to have a choice in what they are learning. Through MSL, approximation, and scaffolding we can bring music that was previously considered unobtainable, to our students.
First Indicators of Success
The week after I attended the Little Kids Rock workshop, I went back to my classes and viewed them through a completely different lens. The ukuleles had come in, and my plans for the first few days of ukulele were thrown out. We wouldn’t be receiving modern band instruments for a while, but I wanted to jump right in. I decided that I would follow the concept of allowing the students to play, explore and jam to songs they’ve heard before by using one-chord songs. They were eager to learn, and to my surprise, on their way out of class I would hear phrases such as “that was the best music class ever,” and “wow, I never knew that the ukulele could play rock songs.” This was the most excited my students have been about music, and I couldn’t wait to give them exposure to more fantastic music.
That first day of learning ukulele was also a day that would rock me to my core; and a day that I would remember forever. I share this moment every chance I get because I think that it changed how I view certain students and how I interact with them. I had “John” in music from 6th through 8th grade, and every single class he would make it his mission to let me know how miserable he was. He would swear at me, throw chairs, swear at others and be a constant disruption to the educational setting. I knew he had a rough life, attendance was an issue, and he was a “frequent flyer” in the main office or suspension room. This particular day, John was in rare form. He was in 8th grade at the time and entered with the usual diatribe of how much he hates music. He proceeded to interrupt my class several times to let me know, yet again, how much he hates the class and me. I had enough of it and told him, “I know! You’ve told me every day for three years. Let’s just come to an understanding that you don’t like music. You can sit here and be quiet and know that I know you don’t want to be here, but you will not disrupt this class anymore or disturb anyone else who wants to be here. Your other choice is to tell the main office how much you don’t like coming here when I kick you out for disrupting, but I don’t think you want to go that route.” I felt terrible – he had pushed me down so low that I responded this way. It was not my most shining moment in education. His response was to give me that head nod that said, “Hey I respect you for standing up to me, and now we’re in agreement,” and his behavior was perfectly fine the rest of class. The next day was to be our first day of playing the ukulele and I was actually fearful of what he would do. I envisioned him getting upset and smashing the ukulele on the floor in supreme rock-god fashion. What transpired was nothing short of a miracle.
I handed out the ukuleles, did a quick 2-minute lesson on string and fret numbers, and showed them how to play a C7 chord. We jammed to “Lime in the Coconut” while we actively learned how to strum varying patterns. As I looked over at John, there he was, eyes as wide as saucers, singing and strumming to the song. He was engaged, participating and best of all – happy. I had never seen this side of him. I didn’t say a word and we learned a few more chords and played along with some more one-chord songs. That day, John was the last to leave, and on his way out he said to me, “Ms. Gilbert, are we going to play the ukuleles again tomorrow?” I responded, “Yes, why?” I anticipated and braced myself for the expected negative reply but much to my surprise he said, “Oh good!”. I was shocked. All I could muster was, “John, you’ve been telling me how much you hate my class. Every day. What changed?” He said, “I’ve always wanted to play the guitar. This is close enough. I love it.” I was floored. Shame on me for not knowing about my student’s deep desire to play guitar. Granted, we didn’t have guitars – yet – to help fuel his desire to play, but I was disappointed that I had never taken the time to realize his desire to play guitar. However, and most importantly, I was inspired by the dramatic transformation of my student. He became more excited to come to school, his grades improved, his behavior improved, his write-ups diminished, and he started to come to my room as a safe place to be when he could feel the temptation to act out. He would spend a few minutes playing instruments, and then he would return to class, ready to learn. I was also pleased to learn that teachers were starting to no longer view him as “that kid,” and they were encouraged by his turn in attitude, behavior, and effort. On the last day of class before he moved on to a different encore class the next quarter, he was the last leave again. Before he left, John said, “Ms. G, I’m sorry I was mean to you for so many years. Thank you for not giving up on me. I’ve enjoyed playing the ukulele so much I’ve saved enough money so that I can buy my own guitar. Thank you for showing me how to make music.” That moment meant more to me than any trophy or superior rating. This student had never been in a band or chorus, and here I was able to give him a hands-on musical experience that was meaningful to him.
Recently, a 7th grader who is “well known” amongst his teachers missed the first few days of class. To get “Mike” caught up, I asked him to sit near me so that I could help him get caught up. He sat on the floor, head in his hands and refused to touch the ukulele. The advice given by administration is to leave him alone and to not engage with him. I continued with the class, made sure he was safe and carried on. Every now and then I would look down at him and catch him checking out what we were doing. The next day he came in and had the ukulele in hand and was participating. To my surprise – he was playing every chord correctly on his own with just a few subtle reminders from me. I realized that he had been listening to everything I was saying and was able to remember and apply it the next day. Every day he was more and more engaged, and he would even respond to questions asked – which is not something he usually does in other classes. When we began our guitar and bass work, I was shocked when he was one of the first to volunteer to try improvising on the electric guitar – in front of his peers. Although he was flustered, he was successful, and the class cheered him on. When he put the band together, he seemed to develop a deep love of playing bass – and he was quite excellent at it. He had found his niche, and took ownership of his role within the band. The transformation from day 1 to day 50 was an unbelievable change, and I have observed him being able to handle stressful situations, make better choices, and putting forth more effort in other classes. His teachers have shared with me that he has stated that his experience in music class made him realize that because he had small successes with me, he felt more confident. This lead him to independently make a choice to make more effort in his other classes so that he could feel more confident in their classes; he realized that it wasn’t too late to turn things around.
In addition, through utilizing higher levels of differentiation and approximation with my students with disabilities, they too have been able to participate on a level playing field with their peers. One of my favorite stories involves a 7th grade class that is heavily loaded with classified students. The class was diverse in terms of knowledge, experience, and musical ability. On this particular day, we were working on “Seven Nation Army” by the White Stripes. I randomly assign students to instruments by handing out “picks of destiny,” where special guitar picks determine what they will play. I have no idea who will receive what and the students get a kick out of finding out what fate has chosen for them. As luck may have it, the students that were assigned to play the electric instruments and drums were all classified students. While students are playing the electronic instruments, the other students participate by playing their allocated parts on acoustic instruments. One particular student, “Sean”, who has high-functioning autism was very excited to be the vocalist. When randomness comes into play – you never know what’s going to happen and this day did not disappoint. What I wasn’t prepared for was the epic performance on these instruments by these students and the already memorized performance by Sean – complete with stage presence. He had gone home and studied the song front to back and watched other performances – on his own – and his commitment to the performance was outstanding. The class was in shock and lost their minds from being so excited about their performance. The confidence that they gained in being able to perform at that level for their peers did wonders for their confidence. Moments like the ones that I have shared have confirmed that by providing these experiences, I am doing the right thing for my students. Without the training and resources provided by Little Kids Rock, I would never have been able to reach my students in this way.
The Other 80%
The stories of John, Mike and Sean are unique, but not uncommon. What modern band brings to schools is the opportunity to reach the “other 80%”. This is where John, Mike and Sean fell, for they were not students that were in band or chorus; but I was able to reach them and others like them through a hands-on popular music experience. Typically, there is a small group of students who are in the band, chorus or orchestra. That subset of students will also choose to be or not be part of sub-category ensembles such as marching band, jazz band, select choir, women’s choir, men’s choir, show choir, symphony orchestra, small ensembles, etc. As stated previously, within each school system the average participation rate averages around 20%. Certainly, some programs break this mold and have higher participation rates in their program. It is very important to note that Modern Band is not meant as a replacement, but rather as an enhancement and enrichment to the existing program. Imagine a music program with 100% participation! Modern Band challenges this model by providing an outlet and opportunity for students to experience music that interests them while allowing them to participate at a level that is comfortable for them. As I progress further through this implementation and utilize the tenets of Music as a Second Language and Little Kids Rock core values and strategies that were taught to me, I find that students who have never been drawn to a performance class previously are asking to join the band and/or chorus for the first time ever. It is a win-win situation and a benefit to our program. Throughout the day, students are asking to come in and borrow instruments so that they can jam together during their study hall or lunch. They are looking up songs to learn, or even trying to write their own songs previous to receiving any compositional instruction from me. They are seeking out meaningful musical experiences beyond the classroom, and that is indeed what it is all about.
Current Structure and Process
In my district, every student at the middle school level is required to take general music even if they are in band or chorus (we do not offer orchestra). My schedule is set up in this way: quarter 1 – 1/2 of 7th grade, quarter 2 – 1/2 of 8th grade, quarter 3 – other 1/2 of 7th grade,
quarter 4 – other 1/2 of 8th grade (I also teach 6th grade band and lessons). While I get to see my students every day for 10 weeks, the downfall is that from year to year there may be a year and a half gap from when I see students (a student could have me during quarter 1 in 7th grade and not again until quarter 4 in 8th grade). This creates a few continuity issues, but so far we have been able to work through it with success.
Prior to taking music in 7th grade, the students come to me with varying backgrounds and experience, where the majority of them have never touched a ukulele, guitar or drums. Retention of information is a major issue from grade to grade, but we do what we can to make the transition as smooth as possible. They receive minimal Orff experience in the lower levels and minimal keyboard instruction in 6th grade. If a student does have experience on these instruments, I will ask them to be my assistants, and I find that they take great enjoyment in being an assistant and helping their peers to discover the joys of playing.
During 7th and 8th grade, the skills that the students are learning are cumulative in nature. While a review is necessary for success, it is vital so that the students take comfort in knowing that they can pick up right where they left off. This process also allows room for differentiation and scaffolding. While I teach all students how to perform the easy and full version of guitar chords, ultimately, the choice becomes theirs on how much they want to challenge themselves. Once they reach a certain comfort level in their playing, they intuitively begin to challenge themselves with more complicated work. I do not insist that they make that choice – they are making it on their own.
Below, I have depicted an abbreviated version of what a student can expect to learn during a 10-week 8th grade Modern Band/Music Technology/Composition class:
Week 1 & 2 (Ukulele) – Review of chords (easy and full) and technique, develop fluency in switching chords, utilize play-alongs and lead sheets, collaboratively compose a 16 measure song using the chords that we have learned and reviewed.
Week 2 & 3 (Guitar) – Review of chords and technique, develop fluency in switching chords, utilize play-alongs and lead sheets, explore beginning power chords, develop soloing and improvisation using pentatonic scales, independently compose a 16 measure song using lightly guided compositional techniques.
Week 4 (Bass & Drums) – Learn names of notes according to frets, learn basic bass patterns in varying styles, utilize play-alongs and lead sheets, learn a simple backbeat with body percussion and on drums, learn a standard rock beat on drums.
Week 5 (Keys & Put the Band Together) – Starting with one chord songs – learn how to put the band together and how each part functions together, move up to 2/3/4 chord songs. Each student rotates through each instrument to have that experience, and volunteers are used for vocals. Keyboards are incorporated and taught on the fly through the assistance and use of Jam Cards from Little Kids Rock.
Week 6 & 7 (Student Choice and Student Bands) – Class is broken up into 2-3 bands, each comes up with a song to learn which is then analyzed, arranged and rehearsed on their own. Students are allowed to incorporate the use of wind instruments, ukulele, and technology. They are also expected to design artwork for their cover and come up with a band name. The culmination of the project is a performance of their cover songs for each other (teachers and admin are invited to watch)
Week 8 – (Social Justice Hip Hop Project) – The class is broken up into small groups of 4 to 5 students. As a group, they choose a topic centered around social justice. This project is also meant to support the process of the 8th grade team social justice project called RUMAD (Are you mad). Some students have adopted this project and used the concept and delivery method for their RUMAD project.
Week 9 – (iPad Ensemble Project) – Students are again broken up into groups where they must research and find a song to analyze, arrange and perform for the class. They use GarageBand smart instruments, drum set pad, and electronic instruments (meaning, apps like iUke, iTrumpet, ThumbJam, etc.) to provide the instrument sounds in their project.
Week 10 – (History and Inspiration Presentation) – Students choose an artist from assigned decades covering popular music from early rock and roll through the present day (randomly assigned), each student must research their artist using pre-designated questions, and provide an inspiration timeline showing other artists that inspired them.
This course is fast and furious but is meant to be fluid in nature so that if more or less time is needed in certain areas, we have that flexibility. Ideally, this would take place over a half year or full year, which would allow for more exploration of music that they wish to learn. However, my district is committed to following this schedule of quarterly classes.
What I have found to be the most intriguing is that I have never received any push back from students in regards to performance. I expected students to refuse, but I have been pleasantly surprised and humbled by their willingness to go outside of their comfort zone. My students have expressed privately to me that they enjoy learning the different instruments and being able to choose what they play based on their perceived success. They have also shared that they feel like they are on a “level playing field” with everyone despite their individual background experience. The students did not think that they were any different than any other student, nor did they feel that accessibility and privilege affect the ability to participate. Through the generous donation of instruments from Little Kids Rock and Sweetwater, as well as donations from the staff and community, we were able to eliminate the feelings of not being able to afford to participate because the instruments were provided to them. Throughout the 10 weeks, I am also finding that students are more willing to put themselves out there in front of their peers and taking musical risks they wouldn’t usually take.
Giving Room for Individual and Collaborative Creativity
Traditionally speaking, composition is viewed as an independent activity. I would like to argue that it can be collaborative as well. Songs that are performed in traditional ensembles are traditionally composed by a single composer, but songs in the broadway and popular music fields can be done both independently and collaboratively. Through my experience as an educator and composer, I have taken an interest in developing students’ ability to do co-writes with their peers. This takes some of the pressure off and allows for students to communicate using industry-standard vocabulary while making an original product.
During the first 7 weeks or so, while the students are learning the different instruments, I am concurrently giving them opportunities to explore composition through performance. They partner with another student, or a few students and make creative decisions on what will make their piece sound its best. The mini-projects utilize highly or lightly guided composition that still gives them a choice, but will guide them towards a chord progression that they may have heard before; thus giving them the confidence in their compositional skills. As they progress through the class, they are then given some projects to help develop their independent composition and arranging skills.
Now I have students coming in on their own, asking to borrow instruments and exploring their desire to write completely original songs. They are asking to perform for each other, and they are excited to create something that is ultimately theirs.
Additional Opportunities Created
Due to the success of bringing modern band and popular music into the classroom, the students were begging for more. We have had a variety of performance opportunities that have showcased what they have learned in the classroom, and the non-traditional music students have been willing to perform for audiences as well. Through collaboration with other school ensembles, as well as performing on our own, we have helped foster and develop a sense of community for students, faculty and community.
All of these positive moments point back to the moment in time when I took the Little Kids Rock workshop. It lit a spark in me and I realized the importance of reaching students in different and meaningful ways. Without the training and resources that I received from that workshop, arranging these performances would have been significantly more difficult or impossible for me to do in my previous mindset. Through this new lens, I only see a myriad of possibilities.
Student Choice, Student Voice
Overall, the most important takeaway of changing up what I am doing in the “general music” classroom is that my students feel that they have more of a say in what they were learning. By giving them a choice or voice in their education, they are taking away feelings of empowerment, success, and ability to challenge themselves outside of their comfort zone. Students – especially at the middle years level – feel that they are unheard with their feelings. Now I can give them an outlet to express themselves safely and freely. Beyond the choice of music, my classes are making all types of options to make their voice heard. They are making choices that are personal, emotional, social, thoughtful, collaborative, risk-taking, trusting of others, and musical. Are all of their choices successful? No, but I would argue that learning how to navigate through unsuccessful choices they are developing real-world skills that will be beneficial to them in life now and in the future.
What Next?
In a perfect world, if I could design this curriculum further, I would ensure that they continue to have these offerings given to them at the high school level. Obviously, in the public school sector, teachers don’t have much control or say on courses that are taught. Change tends to threaten comfort and complacency, but I would insist that change supports progress and improvement. In the meantime, I will continue to offer Ukulele Club, and I am anticipating also offering an after school Modern Band Club. By providing these after-school activities and informal lunchtime gatherings, I am able to serve the “other 80%” of the students who are looking for someplace to belong, and who are looking for someplace to express themselves. I want my students to continue to feel that they can come to my room and safely explore and utilize the array of instruments that we have. Whether it be formally or informally, it is my duty as a music educator to reach ALL students; and this thought process is supported by ESSA (Every Student Succeeds Act). It is my responsibility as a music educator to bring as much music to as possible to as many students as possible and to expose them to as many genres and styles of music as possible.
Kris this is an excellent article. At places in reading this I was brought to tears. You are one of a kind young lady and I’m glad for all your accomplishments and look forward to what other things you have in store.