Ensembles
Adjudication is meant to validate preparation, growth, and artistry. Yet, as educators, we must also prepare students to understand the system itself, its strengths, its limitations, and its human element.
When teachers intentionally design rehearsal culture around these ideas, they create ensembles that don’t just play jazz—they are transformed by and through it.
To commemorate Jazz Appreciation Month, NAfME’s Teaching Music Advisory Committee member Larry Blocher interviews jazz great Marcus Roberts.
By NAfME Member Lori Schwartz Reichl “Responsibility has become the fundamental imperative in modern civilization, and it should be an unavoidable criterion to assess and evaluate human actions, including, in…
Teachers Share Favorite Activities and Artists This article first appeared in the January 2026 issue of Teaching Music. To help music educators plan for Jazz Appreciation Month in April, Teaching…
Teaching Guitar for Ages 5–11 Fostering Creativity and Compositional Mastery By NAfME Member Oleksiy Bilous Objective of the Article This article aims to present a methodology for teaching children of…
Top 10 #MusicEd Blogs of 2025 Here’s a look back at the Top 10 most-read NAfME Blogs of 2025. We thank NAfME members and corporate members for sharing your ideas,…
Reframing and Reimagining Choir Festival Repertoire Thoughts Going beyond Traditional Adjudicated Performances By Darlene Machacon This article originally appeared in Tactus, spring/summer issue (2025). Permission to reprint is granted by the Western Region American…
An Overview and Guide to Flexible Band Music Big Music with Small Groups By NAfME Member Dr. Thomas Willmann Overview The emergence of “Flex Band” or “Flexible” arrangements began appearing…
We Wear the Mask The Lived Experiences of Black Undergraduate Music Education Students in Predominantly White Schools of Music By NAfME Member Quinton D. Parker This article first appeared in…