It’s April, teachers. And you know what that means…
You’ve made it to the home stretch.
With so many studio instructors operating on a school schedule, we’re guessing you’re just months away from a well-deserved summer break. (Praise be to the universe.)
But alas. There are miles to go before you sleep.
And spring slump is a powerful and dangerous thing.
Right about now, seasonal burnout and year-end-concert stress are likely threatening to sap up all your energy, leaving your pedagogical technique a little deflated.
All totally natural. And all easily fixed.
On the heels of our recent recommendations for music-ed podcasts and YouTube channels, we’re bringing you our favorite online resources to help combat spring stagnation and get you over the May/June finish line. Some offer creative inspiration, some provide tangible tools, and some are just really great to have on standby if you find yourself in dire end-of-semester straits.
So deep breath, chin up, and coffee at the ready, everyone.
Have a quick read and let the summer countdown begin.
#1 Carnegie Hall Music Educators Toolbox
How do you get to Carnegie Hall?
Turns out you just need a web browser.
Thankfully, Carnegie admin has kindly crafted a nutrient-rich mini library of musical lessons for newbies not yet ready for the famous New York stage. Complete with audio clips, assessment rubrics, and sample videos, Carnegie’s teacher toolbox serves up interactive modules on basic musical tenets like rhythm, meter, pitch, and dynamics, designed expressly for grades K-5.
Pros: Each lesson appears carefully calibrated to national and/or NY-state learning standards. Plus, the video examples allow teachers to see proposed lesson plans in action. And some modules provide a “Go Deeper” section with ideas for extending learning even further.
Possible cons: Most resources are formulated for classroom use, though certain concepts can be translated into the studio (such as the string technique pantomimes explored here).
#2: Teachers Pay Teachers (TPT)
You’ve no doubt heard of this not-so-secret teachers’ weapon, but, just in case you haven’t:
Allow us to introduce the Etsy of downloadable educator resources, including 160,000+ assets for music alone. Teachers Pay Teachers materials are sortable by age group, format, price, and even ELA standard level, and most are rated according to a five-star system, so you’ll get a good sense as to how they perform in the real world.
Still, the biggest TPT pitch is that educators get to support other educators by purchasing pre-prepped worksheets, charts, interactive lessons, templates, and so much more—all at reasonable prices (and occasionally for free with log in).
Pros: The TPT library is endless, covering a broad spectrum of disciplines from clef writing tutorials to ukelele workbooks, Western Music History factsheets, and beyond. And a cursory search yields a frustratingly awesome amount of creativity and humor. (Currently in the running for our favorite asset: The “Pasta or Composer” slideshow game. Rossini with red sauce, anyone?)
Possible cons: Once again, the materials tend to skew toward classroom audiences, though you can filter for “homeschool” or “adult education” resources, which might be more studio friendly.
#3: SavetheMusic.org
Imagine our surprise when we settled at our desk to research music-ed resources…only to discover Save the Music had already done most of our work for us.
Just kidding. But only just.*
Miraculously, this dedicated non-profit has painstakingly scoured the internet to produce a compendium of music-ed materials ––including content hubs, lesson curricula, video channels, games, and more––all listed alphabetically and searchable by grade, subject, or medium. Even better, the catalog is ecumenical (music mentors and methodologists from Orff to Kodály to Quincy Jones are all represented); multicultural (see, for example, the Acharyanet platform for learning Indian music or the ICD database of music written by historically marginalized composers); and interdisciplinary (even physics and astronomy make unexpected appearances).
*In all seriousness, we know there’s overlap between our list and theirs, but we promise we came to many of our choices on our own.
Pros: Save the Music’s commitment to nurturing students in a holistic way. Their catalog does its best to accommodate all ages, backgrounds, learning styles, and instrumental preferences. If you’re so inclined, you can also take a detour to their Social Emotional Learning (SEL) initiative, featuring a detailed webinar series for encouraging intrapersonal empowerment through music education.
Possible cons: Some links are regrettably no longer functional.
#4: IMSLP.org (also known as Petrucci Music Library)
Another link you probably already swear by.
But, in the unlikely event you haven’t heard of IMSLP (short for International Music Score Library Project, sometimes known as the Petrucci Music Library), we won’t hold it against you. Particularly if you finished your music studies before 2006, when IMSLP.org arrived on the scene and changed the score-finding game forever.
A godsend for teachers and pupils (and angst-ridden grad students) alike, IMSLP is perhaps the web’s most comprehensive anthology of digital scores. Though the library focuses mostly on Western classical music in the public domain, traditional folk and jazz pieces also feature prominently, with all entries filterable by composer, nationality, or era, as well other handy musical tags like “instrumental difficulty.”
The TL;DR version: IMSLP is a headquarters for scans of previously-printed hardcopy sheet music. Any given piece can have several different editions, arrangements, or otherwise applicable materials attached to its file––all viewable and downloadable for in-studio practice at no cost whatsoever (though donations are encouraged). You might even find a free recording or two for added reference.
Pros: IMSLP is a happy solution to all those sleepless nights spent worrying about whether students will forget their music at the next studio concert. So long as you have a printer and a computer nearby, you can fire up the IMSLP and rattle off a few backup scores without the hectic sprint to FedEx Kinko’s.
Possible cons: Due to logistics and copyright law restrictions, not every composer nor every musical piece will be available in the IMSLP database. Oh, and resolution quality can be a gamble. Also: We humbly suggest purchasing commercial scores whenever you can rather than relying solely on the IMSLP library, if only to ensure the music publication business stays alive and well.
#5 Kennedy Center Education
As you’d expect from a national organization for the performing arts, the Kennedy Center has spent years crafting a wide-reaching catalog of arts-based learning materials: some meant to accompany the Center’s busy performance calendar, others evergreen. The resulting digital library houses a sweeping lineup of multimedia resources for teachers and students of any age, many of which cover musical topics. Whether you need tips on teaching music fundamentals; are curious about the history behind classic works like “Battle Hymn of the Republic”; or just need a link to send your students so they can practice sight-reading on their own time, Kennedy Center Education is a helpful Swiss Army knife to have in your back pocket.*
*In the interest of full disclosure: This author has served as a contributing writer for Kennedy Center Education, mostly for opera performance guides. Feel free to skip those. The rest of the library more than holds its own without them.
Pros: The Kennedy Center’s educational landscape is global in scope, with many resources tackling music from genres outside the classical canon as well as from non-Western cultures. In addition, the Center’s projects often revolve around themes (sad songs, Chinese traditions, or musical extremes, for example), which provide a useful “hook” for engaging anyone suffering from spring slump.
Possible cons: Materials tend to focus more on classroom learning, though most assets can be reviewed by students one on one with a teacher or parent. Bear in mind, too, that the Kennedy Center is a government organization, meaning its vision––and therefore its educational library––are subject to change.
Got a go-to resource platform we failed to mention? Let us know, and we may feature it in an upcoming post.
More of a visual learner? Why not double back and review our music-ed YouTube channel recs?
Audio more your style? Check out our article covering musical podcasts to keep your brain active and inspired during school-year crunch times.
Regardless of whether you take our recommendations or not: Remember to hang in there, studio educators.
Teaching is a warrior’s pursuit. You’re amazing, and you’ve got this.
And summer’s almost here.
