Introducing the MTNA Studio Festival - In Unison - Music Teachers National Association - Brief Article

American Music Teacher, June-July, 2002

It's been two years since I first told you about my friend, "Kevin." He was a student who wasn't motivated to practice. I even labeled him "musically at risk" and suggested that MTNA find an alternative to "musical oblivion" for the Kevins of the world.

My desire to serve these students and their teachers has become a focus for the MTNA Board of Directors during this biennium. In fact, this issue of American Music Teacher is dedicated to this topic.

Several of these columns have been directed to MTNA's initiative aimed at the "everyday" or even "typical" student, if you will--those for whom music is more of a hobby or a leisure pursuit. Music most likely will not become their career choice.

The first part of this program was the Music Study Awards. There has been an overwhelming response to these certificates. In fact, national headquarters reports that, as of this writing, the certificates recognizing students for two years of study are on their third printing! One staff member remarked that they seem to be "flying off the shelf!"

The second part of this program, the MTNA Studio Festival Program, was launched in March at the National Conference. I solicited the help of my good friend, Aurelia Campbell, an independent teacher and former president of the Georgia Music Teachers Association, from Hartwell, Georgia. With her guidance, materials a teacher needs to organize and hold a Studio Festival have been compiled and now are available through the national headquarters.

The MTNA Studio Festival Program's purpose is six-fold:

1. To provide the teacher and the teacher's students with an opportunity to participate in a nationally sponsored program that is open to students of all ages and levels of advancement, and that is implemented by the teacher's own studio.

2. To provide a performance opportunity that is simple, convenient and at little or no cost to the individual teacher and at reasonable cost to the student.

3. To provide an incentive for practice as well as an incentive for selection of appropriately challenging repertory.

4. To provide an opportunity for students to receive supportive critique from a musician in addition to the student's teacher, but from a musician of the teacher's own choosing.

5. To provide national recognition to individual students, teachers and judges for participation in a non-competitive event.

6. To provide a performance opportunity for students in geographical areas where performance opportunities are not readily available.

The MTNA Studio Festival Program honors the standards of individual teachers and is not designed to impose the standards of one teacher or group of teachers on other teachers.

The details of this program may be found on the facing page. If you currently do not hold a studio festival, I encourage you to take advantage of this newly developed program. I believe we've done a great job of putting together a starter kit and recognition package that takes a lot of the work out of the planning and organizational end of a studio festival. If you do hold, or are considering holding, a Studio Festival, perhaps you would be interested in the certificates, T-shirts and other materials we are making available.

I thank all of you for the feedback you've given us that has helped to develop these important programs. Feel free to contact me with more comments and suggestions; my e-mail address is on the last page of this magazine.

National Conferences

March 15-19, 2003   Salt Lake City, Utah
March 27-31, 2004   Kansas City, Missouri