Robert A. Spahr, husband of Nancy Spahr, passed away on Monday, September 3 in Peru, Indiana. The online obituary can be found on the Eddy Funeral Home website. Nancy serves on the Indiana Music Teachers Association Board of Directors as the Recording Secretary.
The 2012 IMTA Ensemble Concert will be at Greenwood High School on December 1, 2012. The title of the event is A Keyboard Caper. The repertoire list for the concert is listed by levels and is not in program order. The program order will be announced closer to our performance date. This year’s conductor is Dr. Stephen Reen. Dr. Reen is an early childhood music specialist and is in demand as a performer and lecturer. The repertoire list, student registration form and teacher registration form are accessible on the IMTA Website.
Teachers should complete a player registration page for each student. Then attach your teacher registration page and mail the documents with one check. The postmark deadline is October 31, 2012. For the registration fee players may play as few pieces as one entry or several. There is no extra charge if you play more than one group. IMTA Member Teachers do no pay a fee to play in the concert. It is included with your IMTA membership.
Teachers and students will be notified by email of the part assignments. All players must attend rehearsals to be allowed to perform. Memorization is not required but players will need to attain the indicated metronome tempi which will be sent to all participants by email.
Indiana Music Teachers Association has a new online look! The website was recently updated to present information in a more user-friendly and visually appealing format. Be sure to update your bookmarks as page names and locations have changed. Visit the new site at http://www.indmta.org/
The Butler MTNA Collegiate Chapter attended their second MTNA National Conference this year thanks to the generous support of Indiana Music Teachers Association. At the conference they presented the collegiate session “Getting Started with Online Marketing,” which displayed strategies for online marketing specifically for music teachers. This was the chapter’s second presentation at a national conference, their first being “Grow and Play Together: Preparing Children to be Successful Collaborative Musicians” at the 2011 MTNA National Conference in Milwaukee, WI. The conference was a rich experience for all members of the chapter. You may read some of their personal reflections below:Continue reading
Longtime IMTA member Nancy McFarland passed away on May 31, 2012. Her obituary can be found online at http://www.bannergraphic.com/story/1855820.html
The state round of the MTNA Performance Competitions will be held Saturday, October 20, 2012 at Ball State University.
Please consider entering your students and visit the MTNA website for details of these competitions http://www.mtna.org/programs/competitions/
IMTA announces the winners of the 2012 Hoosier Auditions State Competition held at Butler University, Saturday May 19. Congratulations to all students, teachers, and parents who participated. Winners will be invited to perform at the Winners Recital during the IMTA Fall Conference held at Indiana State University in Terra Haute, September 21-22. Please consult the IMTA directory or online at indmta.org for 2013 Hoosier Auditions information.
Early Elementary Strings
Winner: David Du, student of Sara Wollen
Alternate: William Mayhew, student of Gary Brown
Honorable Mention: Madhuri Vamadevan, student of Anny ChiuContinue reading
This year the South Bend Area Music Teachers Association focused on the Baroque Period with our theme “Bach to Baroque.” Dr. David Barton was our September speaker giving a general view of the historical period starting with influences from the Renaissance. In October we watched the Baroque Dances DVD with Dr. Hinson. In November, the association held their Achievement In Music Festival at Bethel College and our November meeting program was our own membership performing duets. In December we had our “Bach to Baroque” Recital with 18 students performing from the Baroque Period. We had our Christmas Luncheon to finish out the year. In February we watched “Principles of Style for the Young Pianist,” with Nelita True(DVD) and our Spring Recital with 11 students performing; March 2 and 3 was our annual Stickley Competition; our March program featured our own Devon Haupt “ It’s Not Just a Naked Piano: An Introduction to the Harp”. In April, Dr. Lori Rhoden, Ball State University “Developing Expressive Performance” and we closed the year with a Brunch at the home of SBMTA President, Juliana Lockman. To learn more about the Local Association visit their website.
The North Central Indiana Music Teachers Association is organizing an ambitious new project: a Monster Concert to be held in Logansport on Saturday, October 20, 2012. This concert will replace our traditional Fall Festival for 2012. Our conductor will be Melody Bober, and she will also do a mini-workshop for teachers on the previous day. This event is made possible by a Local Association Grant awarded by the Indiana Music Teachers Association. Local Association President Nancy Spahr comments, “Besides providing our students a wonderful opportunity to perform and hone their ensemble skills, the project will hopefully increase our visibility in the musical communities in our counties. We will be inviting other piano teachers and their students to participate with us.” A reduced participation fee is offered for IMTA members. For more information, contact Nancy Spahr.
The IMTA Board of Trustees has approved funding to assist three local associations with programming in the 2012-2013 academic year. North Central MTA will be presenting a monster concert, Music Around the World, conducted by Melody Bober in the fall of 2012. In addition to the collaborative experience offered area students, a workshop for teachers will be presented. South Bend MTA will present a master class by Giuseppe Lupis, faculty member at Grand Valley State University. Members of Goshen-Elkhart MTA, plus teachers in the South Bend community, are invited to attend the event on Wednesday, February 13, 2013. Wabash Valley MTA will host a workshop with Dr. Garnet Ungar of the University of Evansville in the fall of 2012. Dr. Ungar will also be presenting a recital at Indiana State University to coincide with this event, and his presentation to the members of WVMTA will also be open to the ISU piano pedagogy students.
The purpose of the IMTA Local Association Grant Program is to to provide assistance to local associations for the educational and professional development of teachers and for the support and promotion of music in the immediate community. Awards are made annually in late May for the following academic year.