It’s late March and Spring is just around the corner! As this school year winds down, it’s time to consider what direction you would like your teaching to go in the future. Spring and Summer months are the optimal time to plan ahead for the next school year. Once August rolls around, we become too caught up in the preparations for all students to return. Now is the time I like to see what new publications are coming from the major publishing houses. Even if you didn’t attend the national conference, many of the sales and special package deals are available beginning in April.
Festivals and Repertoire Planning
Last year, I tried to teach only festival pieces I had never taught or at least had not used in recent years. Skimming festival repertoire lists, Federation lists, and other events your students generally attend can bring a fresh perspective to repertoire. I’ve already noticed some interesting new publications!
The Music Shelf
Another idea is to clean up your music shelf. i don’t know how many times I’ve found multiple copies of repertoire I bought again and again……La Cathedrale englutie anyone? Five copies of Festival Collection 3 but none of books 1 or 2……I could go on but you get the idea! I am always excited to veer off in a new direction (or at least something I haven’t done recently.).
Continuing Covid Vigilance
An additional challenge is the Covid variants that continue to circulate. Masks on, masks off….you have to stay ahead of your studio mask requirements. Already the BA-2 is in 35% of the United States cases. For those of you in China, you are already shutdown due to the spread. We must continue to adapt and update our policies to the latest situations in our geographic area and keep ourselves and our students safe.
As we look forward to a summer with hopefully fewer restrictions I hope you can travel and get away from the studio for a period of time. It will be here before you know it!
Musically yours,
Dr. Carol Ann