The Modern Band workshop with Little Kids Rock was equally as insightful as it was fun, in my opinion. I really enjoyed the energy and level of enthusiasm that not only the students brought, but also our instructor. The modern band workshop was a really great and taught me a new way of looking at music education. One of the cool things that I felt was interesting was how it was able to encompass many different skill levels into one program that was inclusive. Whereas some people had no guitar experience, played the three note chords, but it gave flexibility to those (such as myself and others in the class) who had a little more experience on guitar to play full chords without 1) making others feel like they were falling behind and 2) making us feel like we were bored and too far ahead. I also really enjoyed how at the base of it all, it was supposed to be inclusive to all. One of the interesting comparisons that was made was that in a typical "concert band", you can't really make it any easier or harder for a student who is, for example, starting on the clarinet. However, in modern band, you can modify the program and instruments in such a way that it is useful for everyone of all experience levels. This is also applied to the theory aspect of music. We talked about tablature as a contemporary means for notation, as well as demonstrating strumming pattern as a means for rhythm. This was really interesting to look into further because I had always used tablature for learning guitar however in the classroom setting, I didn't realize that it would work so well. The class grasped onto it quickly and it is so much easier than reading the notes on the staff and trying to figure out where our fingers need to be in relation to frets on the guitar, it just simply isn't the most efficient way to teach guitar. It was also really fun to see all of the principles of Modern Band put into play. Right from the beginning when he had said we would dive into some compositions, I know I got so stressed because I don't consider myself a composer at all. However, with the environment that he set by making all of us feel included and made me more confident in the skills that I had and that I could contribute to the group composition no matter what.
Overall, the workshop was very insightful and super fun to take part of with my peers.