MARCH 2004 NEWSLETTER

 
DATE: March 9, 2004
PLACE: H&H Music, 713 FM 1960 W.
TIME: 9:30 AM—Board Meeting 10:15 AM—CCMTA Meeting 10:50 AM--Program
 
GUEST: DR. LESLIE SPOTZ
 
PROGRAM: MASTERCLASS AND WORKSHOP ON PERFORMANCE MOTIVATION
                       Note slightly earlier starting time to allow for both class and workshop.
 
Dr. Spotz is a member of the piano faculty at Tarleton State University’s Department of Fine Arts and Communications, located in Stephenville, Texas. She’s had an international solo career that has included performances at the Tchaikovsky Hall of Moscow Conservatory, the South Bank Center of London, and the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C.
 
She has performed extensively throughout the United States, including appearances with the Mozart Society of Philadelphia, the Clear Lake Symphony in Texas, and at Rutgers University, where she has performed 20 Beethoven sonatas. Be sure to attend this excellent program!
 

********************************************************************************

CALENDAR OF EVENTS
 •  Saturday & Sunday, March 13 & 14—District Performance Contest—Baylor University, Waco
 •  Saturday, March 27—H&H/Conover Cable High School Piano Competition—H&H Music
 •  Saturday, April 3—Spring Festival—Cypress Creek Christian Community Center
 •  Tuesday, April 6—9:00-11:00 AM--Teacher Keyboard Workshop—H&H Music (see below)
DEADLINES
 •  March 9th meeting--Grants-in-Aid entries to Chairman Sharon Goldsberry
 •  March 9th meeting--Member-of-the-Year nominations to Chairman JoAnne Griffith (see below)
 •  April 5th—April newsletter copy to Editor Doris Erickson

********************************************************************************
 
New Member: Kevin Guess has just joined CCMTA, so please add him to your Yearbook. He teaches piano, theory and composition. Particulars are: 9115 Reagan Meadow Ct., Houston, TX 77064, (281) 890-8923. His e-mail address is kevinguess@mindspring.com, and he has an excellent website—check it out: http://pskg.net 
Welcome! Look for him at our next meeting.

Member of the Year: Chairman JoAnne Griffith urges you to be thinking about which member has done the most outstanding work this past year, and be prepared to make a nomination at the March meeting. See page 62 of the Yearbook for suggested criteria.

Teacher Keyboard Workshop: Teachers are invited to a unique teacher-oriented workshop on the new Roland digital grand, to be held at the same H&H Music where we meet each month (see other details under “Calendar of Events” above). The workshop will help teachers find a way to carry more students without increasing their hours. If you have any questions, please contact Linda Anthony at 281/444-6670.

Let’s Highlight Your Extra-curricular Activities: There’s a section on our website, www.ccmta.org, called “Teachers in Action,” that’s been empty. I, your editor, started it off with a picture of two of our members performing. Let’s have some pictures of you doing musical things other than teaching, e.g. performing, accompanying, playing in church, judging, composing--activities that will show how versatile you are. If you will give or send your prints to me, Doris Erickson, I will see that they’re posted on the website.

Piano for Sale: Anna McDaniel has a 1982 Kohler & Campbell piano in excellent condition, for which she’s asking $1500. If any of your students might be interested, they can call her at (281) 379-3827.

World of Music: Five teachers prepared 58 students for the test: Linda Anthony, Sharon Anthony, Colleen Bell, Barbara Cowen and Nancy Johnston. Congratulations to Colleen Bell for the largest enrollment—25 of her students took the test.

Suzuki Training Course: Andrea Cannon’s “Every Child Can!” training course which we told you about in
The February newsletter, still has a few slots open if you hurry (class size is limited to 30 people). The course is not instrument-specific and is open to teachers and parents and is an exciting, hands-on type of learning experience. In-Service Credit of 6 hours is available to school-district personnel.

Here are the details: DATE: Saturday, March 27, 2004; TIME: 12:30-7:30 pm
PLACE: Andrea Cannon Studios in Spring, Texas
(map and directions will be forwarded upon acceptance of your application)
COST: $85.00
Learn more about "Every Child Can!" at
http://www.suzukiassociation.org/SuzukiWeb/Teachers/ECC/ECCHome.htm
You can find an application form here: http://www.AndreaCannon.com/GuitArt.htm 
Andrea Cannon, Suzuki Teacher Trainer
(281) 320-9656
Suzuki@CannonSong.com

From the President: Let those March winds blow. Soon the azaleas will be blooming, and spring will be here. Welcome to spring! Enough of the cold weather already!

There are lots of things happening with CCMTA recently. The Piano Contest Winners Recital was stellar and very well organized in our new home, the Centrum. What a show! We have 8 students going to District Competition for the TMTA Performance Contest—the most we have ever had. We have a new sponsor for the H&H High School Scholarship Competition. H&H is teaming up with Conover Cable to provide our scholarship monies.

There should be some lively discussion at the March meeting regarding changes and/or additions for Piano Contest 2005. Be sure to be there and be a part of making history!

Your president has just discovered that 2005 is our Silver Anniversary year. If you have some ideas for special ways to celebrate this milestone, let me know. See you on March 9th.

CCMTA Performance Contest Winners: The following students all won the right to advance to the District Performance contest at Baylor in Waco on March 13th:
7-8 Grade Piano Solo—Jacqueline Perrin, student of Colleen Bell
7-8 Grade Piano Solo—Anushka Sinha, student of Don Harris
9-10 Grade Piano Solo--Rishabh Sinha, student of Don Harris
9-10 Grade Piano Solo—Patrick Frith, student of Don Harris
11-12 Grade Piano Solo—Alisha Bloodworth, student of Don Harris
11-12 Grade Piano Solo—Ben Karfunkle, student of JoAnne Griffith
11-12 Grade Piano Solo—Alex Caire, student of Don Harris
11-12 Grade Piano Concerto—Shanel Parlar, student of Holly Foster

Don Harris also belongs to Conroe Music Teachers Association and has several winners who won through that group and will be competing in Baylor along with the others from CCMTA:
7-8 Grade Piano Solo—Ben Donahoo
9-10 Grade Piano Solo—Robert Conrad
11-12 Grade Piano Solo—Alexander Wickievicz
Post-12 Young Artist Category—Andre Ho-goes directly to Young Artist Collegiate Conference at SMU Apr.4

Original Composition Contest: Five teachers had participating students in the CCMTA/TMTA Original Composition Contest: Linda Anthony (9), Colleen Bell (1), JoAnne Griffith (4), Linda Herring (1), and Marilyn Johnson (2). Many thanks again to Don Harris for all the time and care he took judging each entry. Results of the TMTA contest will be known by mid-April.

Orson Clay, student of Linda Anthony, entered the TMTA/MTNA Composition Competition and received First Place at TMTA and at the Division level. He did not place on the National level but received great critiques.
 

Furthermore...    I’m afraid we have nothing but sad news to report this month: Sarah Black, who was our treasurer for so many years, just lost her mother. She has our sympathy.