Welcome
to
Mrs.
Brigid (Kathleen) Powell
Monday,
Wednesday, Friday
Email:
brigidpowell@agiasophiaacademy.org
“The
characteristics of a good musician can be summarized as follows:
A Well-Trained
Ear,
A Well-Trained
Mind,
A Well-Trained
Heart,
A Well-Trained
Hand.
All
four must develop together, in constant equilibrium. As soon as one lags
behind or rushes ahead, there is something wrong”
--Zoltan Kodály
We believe
music is CORE to fully educating the person; therefore, all full-time students receive concentrated music instruction 3
days per week, 30 minutes each session.
As the
students are all in the first stage of the Trivium, music class
concentrates on the “grammar” of music. Classes include
dance/movement, theory, history, and application through writing and
playing instruments. Students
acquire these skills using art songs, classical music,
Orthodox music, and American Folk Songs.
We
believe, as Zoltan Kodály believed:
1.
Music is necessary for the development
of the total man.
2.
Music is the birthright of every
child, not just the musically gifted.
3.
Music and culture are preserved
through music study; therefore, children are to become musically
literate by reading and writing the music of their own culture.
4.
By becoming immersed in the elements
of music, students become discerning listeners.
The Kodály approach to music education is child-centered and taught in a logical, sequential manner,
training musicianship and providing an understanding of the world of
music through the experience of singing and the use of instruments,
including the keyboard, various percussion instruments and the Baroque
recorder.
We use the highest quality folk, art,
and Orthodox music utilizing a participatory approach where children
sing and play simultaneously. This allows the student to make music a
part of their physical memory. The
elements are presented in a step-by-step sequence in a way that is
meaningful to the child, progressing from the known to the unknown.
Concepts are prepared and presented physically, aurally and
visually. After presentation, the students practice elements in a
variety of contexts to ensure mastery.
Through the Kodály
approach, the ear is
trained to hear both pitch and rhythm; the mind
is trained to examine, explore, and analyze music presented and to cause
cooperation between the ear and the voice reproducing pitch tunefully;
the heart is trained to recognize beauty using the finest music
available; the hand is
trained to physically represent pitch and rhythm, causing the student to
further internalize and externally represent the specific musical
information.
The
Curwen Hand Signs used for the Solfége note names.
To read more about our
curriculum, please click here.
MUSIC
INFORMANCES:
