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iMA Newsletter Voted top 100 educators in the world by the International Biographical Centre Winner of the Consumers’ Choice Award for best music school in the GTA. Winner of the Royal Conservatory of Music Gold Medal for Teaching Excellence. Winner of the York Region Character Community Award. Markham Board of Trade Business Excellence Award finalist. Year XIX, No. 11 January 2015
WELCOMING OUR NEW STUDENTS Ragul S. (guitar) Julia H. (piano) Vada G. (flute) Leala C. (voice) Lana L. (guitar) Brendon F. (guitar) IMA STUDENTS BIRTHDAYS IN JANUARY
Daniel G, Briana M, Adit K, Charlotte G, Edward T, Katherine L, Jessica F, Doris W, James A, Roshnie R, Anjali M, Eddy C, Lucy Z.
HAPPY BIRTHDAY! IMPORTANT DAYS IN JANUARY Jan 1: New Year’s Day-‐ School is closed Jan 6: RCM April Session applications deadline (piano only) Jan 15: Markham Music Festival registration deadline Jan 19-‐31: RCM practical examinations
NEWS
REFERRAL OFFER GET A $30 CREDIT ON YOUR NEXT MONTH TUITION We have been very pleased with the continuous success of our students. They have improved a great deal and we share their excitement with their families, friends, neighbors, and schoolmates. We appreciate your interest towards our programs and services. We are always very happy to welcome new students of all ages, levels, and instruments to the iMA. Please tell your friends about your experience with the International Music Academy.
Do you know someone who is thinking of taking music lessons or who has children who may be interested in getting their hands on a musical instrument or singing? Do you know a teenager who needs a high school OAC credit? Do you know an adult who has wanted for a long time to learn how to play a musical instrument but has never had the time or inclination? Please tell them about the IMA.
As an appreciation for your referral, we will give you a $30 credit for each new student who registers at the International Music Academy as a result of your referral. As we value your friends as much as we value you, we will offer to each referred student a $30 credit as well. Thank you for your continued support! ___________________________________________________
IMA MUSIC MILES A new clients recognition program
We are pleased to announce our new clients recognition program, IMA MUSIC MILES. Starting January 1, 2015, IMA Clients will earn 1 MUSIC MILE for every $100 spent at the IMA. We will keep track of your MUSIC MILES and update you from time or when you ask us. You can use the Music Miles to get credits towards your next month tuition fee. The more Music Miles you collect, the higher credit you can get: Music Miles Credit Music Miles Credit
10 $30 60 $205 20 $65 70 $240 30 $100 80 $275 40 $135 90 $310 50 $170 100 $350
Non-‐redeemed Music Miles expire one month after withdrawing from the IMA programs.
International Music Academy
4981 Highway 7, Suite 1
Markham ON L3R 1N1 Canada M1K 3K1
Phone: 905.489.4620 Fax: 905.489.4621
www.internationalmusicacademy.ca [email protected]
2015 TUITION FEE SCHEDULE Please note that as of January 1, 2015, our tuition fees are: 30-‐minute lesson -‐ $32 | 45-‐minute lesson -‐ $48 60-‐minute lesson -‐ $63 | 90-‐minute lesson -‐ $95 IMA STUDENTS PERFORMANCES ON-‐LINE VIDEO LIBRARY The IMA Winter Music Festival was a great success. During 10 separate concerts over the entire weekend, IMA students performed in front of their peers, parents, teachers and avid supporters. The beautiful ambiance of Cornell Recital Hall, the Steinway grand piano, the big screen connected to an HD camera showing the finest details of the performances all contributed to creating a great experience for all. The performances were recorded in HD and some of them are now available for viewing in the newly created IMA on-‐line video library, accessible through the IMA website. Click on the link below and you will be redirected to the library where you can watch some of the students’ performances. http://internationalmusicacademy.ca/videos.html WINTER TERM STUDENTS EVALUATION REPORTS The Winter term Students evaluation reports are now finalized and are being given to the students. Please feel free to discuss directly with the teacher any points in the reports that may be of interest. If you have any concerns, please contact the Music Director, Mr. Kristian Alexander at Director@InternationalMusic Academy.ca 2 NEWBORN GOLD FISH BABIES Over the holidays, 2 newborn gold fish babies appear in the aquarium at the IMA reception. We named them Sam and Bob. Stop by to say hello J ROYAL CONSERVATORY OF MUSIC January examinations Many IMA students will be taking their examinations in the second half of January. Under the guidance of their inspiring teachers, students have worked very hard to prepare long and demanding programs. We wish them success!
COMPOSERS’ ANNIVERSARIES IN JANUARY January is a memorable month, particularly because of the birthday of Johannes Chrysostomus Wolfgangus Theophilus or simply known by Mozart. A child prodigy who changed the world of classical music and influenced art and culture for centuries after his death, at age of 35. 4, 1710 PERGOLESI, Giovanni Battista 4, 1874 SUK, Josef 6, 1838 BRUCH, Max 6, 1872 SCRIABIN, Alexander 7, 1899 POULENC, Francis 25, 1913 LUTOSLAVSKI, Witold 27, 1756 MOZART, Wolfgang Amadeus 31, 1797 SCHUBERT, Franz Peter Where you born or do you know someone who was born on the same day as these famous composers? Drop us an e-‐mail at [email protected] to let us know. FEATURED TEACHER OF THE MONTH
Mr. Eduardo Solà, M.Mus., B.Mus., M.A. Violin Studies and interpretation, Music Theory
Mr. Eduardo Solà completed a Bachelor of Music degree in violin performance at the School of Music and Fine Arts (Brazil), and a Bachelor of Music degree in baroque violin (historical performance) at The Royal Conservatoire of The Netherlands. Studied the modern violin with Dr. Paulo Torres and the baroque violin with Ryo Terakado. Has performed
internationally in concerts, projects and recordings with several of the main names in the historical performance scenery such as Sigiswald Kuijken, Richard Egarr, Sebastian Marq, Barthold Kuijken, Philippe Pierlot and Luís Otávio Santos. His concert repertoire ranges from Late Middle Ages to contemporary music, and he has been performing internationally as a soloist and chamber musician in concerts, recitals and recordings, mainly in Europe and the Americas. He has worked as a member of Paraná Symphony Orchestra and PUC-‐PR Chamber Orchestra, where he had most of his work experience as an orchestra musician and recording for the television. In 2014, he completes his Master’s degree at the University of Toronto, Canada. Mr. Sola has had extensive experience as a violin and music theory music teacher internationally. In his teaching approach, he values and encourages the search for musicality and technical accuracy, prioritizing enjoyment and physical comfort while playing the violin. Mr. Sola currently also works as a Teacher Assistant at the Faculty of Music, University of Toronto. In early 2014 he published his first book, O Menino e o
Som (The Boy and the Sound). He is a registered teacher with the Royal Conservatory of Music (RCME 104334). Mr. Solà was happy to answer a few questions for our students and parents: 1. What do you like most about teaching? I believe the most gratifying aspect of teaching is that of disclosing to the student things that have made a difference in my own musical experience. I value the ability to pass on knowledge and skills that were important in my own development as a musician. I also appreciate the opportunity to teach discipline and commitment through music, which are invaluable skills in a number of other areas of life. 2. How do you inspire students to practice more? I try to encourage the student to develop a desire for musical progress, as well as a sense of appreciation for his or her own musical accomplishments. There is no greater reward than to feel satisfied and happy about your own playing and music making. Besides, with the younger students I try to compensate their effort and discipline by means of a program of small rewards and prizes along the way. 3. What roles does performance play in student’s development? Music is a social experience. I understand that one of the greatest joys of music making is that of sharing this experience with others. Music students, regardless of their level or age, are capable of communicating through music and partaking in this kind of social interaction. In this sense, I believe performance is fundamental in all stages of music learning and development and should be valued by teachers, students, and parents alike. 4. Who are your favourite composers? I would say picking a favourite composer could be as hard as picking a favourite food or a favourite place. The nuances in styles and differences between historical periods are impossible to ignore. However, if I were indeed to pick one, it would be Johann Sebastian Bach. His ability to combine a high level of mathematical and rational processes with emotion, rhetoric, artistry, craftsmanship, and religious devotion blow my mind every time I come in contact with his music. 5. What was the last piece of music (sheet music or a recording) you purchased for yourself? I would say the most recently purchased addition to my personal library in terms of printed music are the urtext edition of “George Phillip Telemann’s 12 Solo Violin Fantasias” and a facsimile edition of Bach’s autograph for the “Unaccompanied Violin Sonatas and Partitas.”
FEATURED STUDENTS OF THE MONTH BRIANNA MOHAMMADI
What instrument do you play? I currently play the piano and I sing. How long have you taken lessons? I've been playing piano since just before I turned 4 (I'm turning 8 in January) and started singing lessons this past Fall. Who are your favourite musical artists? I love to listen to Taylor Swift and Ariana Grande.
What are your other hobbies, besides music? I love to swim, dance and draw. Favourite food? My favourite food is pizza. What is the coolest thing you’ve learnt in your lessons in the past three months? With my voice lessons I've learned how to warm up my voice and because I play piano I can read the notes to follow the rhythm, which is really helpful! Do you have any performance coming up? I just performed at the IMA Winter Music Festival on December 21. I have played at the Festival's over the years about 8 times. At this concert I played Rudolph the Red Nose Reindeer and Vive La France! This was my first time singing. I sang Castle on a Cloud from Les Misérables. E-‐mail to [email protected] a photo of yourself (or your child) together with the answers of the questions above. The deadline for submissions is the 15th of every month. We will feature you in one of the next issues of the newsletter. PET OF THE MONTH Send a photo of your pet together with following information and we will publish it in one of the next issues of the IMA newsletter. What is the name of your pet? How old is he/she? What kind of breed our pet is (if applicable)? How long have you had him/her for? Any special circumstances around getting the pet (i.e. a gift, foster pet, etc.)? The funniest story about you pet? Any special skills or abilities.
FEATURED ARTICLE Creativity and the Brain: What We Can Learn From Jazz Musicians Katrina Schwartz Listening to jazz musicians improvise, how the piano player’s chords toy with the sax player’s runs and the standup bass player’s beats, it may seem like their music-‐making process is simply magic. But research of jazz musicians’ brain activity as they improvise is helping shed light on the neuroscience behind creativity, and it turns out creating that magic is not as serendipitous a process as we might think. “I started looking at jazz musicians playing the blues as a way to understand how the creative brain emerges from a neuroscience perspective,” said Charles Limb, associate professor of Otolaryngology-‐Head and Neck Surgery at John’s Hopkins University. Limb, a jazz musician and music lover, and his team designed a plastic keyboard that jazz musicians could both play and hear while they were inside an MRI machine. Limb asked the musicians to play a memorized piece of music, then improvise with another musician in the control room. Limb captured images of their brains as they played. When musicians go to an improvisation, the brain switches, Limb said, and the lateral prefrontal lobes responsible for conscious self monitoring became less engaged. “Musicians were turning off the self-‐censoring in the brain so they could generate novel ideas without restrictions,” he said. Interestingly, the improvising brain activates many of the same brain centers as language, reinforcing the idea that the back and forth of improvisation between musicians is akin to its own language. “When you’re trying so hard to come up with ideas you can’t do it, you can’t force it.” The same principle applies to something like writer’s block. “When you’re trying so hard to come up with ideas you can’t do it, you can’t force it,” Limb said. “Then at another time, some flip switches and you’ve got this flow going on, this generation of ideas.” When the stakes are higher and the brain is actively over-‐thinking something, it can interfere with processes that have become routinized, causing behavior or performance to suffer. CREATIVITY CAN BE DEVELOPED Luckily, creativity isn’t an unknowable, mystical quality. It can be developed. “You have to cultivate these behaviors by introducing them to children and recognizing that the more you do it, the better you are at doing it,” Limb said. The problem is a lot of kids don’t get much unstructured time either in school or out of it. School is often based on right or wrong answers, leaving little room for students to come up with ideas that haven’t been taught to them before.
“It doesn’t have to be so directed all the time,” Limb said. “We’ve taken a lot of the joy out of things that used to be joyful.” Even a lot of music lessons have become about the discipline of learning to play well, not the joy of creating the music. Children should have part of every lesson reserved for improvisation and free form play, Limb said. The same could be said for free play on the playground and experimentation with new ideas in the classroom. Unprogrammed time is necessary for students to practice using their creativity.
In recent years many schools have cut their art programs as non-‐essential subjects. At the same time, leaders are crying for more creative thinking in students. “We tend to look at education of creative aspects of children as something that happens incidentally and that is entertainment-‐based,” Limb said. But that misses the connection between creativity and the idea generation necessary for strong problem solving skills. “Art may be one of the best ways to train the brain to have this kind of creative fluency,” Limb said. He believes art is as central to education as math and reading, especially when created in collaborative environments like band or orchestra.
Limb is working to set up an experiment testing his theory with kids who have never had drawing or music lessons before. He’d like to see what’s going on in their brains when first allowed to improvise. Capturing the brain as it begins to create could help deepen an understanding of how to support creative growth.
Creativity may even be hardwired into human brains, an essential feature that has allowed the species to adapt repeatedly over the course of history. “Very early on there’s this need for the brain to be able to come up with something that it didn’t know before, that’s not being taught to it, but to find a way to figure something out that’s creative,” Limb said. “That’s always been essential for human survival.”
Creating is core to the human experience throughout time, Limb says. “The brain has been hard wired to seek creative or artistic endeavors forever,” he said. “We don’t need it to survive, you wouldn’t think, and yet the brain wants it and seeks it.”
Interestingly, the creating brain looks a lot like the dreaming brain, one of the most creative states humans can enter, but one associated with unconsciousness. Similar to what Limb observed in jazz musicians, when people dream the self-‐monitoring part of the brain is suppressed and the default network in the brain takes over. This is the introspective part of the brain, as well as the autobiographical part. That’s why dreams feel so personal, pulling from experiences or recent worries. “The brain is an organ and some of its functions are geared toward generation of unpredictable ideas,” Limb said. That’s just how it’s meant to function.
To comment on this story or anything else you have read in the Newsletter, head over to the IMA Facebook page or message us on Twitter.
International Music Academy
GIFT CERTIFICATE for new students only
ONE FREE LESSON
Call the IMA Office at 905.489.4620 to schedule your first lesson.
Once scheduled, the lesson cannot be rescheduled. Cannot be combined with any other offer. No refunds, no exchanges.
Music is sooooooooo beuatiful!
Register for lessons by
January 26, 2015 and receive
$30 off New students only.
Cannot be combined with any other offer.
REFER A NEW STUDENT and GET ONE FREE LESSON! When you refer a new student to the IMA, who registers for lesson, you will get one free lesson for every new student. So, if you refer the IMA to 2 new students, we will give you 2 free lessons; for 3 new students – 3 free lessons etc. Fill in the coupon below and leave it with the IMA Office administrator. Your name: ______________________________ Name of the new student: __________________ You can print or photocopy this coupon as many times as you need.
Cannot be combined with any other offer.
