Loose Threads

The workshop group at Kobe College

(…continued….this is Part II of the workshop for Japan description)     
 
After the break, we sit down for a short presentation on “What a Teaching Artist Does in the US.” I use the seven categories that Eric Booth has been promulgating at places Lincoln Center Education and across the country:
 
The Six (plus one) Purpose Threads of the Teaching Artist Field
 
Work of art.                                    To enhance the encounter with art works. 
Skills development.                      To deepen the development of art-making skills. 
Arts integration.                            To catalyze the learning of non-arts content. 
Community quality of life.            To increase the livability of communities. 
Social development.                      To develop personal or social capacities. 
Other instrumental goals.             To achieve institutional goals through the arts.
+ Digital.                                          To activate personal artistry in digital media. 
 
I provide personal examples of every kind of work listed above - a case study for each. We have already done a live example of the aesthetic ed model, so that’s covered. I am lucky to have good documentation for work that exemplifies skill development (a 6th grade choral project and a 5th grade graduation project from PS 199), arts integration (a 4th grade literacy workshop), community quality of life (a Carnegie Hall creative learning project), social development (the Lullaby Project), other instrumental goals (Metropolitan Opera HD conference for teachers), and digital (here I use Eric Whitacre’s online choral project…). We have subtitled all the films and slides so they can be read in Japanese! Once they are steeped in these examples, then we talk about teaching artistry and how music plays out in their lives. Lots of questions and comments, and the threads provide a terrific framework for discussion. So once again, thanks, Eric Booth!
 
At Kobe College, we ended the week on a high note. Deborah and I hopped on a train for Kyoto, where we have just spent a glorious and moving weekend. More on the much needed weekend break in the next blog entry!   

Kyoto Tower as you come out of the station