The F-flat Books Blog is a community-run blog exploring a variety of topics in music teaching and learning.
Browse posts by category or check out the most recent posts below.
Allow me to introduce myself
There was a subtle but noticeable change when I received my PhD. I was not treated the same. I noticed parent emails were slightly more forgiving, and my opinion seemed to be more valuable than before those three letters followed my name. I noticed a similar change with my friends and colleagues from my PhD program. We were no longer students, we were experts (or, at least we were supposed to be). “What do you do?” Once I started attending and presenting at multiple conferences each year, I [...]
Music Beyond the Classroom: Interview with C.J. Blair
For the next installment of our Music Beyond the Classroom series, we're interviewing master-of-all-trades, C.J. Blair. In a whirlwind career in the music industry, C.J. has worn many hats: guitarist, guitar tech, front of house sound, engineer, and, most recently served as the production manager for Khalid's national and international tour this past year. From setting up a show at SNL, to managing a tour overseas, his work has taken him all over the globe. We asked him to share more about his work and how he got to the [...]
Writing is all about editing
Some people seem to think that it stops with the writing – you throw down a flurry of words in a whirlwind of creative enthusiasm and walk away. NO!!! Initial writing often involves pouring out emotions and ideas. If you’re writing on something you care about, chances are it’ll come thick and fast. Now is not the time for deliberation and over-thinking. Just write the things down, get it all out, and be sure to come back later to fix all your mistakes. However, editing and reviewing [...]
Music Beyond the Classroom: Interview with Composer, Richard Taylor
For the next installment of our "Music Beyond the Classroom" series, we sat down with composer, Richard Taylor. Richard studied composition at the Royal Northern College of Music in the UK, and has been working as a composer ever since. His credits include classical commissions and music written for the theater. Check out the music from his West End musical, Flowers for Mrs. Harris (video below), and his collaboration with an R&B artist, Shaquille Rayes (video at the bottom of the page). Thank you for sharing your [...]
The scariest thing in your music classroom
A few weeks ago, I was on a Facebook forum for music teachers. Someone posed a question about popular music education—the essence of the post was prodding at the philosophy of music educators and whether or not they view popular music as a valid area of study. And, more importantly, should teachers incorporate other types of teaching/learning into their music curriculum? I was completely fascinated as I read through the comments. There were many strong opinions in all directions. But, what surprised me the most had nothing to [...]
Want to learn guitar? Start here.
Creating a Companion Method Hi everyone! I’d like to take a few minutes to tell you about my new method book, The Oz Guitar Method. There are hundreds of guitar methods out there, but I decided to write this book based on research and positive results from my students over the years. While there are lots of great books out there, The Oz Guitar Method can work side by side with any other method books you may already be using. Many method books spend too little time and [...]
3 Tips on how to sell your eBook
So, you want to sell your eBook but don't know where to start? Perhaps you're an author on our site, perhaps not. Perhaps you write music eBooks, perhaps eBooks on underwater Parcheesi strategy. Regardless, It's my guess that what we have found works here at F-flat is applicable for other sites and subjects. And, hopefully, I can help you get your eBook selling with just a few tips. And, if they all seem to you as "well, duh, that's obvious" kind of tips; I can tell you for [...]
Music beyond the classroom: Interview with guitarist, Haley Powers
You should Follow Haley on Instagram Do you follow Haley Powers on Instagram? You need to. Not only will you see beautiful, sun-drenched videos of her playing guitar and sharing her board setup; you'll be inspired to be a better guitarist and all-around person. Haley Powers is a guitarist/blogger living in Nashville. She shares her work to help guitarists learn how to play better and build their brands. Aside from playing with a number of bands, she also is a social media guru and provides inspirational [...]
Relief, burnout, grief, and a broken system: Why I left teaching
“I’m so shocked.” My previous principal spoke that phrase nearly 20 times when I told him I was leaving the school and the profession. I couldn’t help but wonder, “How can he be shocked?” None of my coworkers were. Though many expressed authentic gratefulness for my time and work at the school, nearly all seemed to feel a sense of relief for me. Others seemed to feel some small envy or regret: “Sure, there’s plenty of other things I’ve thought about doing, plenty of times I wanted to [...]
Five tips for presenting at a conference
Sarah at the ISME conference in Glasgow You've been teaching and researching and doing all of the things (all of them). You decide to take the plunge and submit an application for a conference. Your abstract is complete, you've edited your work, and you click submit. Then, after waiting for months, you receive an email that makes your stomach flip: "Congratulations! Your paper presentation/workshop/poster, has been accepted for presentation at the...". You're elated! You tell your friends and family the good news. And then, it hits [...]
Welcome to McDonald’s: Media and Child’s Play
Dr. Martina Vasil is the Assistant Professor of Music Education at The University of Kentucky. In this post, she shares lessons learned from a research project she completed during her doctoral studies. During that study, she observed children at play to learn more about their musical interactions outside of the classroom. When I set out to collect playground games in 2013, I had a deep concern that I would see nothing—that I would see children outside with tablets and cell phones not interacting with each other. How [...]
Music Beyond the Classroom: Interview with the band, TeamMate
To kick off our new series, "Music Beyond the Classroom," we caught up with the band, TeamMate, currently based in Los Angeles. TeamMate is a pop rock duo comprised of Scott Simons and Dani Buncher. Scott serves as keyboardist and Dani plays the drums. Both of them sing. They play an energetic brand of rock that is simultaneously catchy and full of depth. Not only are they great performers (Scott also performs as the keyboardist for America's Got Talent and music director for Little Big Shots), they are [...]