Learning and Leading - March/April 2010

Playing with Skype
Skype makes it possible for educators to seek

Ihave attended many performances where the composer, as the guest conductor for an honors band, has shared personal insights. It’s a great opportunity for students to directly connect with the artist whose music the students are performing. But short of flying them in for just one song, it’s difficult to bridge the gap between the composers of school band music and the students and audience they are seeking to engage. I thought there had to be a way to help those who write great music connect with the students who bring it to life and the families who are listening.

With the help of my friend and colleague, Joseph M. Pisano of Grove City College in Pennsylvania, I came up with a way to bring composers to live concerts using technology. Pisano and I invited our mutual friend and colleague, Jason Davis, into my eighth grade general music classroom using Skype. Davis, then a freelance musician and licensing agent, spent 45 minutes discussing copyright laws, the music business, and censorship. Over lunch that day, the idea to use Skype at a live concert came to us.

conversation that was very meaningful to the students and the audience.

Making It Happen

The equipment requirements were
very minimal: a computer with a
broadband Internet connection, a
data projector, a couple of micro-
phones, a webcam, some adapters
to pump the audio feed through the
sound system, and a projector screen.
A lot of this hardware was available
at our school through a grant from
Classrooms for the Future. The tech-
nology coordinator and staff made
sure we had a good connection, and
several of Pisano’s students from
Grove City College assisted with
behind-the-scenes work.

Enriching and Easy Too

I have one steadfast rule about using technology in my classroom and rehearsal hall: If it makes for a richer educational experience, then it is worth it. This experiment was certainly enriching and well worth the brief amount of time it took for everyone to figure it out.

Skype’s ease of use as a telecommunication platform is unrivaled. We used the free version for each of the three calls. We went to www. skype.com, signed up in a few simple steps, and after a brief installation, Skype was ready to use.