Patrice
Rushen, internationally renowned musician, composer, music director and chair
of the University of Southern California’s Popular Music Program, joins the
PlayTheGroove educational advisory team and endorses their new digital delivery
system. She declares it "an effective & necessary tool for today’s
aspiring musicians and teachers." Her endorsement recognizes the
importance of PlayTheGroove’s mission to create a critical and necessary
paradigm shift in music education.
The PTG
advisory team also includes Chris Stevens, jazz educator at Long Beach
Polytechnic High School and president of the California Alliance for Jazz;
Aaron Kohen, jazz educator at Las Virgenes Unified School District; and Tony
White, Coordinator for the Los Angeles Unified School District’s Beyond the
Bell program.
This
advisory team works diligently to make sure all PTG songs, music styles, charts
and teacher methodologies are educationally sound while being exciting,
engaging and challenging for middle, high school and college students to play.
The advisory team also creates effective and detailed guidelines that introduce
these modern, global styles while giving beneficial tips for teachers and
students on the new material.
"This
is not your average, common musical program," Rushen said.
"PlayTheGroove allows all musicians to dive right in regardless of skill
level, number of people in the band or orchestra & no matter how diverse
instrumentation... it gets you to the music you love right away."
PlayTheGroove
President and founder Richard Frank recognized the lack of modern world music
in today’s schools and developed the site to address that void. "We’ve
named our first signature product ‘PlayTheGroove Platinum Unison Chart’,"
he said, "because ‘standard’ is what everyone else does! Our charts are
immensely flexible & work for any instrumentation or group size and they
come with an expanded rhythm section at varying skill levels."
Frank
also emphasizes the importance of unison charts when learning new music.
"I’ve talked to high school seniors who have never played a melody on
their instrument. These charts allow everyone to play the melody while learning
about rhythm, phrasing, improvisation, theory and tone - all at the same
time."
PlayTheGroove’s
goals include music education integration such as in-school/on-site clinics and
performance exposure. The company currently works with the nationally
recognized USC Popular Music Program, utilizing students who are proficient in
instrumental and vocal chart preparation. PTG has designed professional
development presentations and is a part of Tony White's award-winning Beyond
the Bell program. Together, they are introducing exciting contemporary world
music styles & fresh handcrafted charts and learning modules directly to
music programs of the Los Angeles Unified School District. A new force in music
education, PlayTheGroove is forging similar partnerships & programs in
other school districts.
Multi-Grammy
nominated artist, Patrice Rushen, is fashioning her career after the legacy of
her long-time friend and mentor, Quincy Jones. Composer... Producer...
International Recording Artist... Rushen has definitely earned the respect she
has been awarded by her peers in the music industry.
Rushen
has amassed an impressive list of "firsts". She was the first woman
to serve as Musical Director for the 46th, 47th & 48th Annual Grammy
Awards, the first woman in 43 years to serve as Head Composer/Musical Director
for television’s highest honor, the Emmy Awards, and the first woman Musical
Director of the NAACP Image Awards, an honor she held for 12 consecutive years.
Rushen has also been the only woman Musical Director/Composer for the Peoples
Choice Awards and HBO’s Comic Relief. She was the only woman Musical
Director/Conductor/Arranger for a late-night television talk show. The show was
The Midnight Hour, which aired on CBS. In addition, Rushen was named the
Musical Director/Composer for Newsweek’s first American Achievement Awards,
broadcast from the Kennedy Center and she served as the Musical Director for
Janet Jackson’s World Tour, "janet." As the Musical Director for the
award shows, she composed and performed special musical tributes to such
celebrities as Michael Landon, Ted Turner, Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz, The
Temptations, James Garner and Leonard Bernstein. Rushen was named Composer in
Residence during the August 2004 sessions at the Henry Mancini Institute.
PlayTheGroove’s
mission is to create a necessary paradigm shift in music education by
fine-tuning & expanding the tools required to teach & learn new music.
It is a one-stop destination for the distribution of printable/digital PDF
charts and mp3s in modern world music styles. In addition to professional, detailed
lead sheets for all rhythm section-based instruments, the company includes
group packs that have comprehensive parts, scores and guidelines a teacher
needs for a school group of any size to perform the song. Ushering in a 21st
century approach that allows new music from a broader, more diverse spectrum,
PlayTheGroove is aiming to stimulate a cultural evolution in schools that
mirrors the changing landscape of musical preferences, cultural heritage,
demographics & unprecedented global access through digital tools. All
songs, charts and teacher guidelines are edited and educationally approved
through an elite team of professional music educators.
No comments:
Post a Comment