November proved to be a busy month for Dr. Alan Goldspiel with several performances and a Music Educators conference, which had him traveling from Alabama to Mississippi and Arizona and back again.
November 3, 2017 – The month started off with Goldspiel performing two pieces on a recital at the Mississippi Music Teachers Association’s (MMTA) Fall Conference at Millsaps College in Jackson, Mississippi.
The first piece Goldspiel performed at this event was the World Premiere of Sipsey Sweet by composer Joe L. Alexander. The piece was specifically written for Goldspiel and was commissioned by the MMTA.
Goldspiel then performed his composition, Yom HaShoah. This was only the second time the piece was performed in its entirety since the World Premiere on October 20th, 2017 at the NACUSA (National Association of Composers/USA-Mid-South) event at the University of Montevallo. Click here to read more about Yom HaShoah’s World Premiere
November 11, 2017 – Next up for Goldspiel was a Guest Artist Recital at Mississippi University for Woman in Columbus, Mississippi.
Here Goldspiel again performed Joe L. Alexander’s MMTA commissioned piece entitled Sipsey Sweet. He also performed his own composition, Yom HaShoah.
Lastly, Dr. Goldspiel performed three movements from his piece Nature Sketches, which he wrote in 2007. The movements performed were Twilight, Dark Clouds, and Windstorm. When asked about the background of the piece, Goldspiel said that he “was inspired to create sound environments for various nature tableaus.” He also stated, “I really wanted to musically represent states of mind, emotion, and sensation about nature in its many forms. I created the music and then determined what that best felt like. In some instances, I set out to create one mood or sound environment and came up with something totally different.”
November 18-21, 2017 – The next weekend in November found Professor Goldspiel travelling to Scottsdale, Arizona to attend the annual conference of the National Association of Schools of Music (NASM). The National Association of Schools of Music is an organization that “establishes the national standards for undergraduate and graduate degrees and other credentials for music and music-related disciplines.” (for more information about NASM click here)
During this three-day conference, Dr. Goldspiel attended several sessions including: Regional Meetings-Elections and Discussion; Plenary Business Meeting And Keynote Address; Effective Teaching/Engaged Learning, Part I – The On Ramp; Effective Teaching/Engaged Learning, Part II – Retraining/Retooling; Briefing For NASM Evaluators; Briefing For Moderators And Recorders; Roundtable Discussions -Imagining The Future Of Music Study (Dr. Goldspiel served as a Recorder for this session); and Teaching Music Theory In The 21st Century.
When asked why he felt attending these conferences were important, Dr. Goldspiel stated “I attend these meetings each year to keep current with the other music executives and as a NASM Visiting Evaluator I need to be on top of all changes and discussions regarding standards. It is also interesting to be among those whose daily work mirrors my own. These colleagues understand most what I do, and we often discuss our similar situations.”