Brass-ics! is the system Raul built at WHIN, where fundamentals, repertoire, and music theory are one structure instead of three separate things students have to connect on their own. Instruction runs in Spanish and English. He shows how literacy sits inside instrumental teaching rather than beside it, and how a shared vocabulary gives students ownership of their own progress. Built for brass, and the design carries to any section you teach.

Major gifts do not happen by accident, and they do not happen by script either. Most of Derry’s clients need the same thing: a practical structure for moving a donor relationship toward an ask without asking too soon or cultivating forever. He walks through the Three Meetings Method, a no-script meeting planning template, and how to secure the meeting in the first place. For executive directors, development staff, and board members who want more clarity and less anxiety in their major gift work, timed to land ahead of the July 1 fiscal year.

Songs with minstrel and caricature histories are still sitting in method books and ensemble arrangements, and they often reach teachers with no context attached. Maria walks through how they got there, then separates the musical skill from the song, because articulation and phrasing can be taught through many traditions. You will leave with a framework for deciding when to teach the history and when to replace the piece, and a checklist for reviewing your own library.

Teaching artists often plan alone, with no department and no template. Angela has spent her career building professional learning for music educators, most recently coaching teacher leaders nationwide through NAfME’s Connected Arts Networks. She works through the practical side: building a unit that holds up across weeks, adjusting when the room does not cooperate, and writing plans someone else could pick up. Timed for the end of the year, when next year gets built.