Episode 231: It’s Process AND Product with Andrew Schmidt

There is a paradox between performance and pedagogy. Are we teaching our ensembles to perform? Or are we teaching them skills that LEAD them to become performers? Is it time for a paradigm shift?

This week, I am thrilled to bring you a fascinating conversation with Dr. Andrew Schmidt, an accomplished music educator and researcher. Andrew’s passion for music cognition and educational PROCESS takes us on a deep dive into the relationship between learning music, performance, and cognitive development.

Together, we unpack the challenges of conducting meaningful research in our field, the nuanced differences between instrumental and vocal instruction, and the power of teaching students the why behind the what in music education. Often times, ensemble music teachers feel the pressure to put the performance on the calendar and then sprint!

This episode is about more than just music; it’s about helping students connect the dots, fostering executive function, and balancing the process of learning with the magic of performance. It’s about TEACHING. Andrew also shares some thought-provoking ideas on teaching powerful knowledge in rehearsals and rethinking how we engage students with music.

Tune in, and have your thinking stimulated and challenged. Then, weigh in yourself with your related ideas and experiences on Facebook in the Choralosophers group or over on choralosophy.substack.com Also, don’t forget to grab a reading rope for your classroom wall from the shop! Music Reading Rope

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Andrew Schmidt in faculty at Kennesaw State University where he teaches in the school of music and musical theater program. He is also part of the music education faculty at Georgia State Univesity where he teaches choral methods. Andrew is also a freelance singer, and conductor, as well as the founder and Artistic Director of EarlyBird, a professional chamber chorus, Voces Altum, an advanced treble chorus, and Music Director of the Summer Singers of Atlanta. He holds a PhD in Music Education from Georgia State University, an M.M. in Choral Conducting from the University of Washington as well as a B.M.E. from Northwestern University, Evanston, Il. Andrew recently achieved his certificate of Estill Voice Figure Proficiency. He holds a Brain and Behaviors Fellowship through the GSU Neuroscience program.

Andrew’s research examines the intersection of vocal and choral pedagogy with an emphasis on building individual and group multivocality (where a person’s musical identity matches their individual identity). In practice, by teaching multivocality through a rigorous pedagogical framework, he hopes to rectify academic inequities in music education.

Andrew sings bass with professional choirs like Kinnara, The Thirteen, The Santa Fe Desert Chorale, and The Crossing. He can be found on recordings by both Kinnara (Provenance) and The Thirteen (Truth & Fable).

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