Vol. 2 Issue 3 | A PUBLICATION OF THE YOUNG MUSICIAN'S UNIVERSITY
Happy Birthday YMU BEHIND THE SCENES WITH SHONTE DARBY
ADRYAN ROFF YMU STUDENT SPOTLIGHT
FAMILY DINNER
WITH KIRK FRANKLIN
The Young Musician's University
2
IN THIS ISSUE
DIRECTOR'S NOTE
The Young Musician's University celebrates 19 years of Giving the Gift of Music to thousands of students through music education, after-school programming, summer camps, and community events! Thank you for reading The YMU Collective as we highlight YMU Students, Staff, and other subjects of interest. If you are a YMU student interested in contributing and being a part of the YMU Collective Team, please send me a message through the YMU Portal. I would love to speak with you and get your insight. Please know that you do not have to be a local student to participate, we will have virtual connect meetings to discuss upcoming events and content. I hope that you enjoy this publication of the YMU Collective!
4 YMU Student Spotlight Adryan Roff
5 Happy Birthday YMU Tribute Video 12 YMU Instructor Alum Kitwan McCoy asked Kirk Franklin this one question
Mrs. Gray Director, The Young Musician's University 3
THE YOUNG MUSICIAN'S UNIVERSITY
STUDENT SPOTLIGHT
Adryan Roff CONGRATS!!
Our student spotlights recognize students who are exceptionally demonstrating growth and musically excelling. We are so grateful to be associated with these fantastic students and their supportive parents! Again, congratulations Adryan! Keep up the great work!
ABOUT ADRYAN Adryan Roff is 9 years old and lives in Virginia with his parents and two younger brothers. He loves to draw and paint and aspires to be an artist. Adryan loves spending time with his family and enjoys the outdoors. In his free time, he loves to watch Master Chef Junior and play tennis. He recently just joined the Suffolk tennis team. Adryan loves playing the drums and wants to be a musician when he grows up.
For this month's Student Spotlight, I nominate Adryan Roff. Adryan recently began taking drums at YMU and is showing great determination to be so young. He comes to class ready to learn, has a great attitude, and accepts new challenges. Adryan also has a great support system. Shoutout to his parents, who make sure he has what he needs and supports him during each class.
~ Kierra Gray, YMU Instructor 4
Happy Birthday YMU! March 2022 makes 19 years of Giving the Gift of Music! We are so honored to have impacted thousands of kids through music education, community events, afterschool programming, summer camps, and more! We are excited about the future of YMU and we thank you for being connected with us!
Check out this special tribute video!
PLAY 5
BELLA WALL - LME PIANO 2A JOSHUA ADAMS - EAR TRAINING ESSENTIALS 2 TIERRA INGRAM - EAR TRAINING ESSENTIALS 2 6
Bella Wall - March 5th Tierra Ingram - March 17th *If your child's birthday is not listed, please contact the office so that we can add their DOB to their student profile.
7
Confessions of a Music Mom
FAMILY DINNER By Mrs. Gray Confessions of a Music Mom TIP: If you don't have family dinner together don't feel bad. Just take this opportunity to start small and designate one or two days out of the week to disconnect from electronics and sit together at the dinner table. The older and busier our kids get the more important it is to maintain a connection with them, and the dinner table is a great place to start! There are also great online resources to help you get started such as The Family Dinner Project!
8
I was at the park with my four-year-old not too long ago where I met some other parents. We began to talk and then one of them turned to me and said, "Is she your only one?" I smiled and said, "No. I also have a 22-year-old daughter." They looked at me in disbelief and it was kind of an awkward moment. By now I find it funny how people react when they find out what the age gap is between my girls. Hopefully, it's because I don't look a year past twenty-five, ha! After the initial shock, one of the dads at the park said, "So you're a veteran! What piece of advice can you give us that will help us in raising our kids?" Without hesitation, I said, "Have dinner together at the table as much as possible." As a busy mom of two girls that are into activities such as music and dance, I've found that our time to connect as a family is over dinner. It's at the dinner table that we're able to slow down, talk about our day, and create a consistent rhythm even when things around us seem chaotic at times. The dinner table has become a cherished tradition in our house and also allows my oldest daughter to explore her love for cooking nutritious meals rather than grabbing something fast. Come to think about it, our dinner table knows it all. We were sitting around it when my, at the time, middle schooler was crying her eyes out because she felt overwhelmed by schoolwork. And it was there when we celebrated my youngest daughter's 1st birthday. I'm sure if our table could talk it would have a lot to share! Would yours?
YMU Legacy features past GMG throwback videos of recitals, concerts, workshops and other GMG moments that are now a part of the YMU Legacy! Check out this YMU Legacy moment with YMU Instructor Alum, Shonte Darby as he shows behindthe-scenes footage leading up to a summer camp production. Shonte Darby now owns and operates a TV network called Kingdom Cultured TV, a faithbased television network committed to providing clean entertainment. Enjoy a piece of YMU history!
PLAY 9
PRE-SCHOOL CHILDREN WHO CAN KEEP A BEAT ARE MORE LIKELY TO BE BETTER READERS AND TALKERS
Having this depth of understanding behind why beat synchronisation and language processing and reading skills are connected can only strengthen music education teaching and advocacy. 10
Research undertaken in 2014 by a team of Northwestern University researchers in Illinois, led by Dr. Kali Carr, has now been updated in 2021. The original research found that the ability to synchronize with a beat could indicate how well children of pre-school age would develop their future reading skills. Now in 2021, a Brainvolts team study led by Dr. Silvia Bonacina, and based on Carr’s work, has made several leaps forward in this area of research. The first was with the number of participants: from 35 preschoolers in the Chicago area in 2014 to 156 preschoolers in 2021. This is important because the more participants there are in a study the more robust or reliable the findings are. Another was finding that the children who were classified as synchronizers –meaning they could synchronize with different types of beats – also scored higher on pre-literacy tests. That’s because they can process speech sounds and detect changes in those sounds faster and with greater accuracy. And possibly the most interesting development is the deeper understanding of how beat and reading are connecting in the brain. The new study found that rhythm, pre-literacy, and auditory processing are interconnected during early childhood. The brain needs to process the components of language through many messages firing around the brain at the same time. To learn a language, and to keep a beat, you have to develop circuits that these messages can travel along. Bonacina and her team make a powerful argument that the cognitive development of preschoolers in relation to pre-literacy (i.e. what children know about reading and writing before they can actually read and write) should also include musical activities that focus on auditory processing and accurate beat keeping. Having this depth of understanding behind why beat synchronization and language processing and reading skills are connected can only strengthen music education teaching and advocacy. Reproduced with permission from MUSIC EDUCATION WORKS
11
Instructor Alum
12
Kitwan McCoy asked Kirk Franklin this one question
"My question was, what do you wish someone had told you going into the music industry? So much wisdom and knowledge in this one person! Words can’t express how grateful I am to have had the opportunity to pick this guy’s brain, even if only for a moment! I’ve been meditating on these words ever since. It’s been having me think about how creativity is so powerful and intrinsic to just being human. It levels the playing field for everyone! It has no derivation in skill, age, or even intellect! It’s just…there!-And available for you to take advantage of at a moment’s notice! Too often, we allow others to dictate to us the “value” of our creativity, causing us to become discouraged or “fearful” of creating or being criticized for what we’ve created. When all in all, it’s that act in itself that has validated our work, our creation! -That God-like characteristic! God has created you to create, so allow him to manifest through you!" -Kitwan McCoy Hebrews 3:4 “For every house is built by someone, but God is the builder of everything.”
PLAY PLAY Watch the video to see what Kirk Franklin shared with Mr. McCoy! 13
The Young Musician's University
In-Person or Online Instruction
1-844-YMU-NOW-1 803-728-3399 www.ymunow.com 14
5
"THE BEAUTIFUL THING ABOUT LEARNING IS THAT NOBODY CAN TAKE IT AWAY FROM YOU."
B.B. King The Young Musician's University
www.ymunow.com
15
Meet one of our LME Piano Students! Her name is Kylie and she's 4 years old. She loves to dance, sing and play the piano. MEET KYLIE
16
music Essentials LITTLE
AWARD WINNING CURRICULUM
LEARNING MANAGEMENT SYSTEM
WEEKLY 30-MINUTE PRIVATE PIANO LESSON
INTERACTIVE GAMES
MATERIALS INCLUDE FLASH CARDS, MUSIC BAG AND LESSON BOOKS
IMAGINATIVE LIVE INSTRUCTION
music Essentials LITTLE
Little Music Essentials is a piano program designed for kids ages 4-6. We use an awardwinning curriculum comprised of singing, dancing, and ear training to foster your child's love for music! LEARN MORE
17
The Young Musician's University
2003
2022