Everyday Artist Spotlight: Angela Shultz

We are beyond pleased to introduce you to an exceptional theatre and cabaret artist, Angela Shultz, who is a triple threat: brilliant singer, stunning actor and accomplished producer! Most recently, she co-founded The Stomping Ground Theatre Company in midtown Manhattan, a non-profit theatre that is committed to diversity and social justice.  Angela has done it all and we were thrilled to have the opportunity to ask her some questions to learn more about what inspires and drives her work, what role arts education has played in her life as well as get the inside scoop on what she’s currently cooking up in the arts world.

Why is your art important to you?

Music, especially, is the one thing that has been incredibly consistent in my life. I've moved around and relationships come and go, but I've always had an outlet when I sing. Sometimes I can understand what I'm feeling in a more succinct way because another artist has put words and music to those emotions, and I don't know where I'd be without that! How cheesy is that?

What do you want your art to say?

Whether I'm singing/acting or producing (which I do more of these days), I love how the arts can give voice to people who are often voiceless. I love to perform characters who say things that are difficult to express. As a producer, I love that we get to share stories of people you don't always encounter face-to-face in real life. I'm also passionate about presenting new work. There are endless numbers of talented people in New York City (and around the world, of course) and some simply need to find an audience.

What project are you working on now?

Stomping Ground Theatre Co. is producing Cover: A Play About Trafficking on March 23-24. It's a compelling play by Joy Powell which is inspired by the work of The Covering House in St. Louis. The plays tells the story of the sex trafficking survivors and the women who helped them.

Who is your favorite artist?

Too many to name! I am, of course, a huge fan of my lifelong friend Brett Kristofferson. His musical theatre work is incredibly rich and powerful and is an absolute thrill to sing or experience as audience.

How has arts education impacted your life?

My early teachers taught me so much about loving music and theatre, but also about how important it is to work hard no matter what you're doing. Arts education taught me how to be independent and figure things out for myself, but it also taught me the value all members of an ensemble bring to a project. It gave me confidence and focus, and a way to understand some parts of the world around me.

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Biography:

ANGELA SHULTZ National Tour: Titanic (Alice Beane), NYC Theatre: York Theatre reading – Paris Through the Window (Muse), Assassins (Sara Jane Moore – 5th Floor), Falsettos (Cordelia - Wingspan Arts), The Wasp Woman (Phyllis Futch/reading) and Halloween Hullabaloo (Workshop). Regional credits: Titanic (Alice Beane), Nunset Blvd (Reverend Mother), Closer Than Ever, The Secret Garden (Martha), Company (Marta) Bat Boy (Ruthie/Ned), Nunsense (Rev Mo and Hubert), Godspell (Joanne and Sonia). She is the 2010 recipient of the Hanson Award from the Manhattan Association of Cabarets and Clubs, as well as a 2012 Nominee for Best Female Vocalist. Angela also directed Hector Coris’ 2010 MAC Award-winning performance in Life is Wonderful. Education: Master’s in Theatre Education (Fontbonne University), Bachelor of Music (Missouri Baptist University). Angela also directed cabaret shows for Jerry Phelps and the recent Off-Off Broadway production of Steel Magnolias. She taught for Professional Performing Arts School in NYC as well as Fontbonne and Missouri Baptist Universities, and Stages St. Louis. Angela is a co-founder of Stomping Ground Theatre Company in midtown Manhattan. For more info, please visit www.angelashultz.com

iPads in the Music Classroom

by JoAnn Struck

At the beginning of the school year, our district decided it would be a grand idea to put an iPad in the hands of each middle school student.  Whether I thought this was a good idea or not, I had to find a way to make use of them in my classroom. Here are a few of the things I do in my choir and music appreciation classes.

Our district is knee deep with the Google world so all these assignments were done through Google Classroom but it could easily be done with other applications such as Showbie.

For my choir classes:

1.  Sight reading.  For many years, I did as I was taught, and only taught sight-reading through singing.  It’s really hard to do that as a beginning music reader.  We ask them to use hand signs, sing syllables and understand everything on the staff AT THE SAME TIME.  It’s crazy for sure!  As I matured as a teacher, I quickly learned that in order to meet the needs of all the learning types, I needed to have the students do sight-reading on paper……writing the syllables under each note.  This helped my kids but with the pressure of performances I waited too late in the year to begin this type of work.  With the iPads I started this type of learning early in the year.  I used music writing software and created exercises that matched where we were in the music reading process.  Some of my new-to-choir students were really struggling with the whole music reading business and in just a few assignments they were pretty much caught up.  It was quite amazing.

2.  This website has been a life saver:  http://www.musictheory.net

Choose “exercises” at the top then scroll all the way to the bottom.

The exercise customizer allows you to choose the type of lesson and change the settings before the students even see it.  My students don’t realize you can even change the settings!  Note name practice is so easy this way and the kids don’t mind doing 100 note names (as they get better they finish this really quickly).  You can make it as easy or as challenging as necessary.  If you have students who have more experience than others, you can show them how to change the settings and give them more advanced exercises.  The note construction exercises are designed to have the students place the notes on the staff instead of just naming the notes.

There is an app you can purchase but it’s on the expensive side.  The website is free and an awesome resource if you have devices available to you.  My students have certainly benefited from using this program.

3.  If you are challenged by your administration to include reading or writing in your classroom, like I am, here’s a really fun way to do that.  Included in each week’s iPad assignment I include a lyrics challenge.  I give them a song they know well (i.e. Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star or The Wheels on the Bus) and have them rewrite the lyrics.  My assignments look something like this:

Turn this song into a birthday song.  

·       You MAY NOT use any of the existing lyrics.  ALL lyrics should be changed.

·       Be sure the words rhyme in the same places as the original song

·       ONE syllable per note

Some students are delighted with the challenge.  Others are in physical pain.  It’s really fun to watch them.  I don’t take grades on these but it becomes an exercise in creativity, reading and following instructions and using language in a different way.  Sometimes we sing their creations (with the student’s permission of course) and we all have a great laugh.  Sometimes we are amazed with their incredible lyrics.  It’s great fun!

For my music appreciation classes, I do many of the same types of assignments as my choir classes.  I often do projects with them and I can send them the instructions and information through Google Classroom and it becomes a paperless classroom.  I don’t do everything through the iPads but for written work it’s pretty awesome.  I can grade everything in Google Classroom then post grades in my grade book without having to haul around papers. 

I hope you’ll give the devices a chance and experiment with ways to use them for your students.  It’s worth the effort!

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JoAnn Struck is in  her 33rd year of teaching music in public schools.  She has taught music for K-12th grade and has spent the last 25ish years teaching middle school choir at Capps Middle School in the Putnam City School District in Oklahoma City, OK.  She earned her B.M.E from Southern Nazarene University and her M.A in Choral Conducting from the Conservatory of Music at the University of Missouri-Kansas City.  She continues to question her sanity but truly loves teaching middle school.  She can be reached at jstruck@putnamcityschools.org

Finding Balance as a Professional Musician During the Holidays

by Kimberly Arnold

As we lead into the two busiest months of the year, I thought it might be a good time to make a plan regarding our “yeses” and “noes” for holiday entertainment this year. We all have opportunities come our way: some out of tradition (you’ve performed at this event for the past 7 years), some out of loyalty (how do you say no to Aunt Sally?), and some out of sheer excitement for the performance opportunity. But where is your balance between professional life and personal life? Last year I reached a point of making myself utterly sick on the day that I had two performances lined up. I had booked myself solid with performances the two weeks previous leading up to that particular day and I wore myself out. I still think about the fun opportunities I missed because I overbooked myself on events that held less appeal.

So what are some ways to help guard yourself against burn-out on performances this holiday season?

1. Be intentional with your schedule. If you do not set boundaries now, your schedule will be out of control before December even arrives. Decide how many performances you want to allow yourself to schedule and stick to it! As musicians, we get referrals to be holiday entertainment for events and some of those referrals are worth accepting, while some of them are worth letting go. Do not feel that you have to agree to every event you are offered. Be discerning and be decisive.
2. Build in time for friends and family. Musicians can get so involved with their art during the holiday season that their friends and family suffer. Make sure you stay involved in the happenings of your loved ones. Before agreeing to performances, make sure important dates of your family members are on your calendar. This will alleviate stress and guilt in the long run!
3. Make time to have fun. When our schedules only vacillate between work and performances, our optimism tanks and we can get tunnel vision with all of our commitments. Plan shopping trips, grab coffee or brunch with a friend, take time to watch your favorite Christmas movie...just put it on your calendar so you don’t forget to have some fun this holiday season!

From one musician to another, let’s commit to enjoy this season and all the performances we schedule. Be intentional in your yeses and noes and celebrate with friends and family often!

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Kimberly Arnold has taught private piano for over eighteen years and has taught in the music classroom from preschool through college. She currently resides in Oklahoma City where she teaches privately and at Mid-America Christian University. Kimberly holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Piano Performance from Southern Nazarene University and Master of Music in Music History from the University of Oklahoma. She can be reached at KimArnold78@gmail.com. 

An Ode to Edith

by Dianna Phelps

When I was growing up my favorite hour each week was the glorious hour I spent at Re-Creations Musicke Shoppe.  It was a quirky little place, jam-packed with any and everything you could think of that is related to music.  It was literally stuffed wall-to-wall.  At first glance you might think you were in an episode of Hoarders but after taking a closer look, you saw sheer magic. Everywhere you looked you could see an instrument and I don’t mean your run-of-the-mill guitars, pianos, horns and drums, although they were there too. I’m talking about instruments like a harpsicord, several hand-made dulcimers, an accordion and my favorite: a washboard. Every week during that holy hour, my brother and I had back-to-back, 30-minute music lessons.  When I was either waiting for my lesson to begin or waiting for my brother’s lesson to end, I wandered around the store exploring and taking in all of the exotic and fascinating things my small mind had never seen before.  I pretended I knew how to play all of the instruments and daydreamed about a world in which everything seemed possible.

We first began taking music lessons when we were 9 and 10 years old.  We had recently moved in with our Grandmother who knew that we both enjoyed learning to play the recorder while attending our previous school.  Even more, she knew that keeping us busy and engaged in something we enjoyed would help to ease the transition of our move, so she signed us up for recorder lessons.  Enter one Ms. Edith Duhon, the town music teacher.

Ms. Duhon was in her mid to late 50s, rocked the most pristine hair-do consisting of a neat bun with a tightly secured bow fastened directly underneath.  She was an anomaly for our small town.  She was well-educated, well-travelled, had no children and married late in life.  In rural Louisiana that was shocking, unheard of even.  I remember being instantly intrigued and smitten by her.  She was utterly brilliant, playing to some extent every instrument in her store.  Who does that? I surely had never met anyone that talented and I’m not sure I have since.

During one recorder lesson, Ms. Duhon had my brother and I sing a song together with her. She had one good listen and said, “Dianna, you need to find your voice.” What a lovely way of saying I was practically tone deaf.  She was like that. She could love you and make you feel valued while simultaneously telling you the cold, hard truth. After a while, I grew bored with recorder and my brother moved on to piano. She suggested I take voice lessons but I opted to stop taking lessons altogether. She didn’t give up though.  She would see me when my grandmother would pick my brother up from his lesson and would remind me that I needed to work on finding my voice and she could help me do it.  She was very convincing and it didn’t take long for me to begin taking voice lessons.  During high school, she would use this same persistence to keep me in lessons when I wanted to quit.  Each week I would work up the nerve to tell her I’d planned to stop lessons but before I could get around to it, she’d pull out all of my favorite pieces, make me sing them and I would fall in love with singing all over again. By the time I left my lesson I couldn’t imagine a world in which I didn’t get to sing with her and be in her presence for at least 30 minutes a week.

I could spend a lot of time writing about technical things I learned about music and singing during my lessons but, while those things are important and I’m grateful for having learned them, the best learning that I did during that time has nothing to do with actual music or singing.  Ms. Duhon taught me other lessons. Life lessons.  She said to me once, “Dianna, I had been to Europe and back three times before I married. You need to know that it’s important for you to have a life of your own before you share it with someone.”  Growing up in tiny-town Louisiana, I had never heard those words uttered by anyone.  It was a powerful realization that my life could be what I wanted to make it and it didn’t have to look like everyone else’s that surrounded me.  Those words were compelling. They felt like freedom and possibility.

Ms. Duhon didn’t just teach music and life-lessons, she exposed me to life through the arts in numerous ways over the course of our time together.  She took me to my first ballet.  I remember it like it was yesterday. I hated it.  But I remember being in awe of how glamorous she was for the event. She wore a dress and a costume jewelry broach and when we ate dinner beforehand at the buffet she pronounced the word boo-fay. She. Was. Everything.  She took me to my first opera, Samson and Delilah, which I loved.  She also took me to see Handel’s Messiah, which was the first time I remember falling in love with orchestra. These things might seem insignificant to some but these experiences enlarged my worldview exponentially and in ways none of my other life experiences had to that point.

In my case, music lessons didn’t produce a performer or a musician.  The totality of my music career consisted of singing at church and in college choir, and even then I had a strong apprehension to solos.  For me, music and singing is solely personal; something I have for myself and my enjoyment.  Ms. Duhon’s music lessons did help me find my voice and make me a singer but more importantly they instilled a deep, profound love of the arts, which makes my life richer.  They excited curiosity in me and made me seek understanding of the world in a new and more diverse way.  They gave me a much needed outlet to express my feelings and if you know me, you know I have ALL of the feelings.

On a recent trip to NYC to visit my brother, we were taking a train uptown and began reminiscing about Ms. Duhon and her influence.  By the time we reached our stop we were both crying.  We were crying because we felt an overwhelming sense of gratitude. We were crying because she was a magnificent human and through relationship and the gift of music, she changed the trajectory of our lives.  That isn’t something you take for granted. That’s something that you hold close and sacred. I’m not a musician but what I know with absolute certainty is that the arts are so subtlely and thoroughly woven into my life that the implications are long-lasting and far-reaching in ways I’ve yet to even understand.  Thank God and Ms. Duhon for that.

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Dianna Phelps is a school-based mental health professional with a proven track record of success in providing evidence-based supports and interventions.  Her areas of expertise include School Climate & Culture, Positive Behavior Interventions and Support, Social Emotional Learning, Behavior Intervention & Discipline and Multi-Tiered Systems of Support. Dianna currently lives in Atlanta and works for Fulton County Schools where she coaches teachers under the Disproportionality Project, which is aimed at plugging the school-to-prison pipeline by providing behavior intervention, restorative practices and support services to students in need.  Dianna holds a B.S. in Sociology from Southern Nazarene University, a M.A. in Counseling from Louisiana Tech University and has completed post graduate work at Loyola University Chicago in Advanced School-Based Mental Health Practice. 

How Art Education Affected Me, and Its Potential for Students

by Will Staton

As a child I didn't consider myself artistic. I drew a few pictures, as many children do, and I took music lessons briefly, but had little talent or inclination for it. However, I loved Legos. I had countless sets, and endlessly built, deconstructed, and reimagined them, creating entire pirate and knight worlds that covered tabletops in my childhood bedroom. My parents, thinking I might become an architect, encouraged my interest in Legos. 

Perhaps many people wouldn't consider playing with Legos as artistic. I certainly didn't until recently, but of course we count beautiful buildings and monuments as some of our most treasured cultural possessions: The Statue of Liberty; Taj Mahal; Eiffel Tower; shrines and temples and pagodas and churches; and increasingly, iconic skyscrapers, all of these stand out as great artistic achievements. And all of them were designed by people who, as children, played with Legos. 

Well not exactly. In fact it's possible that none of these were designed by people who played with Legos, but all of them were designed by people whose minds were nurtured by the creative spark that an arts education provides. 

At school children receive an education that is centered primarily on a core curriculum that includes reading and writing, math, science, and social studies. All of these are fundamentally important subjects, even if many adults don't remember or use all of the information they acquired in school on a routine basis. But arts ought to be included in this core curriculum for many reasons. 

The arts enhance interest and investment in other subjects. Arts give children a new, and often more exciting lens, to learn about other topics. To this end art classes compliment the core curriculum subjects, increasing engagement with the academic material, and fostering questions, as many arts classes explicitly teach children to think outside the box, whether that means drawing an imagined picture, writing a new song, composing a poem, or taking a picture. Experiencing and engaging with the world in this manner deepens the child's understanding of things. 

In the same manner, art fosters a sense of creativity that is healthy and helpful, even if it is not ultimately applied to artistic endeavors. Creative people will be problem solvers in their jobs and in their personal lives, more efficient and effective in the myriad little ways that we must be each day to accomplish what must get done. 

Most importantly, engagement with the arts fosters empathy. Art allows children to engage with different people, places, ideas, and cultures in a safe manner. It is a instinctive for us to be scared and skeptical of what is different, what is new. But art shares what is different, making it familiar, and allowing children to see beyond the differences, to see the person behind the art. Art breaks stereotypes. It gives different people common emotions. It humanizes. 

I did not become an architect as my parents predicted, but I do love art. I did write a book, and I am working on a second novel. I do think outside the box at my job on a daily basis, trying to find creative solutions to problems my team faces. I my relaxation and happiness in music. Because of art in all its different shapes and varieties, I am a better person. Art can help students become better, more successful people simultaneously broadening skill sets and world views. 

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Will Staton graduated from Washington University in St. Louis in 2008 with a degree in religion and history but without a real clue with what to do with his life or how to engage with the world. An idealist, Will joined Teach For America, and spent a trying yet rewarding two years teaching high school history in Memphis, TN. In 2010 Will moved to New York, and has been working in education ever since, serving in a variety of roles for different charter schools including five years with Democracy Prep. Will currently lives in DC with his wife Katrina, and is the Director of Scholar Support for Democracy Prep Congress Heights Public Charter School. He is the author of the book, Through Fire and Flame, a modernized rethinking of Dante's Inferno.