Donna

Donna Fox's Page

Several of the research topics I am working with on for independence are listed here:

1. HS Orchestra wiki FoxFiddleFile - used for discussion on posted topics. 277 responses as of January 13, 2012 2. Conducted Independence Survey of High School Orchestra students 3. Conducted Independence Survey of Elementary String Students 4. A colleague had the Middle School Orchestra members complete the Independence Survey 5. Tracking independent actions of elementary string students on a spreadsheet to include information on attendance, arriving on time, bringing books and instruments 6. Tracking benchmark achievements of elementary string students with a spread sheet (requires individual performance of selected samples of technical achievements 7. Promoted a successful collaborative project by volunteer High School Orchestra members to create a visual representation to be displayed during the performance of the Idylls of Pegasus 1/30/12 8. One of the fifth grade violinists I teach has written a duet which he calls The Serenade of Aqua. I filmed him explaining the back story...it was meant to "accompany" the book he is writing of his own "original" mythology. If all goes well I hope to get the interview and possibly a video of the performance posted. He is definitely an "independent thinker" and is very creative!

__--__ **Selected Reflections** **Taken from Student Critiques of the winter Orchestra concert “Images”**
 * D.W. grade 9:** I think that as a group we conveyed the images of the pieces very effectively using a variety of techniques such as marcato and staccato bowings, crescendo and decrescendo, and accents. I think the awesome visual really made “Idylss of Pegasus come alive for the audience and helped them to relate to the piece’s different scenes.
 * K.F. grade 10:** When we played our two songs that were conducted by R.R. and S.S. we played them better than we had during our practices in school. The expression the orchestra had realy showed the audience that we really enjoy what we do in orchestra.
 * T.T. grade 11:** Our performance of Idylls of Pegasus had outstanding expression. People actually move with the music. We had good dynamic contrast but of course there is always room for improvement. Our orchestra got a ton of positive compliments. One student from another school came to support us. His school district doesn’t have an orchestra and because of us he and his mom wan to try to get one in their school. Great job on everything last night.
 * S.S. grade 11:** This year, preparing for our winter concert was some-hat difficult. Although we did not play lot of songs the songs we did play were tough to learn. Last night our expression was very good, especially on Scenes from the Emerald Isle and Pegasus. In Acrobats it seemed that the beginning was rushed and sounded unprepared, even though we had spent a lot of time preparing for that part. But in the end of Acrobats we were together once more. In Pegasus, our bowings were very together. It was a strong performance.
 * S.M. grade 9:** Acrobats was a strong opener, It caught the audience off guard and looking forward to the rest of the concert. Pegasus was full of expression and dynamics, but the dynamic changes could have been more dramatic.
 * M.R. grade 11:** The concert was a vast improvement on the rehearsals. The energy on all pieces was near its highest, especially on Acrobats and Concerto for Three. As always, however, intonation and preparation were the two most lacking categories. Coincidentally, preparation is one of the only things that controls intonation so without one you don’t usually have the other. The balance between sections was usually good and the dynamics n Concerto for Thee were better than they’ve every been. Every time there was a pizzicato passage, the ensemble struggled to stay together because of the rushing going on in those parts. Overall the performance was an accurate portrayal of our skill and interpretation of the music, and the audience response was very positive for every piece.
 * J.S. Grade 9:** Overall I feel in the concert we really expressed ourselves well using accents, dynamics and different bowing techniques. Next time I thing we should focus on listening to sections other than our own and realize who has the melody. It’s a simple task that I feel would make a large impact. Another thing I think we should focus on is playing louder at forte so piano sounds quieter and softer. One thing I think we did extremely well was staying together. We really watched the conductor and played out so the whole auditorium could hear us. All in all, I felt that this concert we really expressed ourselves well.
 * M.M. grade 9:** Yesterday, we played a great concert. For the most part the bowing was together. The overall expression from the group was great. I liked how we played Idylls of Pegasus twice. The first time the audience could concentrate on the musical aspects of the piece. The second time it was more of a story that they could watch, just with a musical background. I would also like to add that all the solos were very good and well executed.
 * S.B. grade 12:** Overall, I think the concert went well. Congrats to the freshmen! The Scenes from the Emerald Isle was much better than I expected. Intonation could have been improved, but the dynamics were very good. Acrobats could have been a lot better. As an opener, we should have made sure we came in stronger however the intonation and dynamics could have been improved. Finally, Pegasus was by far the best piece. Our expression was excellent not only the first time, but also the second! Our dynamics were well expressed. The power point also made it a very exciting piece for the audience- thank you Jon, Annie and Sean for making that happen. Kirsten, Robbie, Keith, and Maggie did an awesome job on their solos! Finally, Robbie’s piece was amazing and enjoyed by everyone. Good job!
 * L.D. grade 12**: I thought Pegasus was a great closer, with imagery in the background and imagery in the music, I think the audience was really impressed.
 * R.R. grade 12:** This was a good winter concert! The pieces were well rehearsed; notice I didn’t say practiced. They sounded (usually) pleasant to the audience. As always we had some of the same old problems: intonation, practice or rather a lack of it, and watching/listening. We need to realize that the music is only going to get harder and more technically challenging. Each time we choose to leave the instrument in school or not pick it up and practice at home, we are choosing to sound worse, individually and as a group. Also, we need to address the problem of looking up. THE FIRST VIOLINS DO NOT SET THE TEMPO. That’s the conductor’s job. All in all, however I see a very promising group with a lot of potential. It’s our task now to turn this potential into performance. Great first real concert – freshmen! Great job to Sean on conducting, and as always-VFWD. (Violas for world domination!)
 * S.S. grade 12:** As always great job freshmen! As normal, everyone’s intonation could have been better with preparation. However, what we lacked there, we made up for in our great expression, and the audience response we got. I feel that even though some of our rhythm and bowing w2as off, it still ended up going very well overall.

____ The wiki is drawing some interesting exchanges. One of the HS freshman posted this last week: =Myelin Sheath= SK - I'm reading a book right now and it is very interesting. The book is called the Talent Code. It has to do with the statement "you can do whatever you put your mind to". In the book it is scientifically proven that this quote is true, this all has to do with myelin sheath. The revolution of myelin sheath is built on three simple facts. (1) Every human movement, thought, or feeling is a precisely timed electric signal traveling through a chain of neurons- a circuit of nerve fibers. (2) Myelin is the insulation that wraps these nerve fibers. (3) The more we fire a particular circuit, the more myelin optimizes that circuit, and the stronger, faster, and more fluent our movements and thoughts become. This is related to anything we want to become good at and of course... ties into perfect practice. Here is a video of myelin just to give you a slight visual and if you are interested in this subject, check out the book Talent Code. [] || Feb 22, 2012 12:01 pm ZZ - Very interesting! I thought you make very strong points in your 3 facts. I also strongly agree with you in that practice makes perfect || AMC - Feb 22, 2012 6:28 pm I partly agree with you, but I also partly disagree. I want to change your statement to PERFECT Practice makes Perfect. This is because if you practice the wrong way, then your movements become more fluent, but you are playing the wrong way. || TT - Friday, 1:10 pm "Greatness isn't born. It's grown." ||
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 * [[image:http://www.wikispaces.com/i/user_none_lg.jpg width="48" height="48" caption="komersara" link="http://www.wikispaces.com/user/view/komersara"]] || Feb 22, 2012 11:49 am
 * [[image:http://www.wikispaces.com/i/user_none_lg.jpg width="48" height="48" caption="15zhuangz" link="http://www.wikispaces.com/user/view/15zhuangz"]] || **re: Myelin Sheath**
 * [[image:http://www.wikispaces.com/i/user_none_lg.jpg width="48" height="48" caption="annamarieclark15" link="http://www.wikispaces.com/user/view/annamarieclark15"]] || **re: Myelin Sheath**
 * [[image:http://www.wikispaces.com/i/user_none_lg.jpg width="48" height="48" caption="13trunkt" link="http://www.wikispaces.com/user/view/13trunkt"]] || **re: Myelin Sheath**

Today is March 16, 2012 - I just uploaded the powerpoint with the images of the Idylls of Pegasus. This appears of the wiki under pages and files. I am still work with the sound that is supposed to be coordinated with these slides and will upload again, when I complete the coordination. These images were inspired by the music by Richard Meyer and by the story.