Title: Student Conducting Competition Winner

Date: April 23, 2014

Artifact Description:
My artifact includes a picture of a poster that features my name as the Symphonic Wind
Ensemble Student Conducting Competition Winner on a piece called Greek Folk Song Suite. I
was one of eight people that auditioned and competed to earn the honor of conducting the
Symphonic Wind Ensemble on a piece that we performed for our Spring Tour Concert. I was
judged and critiqued by three of my professors. I was also given opportunities to rehearse and
conduct my colleagues during our regularly scheduled class time. I have also included my
biographical and historical write up of Greek Folk Song Suite.
Wisconsin Teaching Standard Alignment
These experiences best align with standard one of the Wisconsin Teacher Development
Licensure Standards, which states: The teacher understands the central concepts, tools of
inquiry, and structures of the disciplines she or he teaches, and can create learning experiences
that make these aspects of subject matter meaningful for pupils.
These experiences best align with this standard because conducting is the pinnacle of musical
expression and musical creation. This was a very large honor for me and helped me become
more confident in my abilities to lead an ensemble of college-aged musicians. When I rehearsed
the ensemble, I was given a lot of liberty and freedom to create music with what I wanted. The
piece had a lot of musical intricacies that included sudden tempo shifts, slowing down of tempo,
various articulations, swelling of sound, and many other musical characteristics. While
conducting in rehearsal, I would often multi-task by showing expression in my conducting while
asking the ensemble to play a certain section a particular way. I also gave solo cues to the oboe
and trumpet. This allowed me to become more comfortable with my conducting and my overall
musicianship.
I am now more competent in this standard because I created music that was aesthetically
meaningful to my colleagues and myself. This music helped reveal a lot of skills that I didnt
know I had as well as exposing some of my weak points that I can improve upon. I wish to instill
this type of empowerment to my students in their everyday life so that they can feel like they are
confident and in control of their own lives.
UW-Platteville School of Education Knowledge, Skill, Disposition, Statement Alignment
This experience best aligns with KSD.1.a: The candidate displays extensive content knowledge
of his/her subject areas and demonstrates a continuing search for new content knowledge,
resources, and best instructional practices, while understanding student diversity and student
misconceptions and misunderstandings as key to the teaching process.
These experiences best align with this KSD because of my honor of winning the competition and
gaining the trust of my professors to lead the ensemble. I discovered many musical nuances that
my professors and I discussed after the various rehearsals that I had. A long with conducting, I
was asked to do a research about the piece and write up a biography and historical write up about

Greek Folk Song Suite. I learned a lot about Greek dances and the culture while reading about
the piece that I shared with the ensemble.
I am now more competent in this KSD because these experiences allowed me to display my
abilities as a musician and my ability to lead as a conductor. I learned through addressing this
KSD that a performance of conducting mixes together all of the standards of both the Wisconsin
State Standards and the State Music Standards.
Secondary Alignment(s):
KSD4.e. Teacher Grows and Develops Professionally
KSD4.f. Teacher Shows Professionalism
What I learned about teaching/learning:
This experience taught me that in order to create great music, I needed to perform an in-depth
analysis of the music. The piece had subtle nuances that were uniquely Greek and because of our
life in the Western realm of music, it was much harder to feel 7/8 in the first movement. I
learned that a lot of music is trial and error. I found that sometimes my colleagues played the
piece naturally and sometimes I had to drag them a long. Eye contact was my best friend
whenever I conducted this piece. Much like a lesson plan, I had to have problem spots identified
and a methodology in fixing mistakes. I learned that breathing collectively as an ensemble
greatly helped the sound of the group.
What I learned about myself as a prospective educator:
In preparing for my future as a hopeful band teacher, I learned that a lot of what I do must be
practiced and studied. Anyone can go up on the podium and swing their hands around, but it
takes a level of artistry and careful study in leading an ensemble to perform at a high level. It is
important for me, as an educator, to constantly evaluate my performance and to record myself
every time that I perform at a concert so that I can help my conducting gestures. While
conducting, I learned that you must approach certain passages differently or more frequently to
solidify the retention of the musicality. I feel that I will have a better understanding of paying
attention to detail.

Greek Folk Song Suite Cesarini

1st Movement- O Charalambis: Inspired by the popular folk dance called kalamatianos, Cesarini has
transferred the dance music to the wind ensemble. You will hear the joyous and festive dance
throughout the ensemble and the musical beat of 7/8, subdivided into two sets of 3 and 4 beats. The
original steps are 12: 10 steps counterclockwise (forward) followed by 2 steps clockwise(backwards).
This song was originally sung to tease during weddings, since the text of the song refers to a young
man who refuses to marry. The central part of the piece includes another folk song called I Voskopula
which translates to the shepherd girl. You will hear the shepherd girl first in the oboe and the motive
cascades around the ensemble. Does it sound like the shepherd girl agrees with the young mans
endeavors to stay a single man? You decide!

3rd Movement- Vasiliokos tha jino The third movement is based on a very ancient song of the
Ipeiros region and several of the characterisitcs of this movement are an homage to the sirtaki,
the most popular Greek dance abroad and is a form of Hasapiko. The Hasapiko dance originated
in the Middle Ages as a battle mime with swords performed by the Greek butchers guild, which
adopted it from the military of the Byzantine era. You will hear the ensemble begin with slower,
smoother actions, gradually transforming into faster, vivid ones that will depict imagery of hops
and leaps into a fast flurry of sound.