Lee Whitmore Vice President B2B and Education, Focusrite Group
In the mid-Nineties when SoundTree was conceived, music technology in classrooms was a relatively new thing. The cost of electronic musical instruments, and the equipment to connect them was had becoming affordable enough for school systems and campuses to seriously consider investing in and integrating music and audio technology into programs and devising or purchasing whatever curricular resources administrators and teachers could find.
At that time, I was working on my doctoral dissertation at Columbia University Teachers College and focused the work on effective integration of electronic keyboard labs in middle school general music classrooms and was able to practically test the work and my writing in schools on a weekly and monthly basis. I was able to apply that work with first the Korg Group Education Controller (GEC), a high-quality networked audio system for electronic keyboard and electric guitar labs. The first GEC was tested at Teachers College, and it now exists in a fifth-generation design.
In the early days of music technology classrooms, schools implemented labs and studios for engagement, and the clear ties to effective implementation of the National Standards for Music Education, including teaching and assessing music fundamentals, performance proficiency, music composition, and more. For teachers and students, learning, playing and creating labs is also just downright fun.
All this said, what’s the need and relevance of music and audio technology in today’s music programs? It embodies everything I’ve already mentioned, and I think there’s even more to it.
Literacy and some level of mastery in working with music and audio are useful and sometimes essential skills for just about every student who will enter the workforce. From audio for presentations to podcast creation and production and social media, there are very few jobs and careers that don’t benefit from a person’s ability to communicate effectively with sound and music.
I have the good fortune to work with Career and Technical Education (CTE) programs that focus on media production and music and audio skills are integral to their makeup and success. In these programs students learn to manipulate, create, record and mix music and sound, and then integrate those skills in show production, including lighting, stage practice, film and TV, broadcasting, and a lot more.
Today’s music and audio labs are less expensive, and there are many available curricular resources and exemplars, making learning the skills needed to teach effectively, and stellar music programs with fast growing enrollment common. And SoundTree has been a trusted leader and school, district, and campus partner in realizing music and audio technology successfully and affordably a reality for three decades.
Dr. Lee Whitmore is a thought leader in music, audio, creative digital media, and education. He’s the Vice President for business-to-business (B2B), including education, pro, post, and government, at Focusrite Group, which includes Focusrite, Novation, Sequential and Oberheim, ADAM Audio, Martin Audio, Optimal Audio, Linea Research, and Sonnox, and more.
With a career that spans three decades, his professional assignments have included leadership positions at music industry companies Avid, Sibelius, and Korg USA, which included serving as the founding Managing Director for their education division, SoundTree, as well as the GRAMMY Music Education Coalition and Berklee College of Music. He has a doctorate from Columbia University Teachers College in music education and technology. Because music has dramatically affected his personal life and career, Lee is a vocal advocate for access to music and related arts for all young people.
Lee is an author, educator, public speaker, and industry and education executive. Well-read articles include pieces for the Inter-American Development Bank, the Hechinger Report, and the Washington Post.
Dr. Whitmore's commitment to music, community, and education is evident in his active involvement in various organizations. He serves as a board member for We Make Noise and The MIDI Association, where he also holds an executive board position and serves as treasurer. His leadership extends to the MIDI in Music Education (MiME) Special Interest Group, which he leads.
Contact Lee at lee.whitmore@focusritegroup.com.
Comments