CMP 40th


Anniversary


away tears and nodded in understanding as the story unfolded – a story that began (as Mike George reminded everyone) in a time before email, cell phones, social media and state music standards.


The outline of the story is part of CMP lore, retold at every summer CMP Work- shop. Wisconsin’s CMP model was born in 1977, during a dynamic period of self- reflection in music education across the nation. It was a response to a growing awareness among thoughtful music teach- ers that there was a problem: an almost exclusive focus on performance skills and concerts was crowding out other kinds of musical understanding necessary for well-rounded musicians – kids who not only performed well, but showed deeper understanding and connection to the music they learned.


The original CMP committee included a diverse group of band and choir directors identified by their peers as being exem- plary educators with successful programs. Jeanne Julseth was a middle school choir director at the cutting edge of the new “middle school movement,” expanding the notion of how middle school choir programs could borrow from general music strategies. Jan Tweed (who whimsi- cally introduced herself at the gala as the “Grande Dame of CMP”) was a middle school band director in Waunakee, already thinking “outside the box” in terms of stu- dent independence and assessment. Will Schmid was professor of music education at UW-Milwaukee and a leader in WMEA. (Will would go on to become president of NAfME). And Mike George was DPI’s state music supervisor and already a provocative “thought leader” among


music teachers. Also among the original steering committee were Peter Schmalz, Bi l l Diekhof f , Dick Gaarder , Carol Bachmeyer, Bill Garvey, Nina Nash and Larry Simon.


It was at Lawrence University that hot summer of 1977 where this team came together for a week – discussing, arguing and wrestling with the task of creating a “model for planning” that would help teachers infuse their rehearsals with deeper learning. As the four founders reminisced out loud, it became clear that what now seems very intuitive (in fact, the CMP model is often summarized as “just good teaching”) was forged in the context of hard-hitting questions and heated discus- sion, with many of the same questions that have animated the CMP discourse over its 40 years: Does this kind of “extra” learn- ing make the performance better? What if it doesn’t? Does it matter? What is the role of the affective in the planning of the teacher? Can it be made intentional, and not just coincidental? How does general music inform this model?


In a keynote talk, Mike George reflected on why the CMP way of thinking has endured while so many educational initiatives have come and gone. It was striking to see this legendary leader identify the “qualities of leadership” which sustain dynamic, ener- getic (and sometimes sprawling) projects like CMP. He challenged everyone pres- ent, including CMP committee members, to hold fast to all we know and bel ieve about genuine leader- ship, especially serving others “from behind the pack.”


And then Mike took the audi- ence forward,


Wisconsin School Musician


imagining the next 40 years of CMP and the way it will continue to impact music education, both nationally and around the world. “We cannot predict the future,” he said, “we must invent it.”


In CMP fashion, the gala included music- making, and Will and Jeanne led several sing-alongs in their inimitable style (i.e. a healthy mix of humor and real artistry). “Give light and people will find a way” rang out with gusto and all the assembled teachers had a goosebumps reminder of one of the pillars of the CMP ethos for all its 40 years: the sense of genuine commu- nity and mutual affection that comes from working together, with shared values.


Underscoring this appeal to shared sense of community, Mike ended his talk with a quote by Luciano de Crescenzo: “We are all like angels with only one wing. We can only fly while embracing each other.” And led by Will and Jeanne, the entire crowd was on its feet, moving and singing “round and round we turn, we hold each other’s hands, and weave ourselves in a circle. The time is gone, the dance goes on” (Dance for the Nations by John Krumm).


Randal Swiggum is the past chair of the CMP Project and lives in Madison, where he works with the Wisconsin Youth Symphony Orchestra, and the Madison Boychoir (MYC). Email: rswiggum@wisc.edu


Mark your calendar for next summer’s life-changing CMP Workshop, June 25-29, 2018 at UW-River Falls.


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