Music Teachers In International Schools Podcast

Like many international school music educators,  Louisa Danmeri 's "one or two year adventure" as an international school music teacher quickly turned into 10 years! It's incredible how many times I've heard this same story from the community! Louisa is the Director of Music at the British School in Tokyo and has some brilliant insights to share with us. In this episode, we e...

Kristel Tretter  is Music Teacher at  Kinabalu International School in Sabah, Borneo . In this episode we go on a veritable curricular journey! Kristel is a Canadian national who has worked in international schools in Singapore, Thailand, Mozambique & Japan. I was especially interested in her perspective on delivering the internationalised English National curriculum in the form of IGCSE and A...

Clare Lambert  is the Head Of Music at  Nexus International School, Singapore . I first met Clare back when she was teaching in Hong Kong at Discovery Bay International School. She hosted a conference and it was fantastic! Prior to HK, Clare worked in Bangkok, Thailand. She has also hosted a number of student festivals over the years. Clare knows her stuff! Clare has a fascinating story about how...

This was such a fun series to record.  11 international school music teachers, across 3 episodes, with plenty inspiring ideas for us all.  The third, and final, community insights episode features 3 international school musical teachers: Jeremy Van Sluytman  - Middle School and High School Music Teacher at  Shekou International School, Net Valley Campus Emilio Parrilla  - MYP Music Teacher   at  I...

Demosthenes (Demo) Dimitrakoulakos  is the Academic Leader of the Arts and Upper School Music Teacher at the  International School of Luxembourg  (ISL). Demo has lived and worked in Luxembourg for 18 years! During his years at ISL, Demo has worked with his team to methodically transform the approach to music education at ISL. Demo is the National Coordinator of Music Education for Luxembourg as pa...

When we put the call out to the MTIIS community for guests for a 'special start of year episode', we never imagined this response!  Fourteen interviews later and we have an incredible wealth of insight from our community. Not one episode, but  three ! In this first edition of MTIIS 'Community Insights', I speak with: Megan Highfill : Elementary Music Teacher at Lincoln School, Nepa...

w/ Anna Gower, Steve Jackman & Ken Owen Welcome back to the MTIIS podcast! In this episode we explore the question: "what makes good international school music teacher professional learning". Throughout the episode we refer to professional learning or PD (Professional Development) as the process of teachers undertaking training to learn new ideas, skills and understandings about musi...

I've been looking forward to doing an episode on this topic for a long time! And, what better way to finish the 2023/24 northern hemisphere academic by taking a leap into this BIG topic with none other than Dr. Denry Machin. This episode is based around the question: 'What is an international school?' Firstly, what's your answer to that question? Tricky isn't it! Dr Denry Machin was previously the...

Brian White  is the current Director of Bands at the  American School of Milan , Italy. Brian is originally from the USA. After a fortuitous encounter with an international school teaching couple when on holidays in Austria, Brian and his wife knew this was the path for them. 20+ years lates and Brian has completed long stints at international schools in Singapore & the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia...

I'm so happy to have had the opportunity to interview good friend and inspiring educator Yann Zhe Yau. Yann and I worked together for a number of years in Malaysia. His story is inspiring. His attitude is exemplary. Yann is a joyful, positive and thoughtful music educator that represents a new wave of international school music teachers who have transitioned from their role as instrumental tut...

There are many 'types' of international schools. The two dominant powers influencing what happens in these schools are the UK and the USA. The reasons for this are largely economic, but also stem back to important historical movements, as well as, the more recent push and pull of globalisation. Anyway...a whole episode on 'international schools' is in the pipeline, so watch this sp...

Well, we've reached episode 20 - thank you for joining us so far! This episode is a special exploration of one question: 'What is the future of music education?' I speak to an amazing line-up of international school music educators who attended the  Musical Futures International  Big Gig conference in Bangkok in March 2023. The conference brought 40 music educators together to sing, pl...

I first met Tina Arenas when I attended one of her workshops at a music education conference. During the workshop, Tina gracefully led 50 music educators through a wonderful repertoire of joyful activities. We made shapes, explored our vocal range, danced, moved, played instruments and more. I spent some time chatting with Tina and her husband Juan (also a music teacher) after the session and knew...

Nate Holder is a musician, author and international speaker based in the West Midlands, United Kingdom. I have been keeping an eye on Nate's work for the last couple of years and I recently came across his book series called ‘ The Why Books ’. Along with his own podcast series for students, called ' The Why Music Podcast ', Nate's work challenges music educators to ask some importa...

Jefferson Aranda (Jeff) is an Ecuadorian national currently teaching music in Abu Dhabi, UAE. Jeff spent most of his teens navigating the social and cultural stigma of pursuing a career in music and music education in Ecuador. Through a series of life-changing events, Jeff found his place teaching music in international schools in Ecuador before moving to the UAE. In this episode, we explore: Cult...

Register here: https://mtiis.co/world-music-pedagogy/  In this bonus podcast episode, Dr. Jennifer Walden and I sit down for a chat about the upcoming World Music Pedagogy course in May 2023.  This unique opportunity for international school music educators is not to be missed!   Accredited by the Smithsonian Institution and hosted by Jennifer, in collaboration with musicians from a...

In this episode, Ollie Tunmer explores why the art of body percussion connects so well with the international school context.  Since 'body percussion' is a fundamental part of cultural meaning-making in societies around the world, Ollie explores how international schools can find a deeper sense of community and expression through this accessible art form. Ollie has expanded his mission to wor...

Kirrili Williams has been a Director of Music in international schools in Australia, UK, Oman and China. With a research Masters in International Education, and many years experience teaching British-style and IB music, Kirrili provides articulate and nuanced insights for the MTIIS community. Kirrili is currently in Australia, so I made the trip up the coast to record this episode in-person. You m...

Jana Beydoun had no idea what she was getting herself in to! A one year teaching post in the UK was simply meant to be an opportunity to develop her teaching skills and do some travel. As a Slovakian national with an English Language/Literature and Music Education double major, Jana was well-qualified and happy to try some new things! Twenty years later, Jana has lived and worked as a music educat...

Steve Jackman is an expert in understanding how to develop whole school music programs in international schools.   Steve currently works at Shrewsbury International School, Bangkok as the Head of Curriculum Music. He oversees curriculum music for K-13 and knows a thing or two about how to build a program that is relevant, innovative and connected to an individual school context. Steve also co...

w/ Liam Callan. In November 2022, I attended the AMIS Music Educators' conference to present the keynote address. I encouraged the audience to think about their journey to international school music teaching and to reflect on the unique stories that we each bring. We all come to music education from a variety of angles and inevitably this feeds directly into how we teach our students. Liam came up...

This episode was recorded live at the FOBISIA Music Teachers' Conference at Bangkok Prep International School, Thailand.  I speak with three wonderful music educators currently working in international schools in the Asian region.   Delphine Hastwell is the head of infants music at Tanglin Trust School, Singapore where she has worked for 20 years! In her time, Delphine has witnessed...

This episode is dedicated to exploring musical theatre in international schools.  I speak with John Prignano, the Chief Operating Officer and Director of Development & Education at MTI (Music Theatre International) - https://www.mtishows.com John was a professional broadway dancer before beginning at MTI and knows a thing or two about musical theatre education! MTI is known as one of the...

Alison Armstrong has worked as a music educator in Australia, Singapore, Indonesia, Switzerland, Laos, Thailand and now Uzbekistan.  Drawing on influences from all of these experiences, Alison represents a new wave of international school music educator. Unconstrained by tradition, Alison delves into the experiences of her students to create music programs that are truly communal.  In th...

Andy Gleadhill is well-known on the international school music education scene, especially in the Middle East and Asia. Andy has worked with hundreds of international school music teachers over the years, specifically in the area of culturally unique styles of music focusing on drumming and percussion. He has produced books and resources to support teachers and presents workshops and speaks at con...