Singing grammar : teaching grammar through songs.

Recurso para enseñar gramática por medio de canciones, y adecuado para estudiantes de primaria en los niveles elemental e intermedio. Contiene dieciocho canciones, cada una con un enfoque específico de gramática. Cada unidad incluye notas para el profesor con sugerencias para utilizar el material, gramática y juego, y partitura de las canciones. El material también puede ser utilizado con adultos. Las canciones del cd-audio tienen variedad de estilos musicales: glosario de música pop; karaoke alternativo o versión lenta para cada canción; cancionero con letras y acordes. Incluye hojas fotocopiables e instrucciones y consejos para los profesores.

Gallic war songs (II): Marcus Cicero, Quintus Cicero, and Caesar’s invasion of Britain

This article assembles and examines the evidence for the poetic outputs of Marcus and Quintus Cicero related to Caesar’s invasion of Britain. Following the establishment of a relative chronology of the evidence for their work, it is argued that Quintus Cicero most likely produced a fabula praetexta (not an epic poem, as commonly assumed). His brother, in turn, wrote an epic, based on Quintus’ eye-witness reports. Careful analysis of the ancient discourse about this piece reveals insights in Cicero’s poetic workshop and the creation of ‘archival truth’ through narrativising historical events in epic poetry. Finally, a case is made for greater attention to financial affairs between Caesar and the Ciceros that happen to coincide with the drafting process of their respective literary works.

'Does the meaning mean a thing?' Johnny Young's hit songs of the 60s-70s

This article challenges the conventional narratives of Australian popular music history, recognising this as an element of a wider cultural history, using the songwriting career of Johnny Young in the late 1960s and early 1970s. In doing so it refers to the actual song content; ways in which songs and their performers were written about at the time they were released; and the way in which these works have subsequently been regarded and discussed in the conventional historical narrative. It also suggests that Young's own crafted persona, as well as the way he and pop music are typically regarded, have veiled the innovative and radical elements of some of his songs, not only the very well-known 'The real thing', but also hits such as, 'Smiley' and 'The star' .

Broken songs and ecology : writing about the Gulf of Carpentaria

Book review of Carpentaria by Alexis Wright.

Minimal similarity in songs suggests limited exchange between humpback whales (Megaptera novaeangliae) in the southern Indian ocean

Comparing humpback whale song from different breeding assemblages can reveal similarities in song due to acoustically interacting males, and therefore indirectly test whether males from different breeding sites are mixing. Northern Hemisphere song comparisons illustrated that whales within ocean basins share similar songs and are subpopulations within a larger population, whereas whales in different ocean basins are isolated populations and therefore do not share songs. During the 2006 breeding season, recordings were collected in Madagascar and Western Australia, and were compared visually plus aurally. Both regions shared one theme, whereas each region had four and six private themes, respectively. This study had a substantially low number of shared themes. The co-occurrence of one theme was interpreted as an indication of limited exchange between these breeding assemblages, and we speculate that limited song similarity is due to inter-oceanic interactions. Male(s) from an Indian Ocean breeding group could be exposed to novel song when they geographically overlap, and acoustically interact, with males from a different ocean basin. Novel song could induce rapid temporal changes as new song content is incorporated, thereby minimizing song similarities between that breeding group and other Indian Ocean breeding groups that were not exposed to the novel song.

Cowboy songs

Cowboy songs: A ride through the lone prairie of the masculine. An ironic wrangle with country and western songs with their rigid take on masculinity - an excerpt from a longer work

Experiencing indigenous East African dance songs : reflections from North West University (South Africa)

After democracy (1994) the doors of teaching and learning in music opened widely to include local indigenous music and culture in South Africa. Since 2005, African music has been a vibrant aspect of the music curriculum within the School of Music, North West University, South Africa. Globally tertiary music educators are challenged to include informal pedagogy of indigenous musics within the formal context of university courses. University music courses in South Africa are still predisposed towards ‘western’ music pedagogies. In October 2012, the School of Music invited a visiting expert in African music and dance to offer onsite teaching and learning of Ugandan dance songs to tertiary students. The initiative to include Ugandan music as part of the teaching and learning workshops on African music at the School of Music was funded by the South African Music Rights Organization. The School of Music has an ongoing policy to invite and include culture bearers to share their skills and expertise with students and academics. Such sharing provides culture bearers the opportunity to transmit much needed skills, which are not often offered by academics. UNESCO (2012) identifies scarce knowledge and skills as intangible heritage.

Songs for community

Songs for community 2 is a series of piano and instrumental music recorded at Deakin University in 2012.

Creating a space and place for culture bearers within tertiary institutions: Experiencing East African dance songs in South Africa

This paper highlights the intersections between formal and informal African music and dance within a tertiary setting. Reflective practice, journaling and survey data within case study methodology provide a snapshot of the teaching and learning that took place at North West University in South Africa in October 2012. I argue for the inclusion of informal pedagogy of indigenous musics within the formal context of university courses. The experience provided a pathway to connect local community and university to celebrate the rich diversity of African music and culture. The teaching and learning experiences served as onsite professional development for tertiary students, music staff and myself.