Welcome to the FAME Events page!

View a full calendar of upcoming FAME teacher certification course classes and workshops.

Jul
21
Mon
Conversational Solfege 1&2 Certification with Chris Powers | The Hartt School of Music – West Hartford, CT
Jul 21 @ 8:00 am – Aug 1 @ 10:00 am

Conversational Solfege 1 & 2 Certification with Chris Powers

Course Description

Through carefully sequenced activities, Conversational Solfege™ addresses the National Standards, while enabling students to joyfully assimilate the skills and content necessary to become musically literate, including the acquisition of listening, rhythmic and melodic reading, dictation, composition, and improvisation in an intuitive manner. Applications of Conversational Solfege™ are ideally suited to: elementary general music curricula; choral organizations at all levels; Orff Schulwerk; Kodály; Dalcroze; Gordon Music Learning Theory; high school and college sight singing and ear training; class piano; Suzuki; as well as recorder, band, and orchestral instrumental instruction.  The Feierabend Curriculum examines a pedagogical method that develops music literacy. Based on models used to teach conversational foreign languages, this course develops an understanding of music through the use of rhythm and tonal syllables at a “conversational” level that gradually evolves into reading, writing, improvisation, and composition skills. This is a literature-driven curriculum. The sequencing of musical elements grows out of those tonal and rhythmic elements that exist in folk song literature. Each rhythm or tonal element is explored in patterns, songs, and themes from classical literature. Applications of conversational solfege range from elementary general and choral music courses to collegiate level choral, sight-singing, and ear-training courses.  Participants who successfully complete this course will receive an official certificate of completion  for Conversational Solfege Level 1 & 2 from the Feierabend Association for Music Education (FAME).

Conversational Solfege Upper Levels Certification with Chris Powers | The Hartt School of Music, West Hartford, CT
Jul 21 @ 10:10 am – Aug 1 @ 12:10 pm

Conversational Solfege Upper Levels Certification with Chris Powers

Course Description

John Feierabend’s 2018 reissued book Conversational Solfege Level 3 (a.k.a. “Upper Levels” or just “CSUL”), is the same Ear-First Approach to thinking musical thoughts that sets Conversational Solfege apart, and it’s geared towards MS/HS performing ensembles. CSUL picks up the sequence where Level 2 left off, guiding students to think, read and write in most keys, meters, and regions of the staff. CSUL also offers a curriculum to teach musicians a Conversational knowledge of major and minor diatonic harmony, and its application to teaching improvisation and composition with performing ensemble classroom. Building on the conversational skill of “discovering the baseline” to create a harmony, introduced in Lev. 2, this curriculum leads students to use a bass line to inform tonal analysis to reveal the corresponding diatonic chord tones, and the many melodic counter-puntal possibilities that weave harmony together. Come prepared to sing.

First Steps in Music Certification with Stephanie Schall Brazee | The Hartt School of Music – West Hartford, CT
Jul 21 @ 2:10 pm – Aug 1 @ 4:40 pm

First Steps in Music Certification with Stephanie Schall-Brazee

Course Description

The First Steps in Music curriculum is designed to prepare children to become musical in by being Tuneful, Beatful, and Artful. First Steps in Music for Infants and Toddlers provides developmentally appropriate activities that are well suited for children under three years old with their caregivers. First Steps in Music for Preschool and Beyond provides activities for children as young as three, but appropriate for any aged child that needs to further develop their tuneful, beatful, and artful abilities. Folk songs and rhymes as well as classical music are the primary source materials that are used to develop their musical minds and abilities. Created by Dr. John Feierabend, this pedagogical approach contains everything you need to lead a music class for preschool and early elementary students, including: Echo Songs, Call-and-Response Songs, Simple Songs, SongTales, Action Songs, Circle Games, Beat Motion Activities, and more. Ample time will be spent on exploring complete lesson plans for a three-year curriculum. Participants who successfully complete this course will receive an official certificate of completion from the Feierabend Association for Music Education..

Aug
4
Mon
First Steps in Music Certification with Stephanie Schall Brazee | Wayne State University, Michigan
Aug 4 @ 8:00 am – Aug 6 @ 5:00 pm

First step some music certification course Wayne State, Michigan with Stephanie Schall-Brazee, 2025

First Steps in Music Certification with Stephanie Schall-Brazee

August 4-6, 2025
8:00 – 5:00 PM  (24 HOURS) FACE TO FACE

Recommended Text: First Steps in Music for Preschool and Beyond (revised edition 2020) by John M. Feierabend. GIA Publications: 2006; G-5880

Information and Registration Here

Aug
11
Mon
Conversational Solfege 1&2 Certification with John Crever | Portland, Oregon
Aug 11 @ 4:30 pm – Sep 16 @ 6:30 pm

Conversational Solfege Certification, Portland, OR, 2025

Conversational Solfege Level 1&2 Certification with John Crever | Portland, Oregon

Through carefully sequenced activities, Conversational Solfege™ addresses the National Standards, while enabling students to joyfully assimilate the skills and content necessary to become musically literate, including the acquisition of listening, rhythmic and melodic reading, dictation, composition, and improvisation in an intuitive manner. Applications of Conversational Solfege™ are ideally suited to: elementary general music curricula; choral organizations at all levels; Orff Schulwerk; Kodály; Dalcroze; Gordon Music Learning Theory; high school and college sight singing and ear training; class piano; Suzuki; as well as recorder, band, and orchestral instrumental instruction.

The Feierabend Curriculum examines a pedagogical method that develops music literacy. Based on models used to teach conversational foreign languages, this course develops an understanding of music through the use of rhythm and tonal syllables at a “conversational” level that gradually evolves into reading, writing, improvisation, and composition skills. This is a literature-driven curriculum. The sequencing of musical elements grows out of those tonal and rhythmic elements that exist in folk song literature. Each rhythm or tonal element is explored in patterns, songs, and themes from classical literature. Applications of conversational solfege range from elementary general and choral music courses to collegiate level choral, sight-singing, and ear-training courses.

Participants who successfully complete this course will receive an official certificate of completion for Conversational Solfege Level 1 & 2 from the Feierabend Association for Music Education (FAME).

Suggested Texts and Materials for Course:

Conversational Solfege Level 1 Teacher’s Edition, and Conversational Solfege Level 1 CD/ mp3 file

Conversational Solfege Level 2 Teacher’s Edition, and Conversational Solfege Level 2 CD/ mp3 file

Conversational Solfege 1&2 Certification, Portland, OR | 2025

Course registration

Step 1 of 3