A prolific composer, educator and author, Sandy Feldstein has published dozens of books on music instruction, as well as hundreds of stand-alone compositions, all of which are used daily by thousands of music students and professional performers. Among the best known of these are Alfred’s Drum Method, his Practical Theory series and The Snare Drum Rudiment Dictionary. Feldstein holds a doctorate from Columbia University, and has served as Professor of Music Education at the Crane School of Music at SUNY Potsdam. ASCAP has recognized his excellence by granting him an ASCAP Standard Award for Composition every year since 1964. Mr. Feldstein was also a 2005 inductee into the Percussive Arts Society Hall of Fame, and chairs the NARAS (Grammy) Educational Committee.
According to Sandy Feldstein, to be a great teacher you have to be a good listener. The technical aspect of teaching music is just one small part. Establishing a relationship of trust with students to allow for constructive criticism, motivation, mentoring and growth is a very important part.
Sandy Feldstein provides practical advice for music educators on how to leverage parental support and fight budget cuts with a great music program. Music educators must advocate for music and its benefits constantly. In this clip, Sandy provides lots of useful examples that can be applied to any program.
Get a broad base of experiences and then hone in on your focus. You never know how the experiences you have and the opportunities you pursue will affect your career over time. Sandy Feldstein offers personal stories relating to his career experiences that are sure to inspire.
As our world continues to get smaller, learning about other cultures is crucial for people to live in harmony and one of the best ways to do that is through music. In most cultures, music is an integral part of the daily life of people. Sandy Feldstein talks about his thoughts on the importance of world music.
Build a broad base of experiences to be prepared to take advantage of opportunities that come your way. Experience as a performer and composer helps when working with musicians. Business acumen is important as well. But as Sandy Feldstein explains, knowing how to work with people is just as important. It’s not what you know as a manager, but how you motivate people and bask in their success that matters most.
A career in music education can include teaching, writing, arranging, consulting, and more. Sandy Feldstein has had a very successful career in the music education industry and offers insight and an entrepreneurial spirit into the possibilities and opportunities available to aspiring music educators today.
New technologies are changing the way music is published and broadening opportunities for education in the music field. Although there is still a need for traditional print publishing, Mr. Feldstein has found ways to incorporate new technologies into his band methods as a way to motivate and retain today’s beginning band students.
There are things they don’t teach you in college about being a band director that are important to know; things that go beyond teaching someone to play an instrument. Sandy Feldstein offers excellent advice about soliciting support of other teachers for your program, recruiting kids for your band and retaining them in your program, and very important advice such as “get to know the custodian!” This clip is a must-see for anyone pursuing a career in teaching music.
David Feldstein is a songwriter, producer, and singer and in this segment he discusses his production work for educational materials. He explains the process he goes through in arranging educational accompaniment tracks. He also discusses the importance of keeping the music interesting, varied, and accessible for the beginning music student.
(Long unedited version of Sandy Feldstein's interview from which all of his shorter vidoes are derived. This long video is not to be featured on the site.) Background information for Sandy Feldstein, CEO of PlayinTime Productions and Sandy Feldstein Music.
Sandy Feldstein, CEO of Playintime Productions, Inc. and Sandy Feldstein Music, shares information about his career in music, music education publishing, and consulting.
Sandy Feldstein from Playintime Productions, Inc. discusses his background in the music industry. He started his career as a musician and teacher and eventually got his doctorate. He then went on to work in the music publishing field. He explains in this segment how he came to work in music publishing and the music education field.
Sandy Feldstein of Playintime Productions talks about his new band method, The Yamaha Advantage. The goal of the method is to teach students to play beginning band instruments. He discusses the unique challenges in writing a band method and also describes how his method is unique. The band curriculum is preceded by a recorder curriculum that acts as a recruitment tool for students who have the opportunity to play in the school band the year after learning recorder. This method also provides opportunities for students to play and perform in the first week of their lessons and a support Web site to keep the students motivated and engaged.
Sandy Feldstein recounts his experiences as the CEO of a print publishing company with several hundred employees. Sandy’s grass roots approach to creating a family-business environment in this large organization transformed the company’s culture, improved morale, and helped to increase profitability. He took daily walks through the company buildings to meet and greet each employee by name. He held daily meetings with Human Resources staff to be apprised of special circumstances concerning individual employees and then let those employees know that the company cared. Through such actions Sandy created an environment of loyalty and prosperity during his 13-year reign.
Sandy Feldstein from Playintime Productions, Inc. gives advice to aspiring musicians. He believes the more you prepare, the better. He advises never turn anything down and go for everything you can to get the most experience.
Sandy and David Feldstein have teamed up to create inspiring educational resources. Sandy, a music education guru, has published over 700 educational pieces for music. David, a film and television composer, songwriter, and performer, works with Sandy to create performance accompaniments for music education methods. In this clip, Sandy and David talk about their working relationship and how their respective skills and experiences improve the finished product.
