About
The Teaching Music History Conference (TMHC) organized by the AMS Pedagogy Study Group in cooperation with the AMS office, brings together people who are interested in teaching and learning about music history. The conference presents special opportunities to connect educators, researchers, and members of the public who are invested in music education across all grade levels.
Held over two days, the Teaching Music History Conference includes special workshops and events intended to strengthen connections among music educators and to spotlight topics, resources, and approaches that strengthen music education. In 2024, working in collaboration with the Society’s Many Musics of America event series, the TMHC included a special workshop on Ma Rainey and teaching the blues, held at the Ma Rainey House in Georgia.
The 2025 conference will feature a special workshop held in partnership with the Music of Asian America Research Center on their resource “Asian America in 22 Songs.” This workshop, presented by Dr. Elaine Andres, will involve hands-on experience with this resource and attendees will walk-away with actionable lesson plans to use in their own classroom.
TIMELINE: The Teaching Music History Conference is typically held in June. The call for papers is released in January, with proposals due in March. For students and K-12 teachers who lack professional development support to attend TMHC, the Society offers K-12 Educator Grants in American Music. These grants provide $500 to support conference attendance as well as cohort activities and special programming to strengthen the conference experience.
Ma Rainey's Teaching the Blues
In this special workshop as part of the 2024 Teaching Music History Conference, Dr. Molly Doran (Wartburg College) explores methods for teaching the blues through the music of the early-blues recording artist — and Columbus, GA native— Ma Rainey. Workshop activities include a tour of The Ma Rainey House, followed by a trip to the Columbus Museum. At the Columbus Museum, participants embarked on a tour of an exhibit in the Chattahoochee Valley on blues and folk music.
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