Theory I Final

So I am sitting here in a classroom watching my Theory I class take their final exam.




It get me thinking about how I teach this subject and I would really like to a more innovative teacher - especially with theory. But, the material is so specified and so much about rote practices that I just feel stuck.

I know I am GOOD at teaching this class, but it would be great to make it more exciting and more interactive. The more I work and think about what I do, the more I try to figure out how I can do it diffrently, but it is hard to find the time to re-do a class I have been teaching for 7 years.

How can I revitalize this process? Same for Jazz Appreciation...

New Websites...

So, I have been maintaing my personal website since sometime around 1997. It started on GeoCities (C-Ya Geocities) as a challenge of sorts between my friend and colleague Kris Tiner. We were both attending CSU Bakersfield at the time and I think we had some form of competitive thing going on subconsciously as we learned HTML and tried to get a not-horrible website up and running.

Luckily, maintaing my web presence has gotten easier since the HTML editor in GeoCities File Manager. But, while the act of maintaining the site is quicker and more painless now there is a seemingly endless list of sites to maintain! I maintain the following list of sites....

Jim Scully Home

JS/CSUB Site

JS on Facebook

JS on YouTube

JS on Reverb Nation (might go buh-bye)

JS on MySpace (about to go buh-bye)

JS on Society of Composers

JS on American Composers Forum

That doesn't include this blog - which gets too little attention.

Anyway, all of this to let you know that my CSUB Site has been updated. Now that I have a new and improved personal site where my teaching docs are integrated with my professional docs. Just the basics on the CSUB server now - less clutter is definitely better.

Finals this week - then 6 weeks off to finish two commissions and prep for the Winter quarter.

Videos posted of premiers...

In case you didn't see them on my Facebook page or at jimscully.com - here are videos from the chamber music concert on 11/13/09.

Here is Eclectic Suite - for guitar ensemble. The group is the CSUB Guitar Ensemble and I am the director.

Here is Low and High - for two pianos. The performers are Rebekah Rogers and Sarah McFarland.

Nice work everyone, and thanks for the performances!