ÌìÃÀ´«Ã½

Levels I, II, and III^+

Orff Schulwerk is a philosophy of music education, which is based on the work of German composer and music educator Carl Orff and his colleague, Gunild Keetman. During this course, students will explore music through singing, moving, playing unpitched and pitched percussion instruments and recorder, and improvising. Level I students will be introduced to basic Orff techniques, including a study of pentatonic melodies, drone accompaniment, ostinato, and elemental forms. Level II students will be introduced to hexatonic and modal melodies, drone and chord accompaniments, and changing meters. Level III students will begin with a review of the diatonic modes, followed by a study of functional harmony. 100% attendance is expected of students who participate in this certification course.

• Dates: June 17-28, 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. weekdays, except:
  • Thursday, June 19 - no class*
  • Saturday, June 21 - 9 m. to 12 p.m.

*In observance of the Juneteenth holiday. The hours of instruction missed will be made up on Saturday morning, June 21 from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m.

• Noncredit Cost: $900**
• Graduate Credit Cost: Additional $1,500 for three hours of graduate credit (Paid separately to ÌìÃÀ´«Ã½ after following instructions in the workshop registration confirmation email.)
• Housing: There is no on-campus housing available for Orff Schulwerk this summer. For a listing of local Dallas hotels near the ÌìÃÀ´«Ã½ campus and out-of-state discounts, go to
• Required Materials: A list of materials will be sent to you prior to the workshop and will be available to order through a link to West Music Company.

**Inquire about a discount for schools sending 10 or more participants.

Prerequisites

^ Level I is a prerequisite for Level II. Level II is a prerequisite for Level III. A bachelor’s degree in music or a strong background in music theory is required for this class. Participants must be able to read and write music notation in order to be successful in this course.

+ This certification course is approved by the American Orff-Schulwerk Association (AOSA) and follows the guidelines of AOSA. There will be nightly assignments as part of the course requirements. Please allow a minimum of two hours each evening to complete your assignments. In addition, 100% attendance is required to earn credit and to move on to subsequent levels of training. Absences will be considered on an individual basis. Due to the intensive nature of this program, participants are strongly encouraged to avoid scheduling additional activities during the course.

ORFF SCHULWERK FACULTY

Michael Chandler, Paul Cribari, Paul Hallsted, Richard Layton, Jacqueline Schrader, Meg Tietz, Michael Vasquez

Michael Chandler, Ph.D., is an Assistant Professor of Music and Coordinator of Music Education at Austin Peay State University in Clarksville, TN, where he is also the director of the Clarksville Children’s Chorus. Chandler taught elementary general music to children in Texas public schools for 16 years, mostly in Lewisville ISD, where he was named "Teacher of the Year" at two elementary campuses. In 2013, 2007, and 2005, his student ensembles performed by invitation at the annual Texas MEA Convention in San Antonio. Chandler has presented conference sessions, courses, and workshops in 38 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, and Australia, including for numerous state MEA organizations. He teaches in Orff courses at ÌìÃÀ´«Ã½, the University of Memphis and the San Francisco International Orff Course. He is a past-president of the North Texas Chapter of the American Orff-Schulwerk Association and served a three-year term as a Regional Representative on the AOSA National Board of Trustees. Chandler was a collaborative pianist for the Children’s Chorus of Greater Dallas for 10 years and has guest conducted children’s choirs and ensembles in Texas, Pennsylvania, Kentucky, Tennessee, Florida and Georgia. He is the author of Everyday Recorder, Recorder Everyday!, an Orff Schulwerk approach to integrating recorder into the general music classroom. His publications have been featured in Update: Applications of Research in Music Education, The Orff Echo, Southwestern Musician, and Orff-Schulwerk International.

Paul Cribari, D.M.A., is Assistant Director of Curriculum and Instruction for the Cherry Creek School District in Colorado. Cribari received his M.A. with a concentration in Orff Schulwerk from the University of St. Thomas and his doctorate in Music Education from Boston University. In addition to his work with children, Cribari teaches levels I, II, and III of Orff Schulwerk at ÌìÃÀ´«Ã½ and Metropolitan State University of Denver. Cribari is a regular clinician for local chapters of AOSA and has presented sessions at state and local conferences, as well as numerous national conferences of AOSA. Internationally, he has taught in Italy and Hong Kong. Cribari, along with co-author Richard Layton, recently published THE ELEMENTAL STYLE: A Handbook for Composers and Arrangers, Part I.

Paul Hallsted is currently teaching choir and guitar at Alma d’Arte Charter High School in Las Cruces, NM. He has been a music educator for over 30 years, teaching all levels of students, which include pre-school, elementary school, middle school, high school, and university. Hallsted received his bachelor’s and master’s degrees from New Mexico State University. He teaches recorder in AOSA-approved summer teacher education courses at ÌìÃÀ´«Ã½ in Dallas, Metropolitan State University in Denver and University of New Mexico in Albuquerque.

Richard Layton, Ph.D. teaches Music Theory at the University of Maryland, where he has been on the faculty since 1992. He is co-author of THE ELEMENTAL STYLE: A Handbook for Composers and Arrangers. In addition to teaching Orff Schulwerk levels courses at ÌìÃÀ´«Ã½ since 1997, Layton has also taught Levels courses at George Mason University, San Francisco International Orff Course, University of Memphis (master class), West Chester University and University of North Texas. Layton was on the faculty at The Key School in Annapolis, MD from 1979-2022. In addition to teaching Orff Schulwerk classes to eighth-grade students, his course offerings included Music Theory and Chamber Choir in the upper school. Additionally, Layton served as Key School’s Performing Arts Department Chair from 1990-2020. For the last 35 years Layton has been an active clinician and presenter for NAfME national, regional, and state conferences and for the American Orff Schulwerk Association’s chapter workshops and annual national conferences. Layton’s international teaching includes Taiwan, Australia, Dubai, extensively in Canada, and twice at the Orff Institute in Salzburg, Austria.

Jacque Schrader works for the Annapolis Symphony Orchestra Education Project. In this capacity she has launched the Discovery program within the Academy for students aged five to 10 years old. This community outreach program uses the Orff approach. Within this role, she has grown the program from one location to three locations and coaches the other teachers and future teachers in the program. Schrader recently retired from 30 years of teaching music and movement to students at The Key School in Annapolis, MD, where for 15 years, she was department chair of First and Lower School Orff Schulwerk. Her middle school students were the featured performers at the AOSA national conference in Atlantic City. Schrader currently teaches Level II Basic at ÌìÃÀ´«Ã½ and was the Movement teacher for Levels I-III for 25 years at the University of St. Thomas. She has been an active clinician for NAfME national, regional, and state conferences, as well as being a frequent presenter at AOSA Professional Development Conferences. Before being a guest lecturer at the Orff Institute in Salzburg, Schrader was a student in the Institute’s year-long special course. She continues to be in demand both nationally and internationally, having taught children and teachers in Taiwan, China, Poland, Austria, Germany, Dubai and Slovakia. Her canon, The Night is Over, was recorded by the women’s singing group, Libana. Schrader served on the AOSA Board of Trustees for four years and currently serves on an off-board committee.

Meg Tietz teaches K-5 movement and music at Saint Paul Academy in Saint Paul, MN. She is an active presenter for local and national workshops and conferences and also teaches summer Orff Levels in Dallas, TX; Denver, CO; and Saint Paul, MN. Tietz has served the American Orff Schulwerk association as a member of various subcommittees and also as a Trustee on the National Board.

Michael Vasquez teaches Pre-K to grade 5 music at Kuentz Elementary in San Antonio, TX. He earned his bachelor’s and master’s degrees at the University of Texas at San Antonio and received his Orff training at Trinity University. Vasquez is the co-author of the Purposeful Pathways supplemental book, "Percussive Play." He is a spotlight award recipient with the American ÌìÃÀ´«Ã½ for Elemental Music and Movement and is an active clinician, who presents sessions on Orff process and elemental movement. He has been named a Northside ISD teacher of the year, an HEB Educator of Excellence Nominee and a 2023 Grammy Semi-Finalist for music education.

For further information about ÌìÃÀ´«Ã½ Music Educators Workshops, or to register for one of these classes, visit ; or contact Directors Julie Scott or Lisa Beyer at muedworkshops@smu.edu.