ONLINE RESOURCES FOR EDUCATORS
Thank you for joining the North Carolina Symphony to bring music education to students across the state and help build the next generation of musicians and music lovers. This page is filled with online resources for you and your students, including concert videos, lesson plans, workshop presentations, and more. Be sure to bookmark this page for year-round access! If you have questions, please contact the Education Department at education@ncsymphony.org.
We are grateful to our music education supporters for their dedication to the importance of the arts in the lives of young people.
Teacher Workshop Resources
Our 2023/24 Education Concert, available either online or in person, takes students on a musical journey to learn “What Makes Music, Music?,” exploring fundamentals such as melody, rhythm, dynamics, tempo, and texture.
For Education Concert reservations and information, visit this link.
Sign up to receive updates on Education programs. If you have questions, please contact the Education Department at education@ncsymphony.org.
The videos and materials below were prepared for our Teacher Workshop on August 22, 2023, sponsored by Puffin Foundation West, Ltd.
Made possible by
Lesson 1 – Introduction
Lesson 2 – Dynamics
Lesson 3 – Rhythm
Lesson 4 – Form
Due to copyright restrictions, we are unable to share a video performance of The Entertainer
Lesson 5 – Tempo
Lesson 6 – Texture
Lesson 7 – Melody
Lesson 8 – Finale
Thank You
The North Carolina Symphony’s Education Concert is created in partnership with the North Carolina Department of Public Instruction and is made possible by a generous grant-in-aid from the State of North Carolina, the Honorable Roy Cooper, Governor; the Honorable D. Reid Wilson, Secretary for Natural and Cultural Resources.
We are grateful to our NCS Boards of Trustees—the North Carolina Symphony’s mission to achieve the highest level of artistic quality and performance standards, and embrace the dual legacies of statewide service and music education is led by the North Carolina Symphony Society, Inc., and the Symphony’s endowed funds are held by the North Carolina Symphony Foundation, Inc.
We express our deepest appreciation to the corporations, foundations, and individuals who generously support our education program, as well as to our school system supporters and partners.
Ensembles in the Schools
Ensembles in the Schools, starring small groups of North Carolina Symphony musicians, is typically presented in elementary schools across North Carolina.
Ravel’s String Quartet
This Ensembles in the HOME Schools video introduces students to some of the unique ways that string players make music on their instruments.
The video is supplemented with background reading along with two lesson plans and accountability assessments.
Meet the String Quartet
This Ensembles in the HOME Schools video features the opening from our string quartet’s program, featuring music by Beethoven and even some singing by our musicians!
Musical Meditations
Teachers, medical professionals, and business leaders are sharing that focusing on emotional health is more important than ever. In an effort to support the well-being of our fellow citizens, the North Carolina Symphony has partnered with North Carolina State Parks and North Carolina Department of Natural and Cultural Resources to develop a meditation tool—a series of brief musical excerpts, combined with breathtaking visuals from North Carolina landscapes. These videos aim to provide moments of calm and focus, supporting stress-management during the busy school or work day.
Series Presented by
Supported by
Presented in partnership with
Meet the Instruments
Through our Meet the Instruments series, sponsored by MetLife Foundation and Puffin Foundation West, Ltd., students will get to know the many instruments that make up a symphony orchestra—as well as the North Carolina Symphony musicians who play them!
Meet the Instruments is created especially for elementary school students, but audiences of all ages are likely to discover new things about the instruments of the orchestra!
Series Sponsored by
North Carolina Symphony Principal Oboe Melanie Wilsden, North Carolina Symphony Oboe Sandra Posch, and North Carolina Symphony English Horn and Associate Principal Oboe Joseph Peters show off their favorite instruments — how to play them, why they love them, and how all the music comes from tiny reeds carved by hand.
North Carolina Symphony Assistant Principal Flute Mary E. Boone and North Carolina Symphony Piccolo Elizabeth Anderton Lunsford show off their favorite instruments — how to play them, why they love them, and how they bring sweetness and power to the orchestra.
North Carolina Symphony violist Amy Mason shows off her favorite instrument — how to play it, why she loves it, and how warm and rich it sounds. She also plays a duet with NCS violinist So Yun Kim so you can hear how beautiful their instruments sound together!
North Carolina Symphony Associate Principal Cello Elizabeth Beilman shows off her favorite instrument—how to play it, why she loves it, and how to produce sounds ranging from rich and mellow to very scary!
North Carolina Symphony Principal Trombone John Ilika shows off his favorite instrument—how to play it, why he loves it, and why a “buzz” is essential to the sound!
North Carolina Symphony violinist So Yun Kim shows off her favorite instrument—how to play it, why she loves it, and why each violin is as unique as the person who plays it!
North Carolina Symphony Principal Timpani Colin Hartnett shows off his instrument—how to play it, why he loves it, and even… how much it weighs!