Dear Colleagues,

Happy New Year 2012!

I extend warm greetings to you on behalf of the CMEA/Acme Board.

At the beginning of the New Year we all make resolutions to improve our life.

As an association, at the beginning of each academic year, we meet as a full board and scan the horizon of our large country seeking to identify, on one hand, the challenges our MEA’s are facing and, on the other hand, to identify the trends, policies, and technologies that have the power to bring about improvements and meaningful change to the bottom of the music education community pyramid. In this regard, your full board held its annual meetings in Montreal, on November 18 & 19, 2011.  One of the main items on the agenda was the creation of a committee to draft our new strategic action plan having first reviewed, examined and established the criteria for our vision and goals for the next three years. Another objective of these meetings was the creation of ad – hoc committees for the execution of new and on-going projects and objectives. Hence, in addition to the finance and publications standing committees, members of the board are presently working, on your behalf, in committees to ensure new and improved Performance Awards and the revitalizing of the John Adaskin Project in support of Canadian music in education.  A committee on rebranding our Journal is also looking at electronic options in order to include virtual interactive tools for your classrooms.

At the beginning of the New Year one also reflects on the events of the year that ended. In October of 2011, for example, we heard of the passing of Steve Jobs. In my musical mind, Steve Jobs was a J.S Bach. This is because even though Jobs was credited with dozens of patents and we remember him as a brilliant inventor, when it comes to the products we associate most with his genius, his talent was not invention – it was innovation. For the music education community, in my opinion, innovation means to build on the past. Do not disregard everything associated with past music practices as old school. We must do what our predecessors did so well: see our classrooms anew; promote quality in teaching and advocate for excellence in music education. At the same time experiment using new and different perspectives on the old methods. In 2011 the CMEA/Acme community promoted excellence, according to our motto, by celebrating the achievements of many of our members: Dennis Tupman’s Honorary Doctorate; Dr. Susan O’Neill’s international recognition for research; the four winners among forty participants of the Essay Competition; the six winners of the Performance Awards competition and the UBSMEA as recipient of the Student Chapters’ grant. Congratulations to all! I invite you to visit our website to view the details of these success stories.

In 2011 we welcomed the Canadian New Music Network (CNMN) and the Canadian Federation of Music Teachers Association (CFMTA) as affiliate members of CMEA/Acme and we crafted a new “Memorandum of Understanding” with the Coalition for Music Education in Canada (CMEC).

In November 2011 our Immediate Past President, Ed Wasiak, gave his perspective and represented us as a panelist at the Canadian Symposium II on El Sistema that took place in Montreal under the auspices of McGill University’s Music Education department, sponsored by the QMEA in partnership with FAMEQ.  Similarly, our Vice President, Mark Reid, represented us at a reception held at the Midwest Clinic in December. During the well - attended event, Canadian attendees to the Clinic joined their international colleagues.The event was an opportunity to connect and identify those who would like to raise the profile of Canada's instrumental music education successes and the repertoire of Canadian composers. Thank you Mark and Ed.

Since May 2011, Immediate Past President Ed Wasiak continues to chair the Leadership Summit, comprised of a group of national music and art stakeholders aspiring on finding common ground and sharing information and resources for the benefit of their perspective communities.

CMEA/Acme member – at- large and University of Victoria professor Dr. Mary Kennedy is conducting a song survey in collaboration with McGill University professor Dr. Lisa Lorenzino. The survey is presently posted on our website. I invite you to take a moment to participate.

Speaking of websites, I would like to take this opportunity to express my appreciation to our web master, David Ennis, for his commitment and time. As our association is always evolving, I am currently meeting with him and planning new additions and improvements on the site in an effort to make all information related to your needs more accessible and user-friendly.

One of the joys of being the CMEA/Acme president is to represent the music educator’s community on external committees. In this regard, it is always my pleasure to attend the meetings of the CMEC and CNAL boards, the education committee of the CNMN and ISME.

Finally, speaking of ISME, this report would not be complete without mentioning the fact that during our full board meetings in November, the directors voted to bid, in partnership with the OMEA, to host the 2016 ISME World Conference in Canada. The proposal that included, among others, letters of support from the Prime Minister of Canada and the Immediate Past ISME Secretary General, was submitted to ISME on December 1, 2011. Of course, Canada is only one of many countries bidding to host the International Conference in 2016, but the board is convinced that should ISME accept our bid, this national project will inspire, motivate and engage our membership, will promote and advance our mission and will enable us to demonstrate the relevance and value of music education to the Canadian society at large. It is noteworthy that CMEA/Acme has previously hosted two successful conferences in Canada: London in 1978 and Edmonton in 2000. A big thank you goes to all MEA Presidents as well as music educator colleagues and professors who submitted letters of support and a vote of confidence for this CMEA/Acme initiative.

In closing, I would like to thank the entire CMEA/Acme community for your support and loyalty to your Association and send you my best wishes for a healthy and musically successful and productive 2012!

Sincerely,

Theodora Stathopoulos
President, CMEA/ACME