Creative Composing: Embracing Creativity, Nurturing Musicality

All children can compose! Self-expression through composition is a gratifying, joyous, and enriching activity for both student and teacher. Explore how students can develop creativity and imagination through musical storytelling. Discover how to integrate composition into your lessons by adapting the creative process to the individual needs of each student while addressing each student’s performance and reading level. Be inspired to try this at home!

Nancy Modell is a Suzuki Piano Teacher and Trainer who employs the Taubman Approach and inspires her students to reach their full potential through innovative learning opportunities, including original composition. She has explored ways to introduce composition to students of all levels and has presented her approach at various teachers’ forums, including NAfME, NJMEA, NJMTA, MEA-NJ, Piano Teachers Congress of NY, PTF, The Taubman Festival, the Suzuki Association of the Americas (SAA), and at the 1era Convención Suzuki de las Américas in Cancun, MX.

Nancy has trained numerous Suzuki piano teachers in the USA and abroad. She teaches master classes and lectures on various subjects related to music and music pedagogy. Nancy is a graduate of Ithaca College School of Music in both piano performance and music education. She is an SAA Board member, Piano Coordinator for the NJ Suzuki Workshop, PTF Composer Showcase Chair, Composers' Corner Chair, and a Past-President of MEA-NJ.