2006-2007 Featured Composer:
Melody Bober
It is a pleasure to announce this year’s PPLS adopted composer, Melody Bober. We will have the opportunity this year to work with Ms. Bober as each student in the PPLS has the opportunity to learn her compositions and compose and improvise original compositions of his/her own. The PPLS teachers will encourage students to write questions to Ms. Bober (submitted to her via e-mail in batches) and everyone will be able benefit from her feedback. As part of the Festival of Contemporary Art Music, selected students will be invited to perform Ms. Bober’s compositions and several new works commissioned by the PPLS. Ms. Bober will offer a master class for those student performers and any other students able to participate, and will also present a clinic for PPLS teachers, WSU composition majors, and community teachers during the FoCAM. Finally, a portion of the PPLS Spring Recital will be dedicated to the performance of the new commissioned compositions and other works by Ms. Bober, amid the usual prepared selections of literature by the students. This is going to be another exciting year for everyone, and I hope you will join with me in encouraging your students to unleash their creativity in improvisation and composition this year at the piano!
Biography
Piano instructor, music teacher, composer, clinician – Melody Bober has been active in music education for over 25 years. As a composer, her goal is to create exciting and challenging pieces that are strong teaching tools to promote a lifelong love, understanding, and appreciation for music. Pedagogy, ear training, and musical expression are fundamentals of Melody’s teaching, as well as fostering composition skills in her students.
Her works have been published extensively by the FJH Music Company, Lorenz Publishing, Willis Music Company, and Nazarene Publishing House.
Melody graduated with highest honors from the University of Illinois (Champaign-Urbana) in music education, and later received a master’s degree in piano performance from Minnesota State University. Her career has included teaching music in public school and at the university level; church music director; soloist and accompanist. Currently, she teaches private piano lessons and conducts workshops across the nation. She and her husband Jeff reside near beautiful Detroit Lakes, Minnesota.