In honor of Music in Our Schools Month, ACEMM would like to reintroduce ourselves as well as give away a few items for music and movement educators to enjoy.

David Thaxton

Treasurer of the Board of Directors of the American Center for Elemental Music and Movement.

David Thaxton lives in Reno, Nevada near his natural habitat of the snowy mountains, towering forests and crystal-clear lakes of the Sierra. He is frequently seen sitting in a circle with children from ages 0-99 creating beautiful experiences in music, movement, language and art. His predilection for such matters makes him easily distractible. He is frequently the first kid in camp to notice animals in the clouds and faces in rock formations. He is also the one most likely to be abandoned during a long road trip after exploring all the amazing sounds and rhythms that a plastic straw can produce. He hears music in paint, sees color in sound and poetry in movement. Also, he is very creeped out about car-carrying semi trailers with vehicles perched precariously and hanging of the edge – those things are just not right.

David’s Favorite Thing

The surface has been scratched. Hands on instruments have always been the primary love of elemental music makers and educators, but in the current restricted times, the Digital Audio Workstation is stepping up to be a workhorse of both digital and in-person classrooms. A critical piece of the Digital Audio Workstation is the array of MIDI controllers available. Typically keyboards have been the go-to plug-in, but they can be bulky and difficult to customize. Enter, the LaunchPad. As a loop controller, the customization options are enormous. It is portable, can be enclosed in sanitary ziplock bags for student use and color coding opens up more possibilities of creative control.

If you would like a chance to enter ACEMM’s Favorite Things Giveaway, fill out the form below.