PBS Wisconsin Education and the Wisconsin School Music Association (WSMA) have partnered with music educators to create a collection of classroom media resources featuring Wisconsin musicians from four distinct cultural groups, as they share a composition and discuss their musicianship, culture and identity.

The resource titled, Re/sound: Songs of Wisconsin, is a collection of digital resources designed to help general music educators and learners in grades 4-8 explore the connections between music, culture and emotion. The collection includes video interviews and performances, audio tracks and educator engagement guides featuring learning outcomes, strategies, assessments and aligned standards. Re/sound: Songs of Wisconsin is available for free online access at www.pbswisconsineducation.org/resound.

“Working with WSMA and Wisconsin music educators resulted in a collection of educational media that exemplifies the creativity, inclusiveness and desire for authentic, culturally responsive content that drives these dedicated professionals,” said PBS Wisconsin Education Director of Education Alyssa Tsagong. “PBS Wisconsin Education is thrilled to offer this work in service of a well-rounded education that enriches and engages learners in ways that support their growth as musicians and in their academic and life skills.”

"Wisconsin School Music Association highly values our partnership with the PBS Wisconsin Education team as we have worked to address the need for more culturally responsive general music materials as expressed by our state's music educators through surveys and listening sessions,” said WSMA Executive Director Laurie Fellenz. “It has been exciting to watch the vision of Wisconsin educators come to life through a collaborative process with diverse musician and teacher voices at the center."

The new educational resource introduces educators and students to contemporary musicians currently making music in Wisconsin and provides learning opportunities centered around how their cultural identities and experiences shape their music.

The featured musicians are: Latinx musicians Richard Hildner Armacanqui and Juan Tomás Martínez of Madison, First Nations musician Wade Fernandez of Keshena on the Menominee Reservation, Hmong singer Maa Vue of Wausau and the Black American string duo, SistaStrings, Chauntee Ross and Monique Ross of Milwaukee. Each musician selected a personally significant piece of music to talk about, practice and perform. Interviews and performances are woven together to share the stories around the pieces of music and the emotions they embody and express.

Re/sound: Songs of Wisconsin was made possible by generous funding from the Pleasant T. Rowland Foundation, Focus Fund for Education and Friends of PBS Wisconsin.

PBS Wisconsin is a service of the Wisconsin Educational Communications Board and the University of Wisconsin-Madison.

PBS Wisconsin is a place to grow through learning on WHA-TV, Madison; WPNE-TV, Green Bay; WHRM-TV, Wausau; WLEF-TV, Park Falls; WHLA- TV, La Crosse; and WHWC-TV, Menomonie-Eau Claire.

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