Short Courses & Events / Archive

Music Reading for Students with Learning Disabilities

Thursday 22nd February 2024, 5:00 PM - 7:00 PM (London Time)

There are music students in private studios and school classrooms who are not readily learning to read music through standard instruction. Research into dyslexia gives us insight and guidance to how students with learning disabilities can be taught in a way that effectively builds the neural pathways for literacy. Using the style of teaching first created by the dyslexia researchers Stillman and Gillingham, Multisensory Structured Language (MSL), we can redesign our approach to teaching music reading that follows a strict, logical and effective order to build the neural pathways that are necessary for students with learning disabilities to learn.

Music reading is most often taught as a secondary skill to performing skills, and therefore does not follow its own logical, systematic approach. This negatively effects students who are not neurologically wired to learn through our traditional standard instruction. Applying the principles of MSL instruction to music reading instruction reorganises the steps to learning in surprising and effective ways. Adapting this scientifically researched approach to music reading makes it possible for struggling students to have access to music literacy.

This course will review the research surrounding certain learning disabilities such as dyslexia, dyscalculia and ADHD, and the research-based solutions that have been found to work successfully. We will examine current methods of music reading pedagogy, and then compare that to systems specifically designed to accommodate students with learning disabilities.

🏷️ Price £30 (UK VAT inclusive)
🎥 Recording automatically sent to all who book (even if you cannot attend live)
▶️ Rewatch as many times as you like
📜 Certificate of attendance available

Dr Elizabeth Morrow

Dr Elizabeth Morrow, Professor Emerita, was awarded the degree Doctor of Musical Arts in Cello Performance from the University of Southern California. As a recitalist, she has concertized extensively in Europe and North America. An award-winning pedagogue, Dr Morrow has been an active presenter for the American String Teachers Association and Texas Music Educators Conference.

CPD Course Logo

Attend this course for as little as £22 as part of the Voice Professional Training CPD Award Scheme.

Learn More

Sorry, this is an archived short course...

We have plenty of upcoming short courses coming soon. See details of some of them below or look at the full list of short courses.

Navigating Vocal Aging for Singers
Thursday 9th October 2025
2:00 PM - 4:00 PM
(London Time)

Navigating Vocal Aging for Singers

Karen Brunssen

As singers approach their senior years, they can benefit greatly from a voice teacher who understands the normal changes involved as they navigate vocal aging. This course will focus on the realities of aging voices for senior singers and what can be done to address vocal production and peripheral issues that can affect the activity of singing.

Introduction to Vocal Acoustics for Spoken and Sung Voice
Friday 10th October 2025
3:00 PM - 5:00 PM
Monday 13th October 2025
3:00 PM - 5:00 PM
(London Time)

Introduction to Vocal Acoustics for Spoken and Sung Voice

Gökçe Kutsal

This course is designed to break down the fundamentals of acoustics for both spoken and sung voice in a beginner-friendly, accessible way — so you can easily understand and apply these concepts to your teaching or research.

Water Resistance Therapy and Semioccluded Devices for Voice Training
Monday 13th October 2025
5:00 PM - 7:00 PM
(London Time)

Water Resistance Therapy and Semioccluded Devices for Voice Training

Dr Marco Guzmán

Several voice devices to perform water resistance therapy (WRT) and some oscillatory positive expiratory pressure devices (OPEP) (e.g. Acapella Choice, Shaker Medic Plus, New Shaker) are now commonly used for both voice training and voice therapy. Are these devices truly good for voice training? Are these devices the treatment by themselves? and how much evidence currently supports the use of these devices?