Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 53:50 — 49.5MB)

Missy talks with Taylor Kurilew, a teacher in the first years of using John Feierabend’s Conversational Solfege music literacy program for elementary students. In a former podcast, Missy and Taylor spent 3 episodes talking about the mechanics of CS as well as how to roll it out for the first time in her classroom. In this episode, they catch up on what happened right after those episodes debuted, since COVID entered the scene and caused Taylor (and all of us) to pivot! Also, Missy talks about the impact of a book she’s reading called There There by Tommy Orange.

Taylor Kurilew is a native of New Jersey, and holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Music Education from Montclair State University and a Masters of Music Degree in Voice Performance from Rutgers University, Mason Gross School of the Arts. Aside from being in the classroom, Ms. Kurilew has performed in operas and musical theatre shows and has attended operatic training programs from NY to Italy and continues to perform and gig outside of school. Taylor is the K-5 general music teacher and choral director at Cedar Hill Elementary School in Basking Ridge, NJ and also teaches voice in the central NJ area. She continues to work on her craft and her teaching career and loves using these experiences and trainings to keep her inspired and share the love of music to her students in every aspect she can, in and out of the classroom.