The presenters will discuss startling data about how girls at a very young age are enculturated to embrace "perfection," while boys at the same age are encouraged to play, tinker and experiment. They will talk about how this plays out in the improvisational music learning space, and share ideas for promoting Bravery over Perfection in our female and non-binary music learners.
Target Audience
Everyone -- but it focuses on improvisation so would be most immediately interesting to jazz band leaders
Additional Notes
Clinician Info
Elizabeth Fortune
Associate Director, Washington Music Educators Association
Elizabeth Fortune – WMEA Associate Director – is a music education change-agent from Seattle with two decades of classroom experience. In addition to her work at WMEA, she is the co-host of a popular music education podcast called “The Beth and Kelly Show, is a well known clinician, guest conductor, and adjudicator. She is the former chairperson of NAfME’s Council for Orchestral Education. In 2019-2021, Fortune served on the ASTA Board of Directors. In 2018, she was a recipient of CMA’s Music Teachers of Excellence distinction. In 2015, Fortune was one of 25 semi-finalists for the Grammy Music Educator Award.
Kelly Clingan
Seattle Jazz ED
Kelly Clingan is an indigenous (Lenape and Cherokee) educator, trombonist, and mother. She is the Director of Education at Seattle JazzED, a jazz education nonprofit propelling students towards a lifelong appreciation of the art form. Her life and work are rooted in Seattle’s celebrated tradition of music education.
Kelly is a frequent adjudicator at jazz festivals across the Pacific Northwest and has become a highly respected and sought-after presenter to groups of music educators and education-based professionals at conferences, workshops, and radio/television interviews. She co-hosts “The Beth and Kelly Show: Music Teaching (and Life)”, a weekly podcast exploring music education-based solutions and highlighting allies in the work of strengthening the practice, with her teaching soulmate Beth Fortune.
In 2016, Kelly was honored as the University of Washington GWSS (Gender Women and Sexuality Studies) Alumni of the Year for her expansive work to increase gender parity in jazz. A seasoned trombonist, “la Kelly del Norte” performs weekly
throughout the Puget Sound area in Banda Vagos, a traditional Mexican Banda.
“I am committed to driving gender and racial equity forward through music, from the beginning classroom to the professional stage. Join me in re-imagining music education that links artistic excellence to empowerment and social justice.”