In an effort to better include and serve our Latine students, many music teachers are turning to culturally relevant ensembles. One such ensemble is the Música Norteña band. As an alternative to Mariachi, Norteña provides a fun and educational way to include more students who may not play a Mariachi instrument, or who may think of Mariachi as "old people music". We will highlight best practices from a successfully implemented Conjunto Norteña program in Northern California, including how to engage the Latine community.
Target Audience
High school and middle school music teachers
Additional Notes
Clinician Info
Casson Scowcroft
University of Oregon
Casson Scowcroft taught in Northern California as a band director for 14 years. He is currently a Ph.D. candidate at the University of Oregon, where is researching ways to make school music more diverse. He is previously a board member of CBDA, CMEA Capitol Section and NCBCDA.
Audrey McCombs
Ukiah High School
Audrey McCombs is the instrumental music teacher at Ukiah High School, a position she has held for 10 years. Before that, she was a Music Education student at Cal State University, Humboldt and at the University of Bristol, where she earned a Masters in Music. Audrey is on the board of NCBCDA and is a member of CMEA Bay Section.