RockFriday began in 2010 as a response to a familiar question- “Why do we have to learn this?” Wanting to bridge the gap between traditional music instruction and current pop culture, the choral department at Rising Starr Middle School collaborated with The Stage Academy of Music to provide relevant music opportunities and career guidance in performance, composition, and recording.
Every Friday, students and visiting artists collaborate on projects to connect music education concepts to the 21st century. Each year students write and perform their own electronic song using the app Launchpad, create a GargeBand backing track and lyrics for their own rap song that they record in the classroom studio, and perform as instrumentalists in the live band for the Spring Show. Students use videos posted by the RockFriday team to work at their own pace and study their instruments of choice, including piano, guitar, ukulele, and drums. Students study form, scale degrees, and chord structures through a color coded notation system that is inclusive for all learning styles.
The video below is a sample lesson that we use during Rock Friday, this video explains chord progressions and the roman numerals we use to represent chords in Music.
The RockFriday Program is in collaboration with the Stage Academy of Music, owned by Brad Confer and located in Peachtree City, GA. Learn more about the program by visiting www.TheStageAcademyofMusic.com.
Check out what a RockFriday project looks like. Below is a 2016 Rock Friday project of the song, “Thriller” all music created by the students in the video.
Subscribe to our YouTube channel RSMSChorus to see our latest projects.
Rising Starr Middle School Chorus 