Walter Thompson and members of The Walter Thompson Orchestra teach Soundpainting nationally and internationally. Soundpainting has been taught in public and private schools (grades K-12) throughout the United States and Europe, and has reached special needs populations, including disabled citizens and at-risk youth, through organizations such as the Ulster-Greene Association for Retarded Citizens in Kingston, NY, and Bellevue Hospital in New York City. Thompson presents Soundpainting at music education conferences that include the International Society for Music Education, the International Association of Schools of Jazz, the Artists and Teachers Institute at Rutgers University, the Michigan Collegiate Music Education Conference: Diversity in the New Millennium, and several state conferences affiliated with MENC: The National Association for Music Education (formerly Music Educators National Conference). With the success of, and demand for, Soundpainting education programs, the Soundpainting Teacher Certification Program and the Soundpainting Teachers Workbook have been developed to enable teachers to integrate Soundpainting into their curricula.

Soundpainting is an essential method for engaging students of all ages, ability levels, and art forms in the creative process. Unlike learning to create within a single style, Soundpainting develops the creative voices of students through an array of structural parameters allowing individual choice and stylistic parameters drawn from different cultures and historical periods. Using the composer/conductor, or "Soundpainter," as teacher, the innate creativity of students is drawn out and developed constructively by way of the gestural choices of the Soundpainter, enabling each group to express its own character in an experiential learning format.

The Soundpainting language is accessible to all students, from preschoolers to collegians to those with special needs. By engaging multiple learning styles (verbal, visual, aural, and kinesthetic) for exploring creativity, Soundpainting breaks through boundaries, tapping into reservoirs of skills and expression that help students better understand themselves and the world in which they live.

Testimonials

"I feel strongly that through Soundpainting, students gain a new perspective about the foundations of music and begin to find their own voices as artists."

—Hollis Headrick, Executive Director, Center for Arts Education
New York City

"Soundpainting is a wonderful complement to conventional jazz and other improvisational settings, as well as a very expressive format in itself. It immediately allows musicians of all levels to tap their reservoir of skills and experiences."

—Ed Sarath, Chair, Department of Jazz and Improvised Studies
University of Michigan

"I envision Soundpainting as a viable methodology for improvisation and composition within public and private school venues, K-12. Soundpainting gives music educators an alternate tool for composition and improvisation, one different from traditional jazz and technology-based methods."

—Dr. Jody Kerchner, Department of Music Education
Oberlin Conservatory

"I have done many workshops and concerts that include Soundpainting materials. It is a fantastic way to make music, with old or young, amateurs or professionals, jazz, classical, or traditional musicians. Soundpainting is very exciting and enjoyable for everyone."

—Francois Jeanneau, Department of Jazz
Paris Conservatoire

© 2008 Walter Thompson •  All rights reserved.