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Teaching Basic Music Skills with pBuzz

April 6th, 2021 | 1 min read

By Rich Breske

Have you heard of pBuzz? It’s the newest musical tool that your elementary students can play! Learning pBuzz checks off nearly every learning style - aural, visual, kinetic, tactile – and does it in a fun and social way.

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pBuzz is a wind instrument but, unlike the recorder, actually requires your students to move air.  It teaches how a sound is made (through buzzing) and how to create tone and pitch. With just six notes on one partial, pBuzz shows how changing the length of the tube affects notes, and it's easy for students to learn together.

Integrating the teaching of pBuzz into your classroom is a snap. There are teaching aids to expand on your curriculum, and even some popular tunes with accompaniment that will help your students “rock out”! You can find all of this and more on our pBuzz education page.

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Thousands of schools across North America are using pBuzz to inspire students to engage in music. After just a few weeks, one educator revealed their experience:

Almost all students are successful with making a buzz. They have learned the song Hot Cross Buns on pBuzz and Jaws on pBone. Some students can play it perfectly, but most are still working on getting the right pitches with their buzzes. I really want to get them actually reading music by the end of the year. Right now we are learning through solfege, and I want to continue with that for the first semester.”

pBuzz is effective and challenging, but students are finding success in music performance. Principals have noted that pBuzz is providing greater access to music and active learning engagement, as well as societal cooperation and respect.

Find out more

Related Topics

pBuzz and Social & Emotional Learning (SEL)

Growing Elementary Music Pathways

Answering the call: Equity in Instrumental Music Education

Teaching with pBuzz provides early skills needed for success in music

STEM and the pBuzz Lab

Rich Breske

Rich grew up on Chicago’s south side and attended Marist High School, where he was an active member and drum major of the school’s marching band. He attended Elmhurst College (University), receiving a degree in marketing and music-business. His early career included time at the Chicago Symphony and Ravinia Festival organizations, as well as classes at the Chicago-Kent College of Law. Rich’s career has been dedicated to music education. He has worked closely with educators, professionals, retail businesses and corporations. He has established key education partnerships and has served on the board of directors for several non-profit education organizations. He has provided executive planning and marketing acumen for 21st century companies through Strategic Marketing Management, LLC since 2011. Prior to opening his own firm, he served in key management roles at KHS America, Inc., the Conn-Selmer division of Steinway & Sons, Inc., and United Musical Instruments, all worldwide manufacturers and distributors. He served in the management of the SMART Foundation which provided programs and advocacy support for arts education. He has also authored several publications focused on the arts and education and has served on the boards of non-profit music education organizations.