Northern California Association of Kodály Educators
2025-2026 Workshop Season
Please check below for upcoming workshops, events, and bundle offerings!
2025–2026 Workshop Series: Bundle Pricing Now Available!
NCAKE is thrilled to announce our workshop offerings for the 2025–2026 school year! Join us for an inspiring series of professional learning opportunities designed to connect, collaborate, and grow alongside fellow music educators.
Bundle and Save!
Take advantage of our bundle pricing options to get the most out of your professional development this year. Whether you plan to attend one workshop or all three, our bundles offer a convenient and affordable way to participate in multiple sessions.
Repertoire for Singing and Listening with Historical Background for Upper Grades (Saturday, January 24, 2026)
In collaboration with SNAKE and UFOLKS, NCAKE is proud to offer a virtual workshop with Dr. Susan Brumfield!
Dr. Susan Brumfield, Clinician
Saturday, January 24, 2026, from 9:00 am - 12:00 pm
Online via Zoom, and by Zoom recording
Dr. Susan Brumfield is Professor of Music Education at Texas Tech University, Artistic Director of The West Texas Children’s Chorus and Academic Director of The West Texas Kodály Initiative. She holds a Ph.D. in Music Education from the University of Oklahoma. Dr. Brumfield is known for her work as a teacher, author, composer and conductor. In frequent demand as a commissioned composer, clinician and guest conductor, she has conducted the ACDA Eastern Division Children’s Honor Choir. She served on the artistic staff of the Pacific International Choral Festival as conductor of the 2019 and 2023 Treble Choral Festival Choirs.
An internationally recognized expert in the Kodály approach, Dr. Brumfield is the author of First, We Sing! Kodály-Inspired Teaching in the Music Classroom, a series of textbooks and song anthologies published by Hal Leonard Music. Dr. Brumfield’s other publications include Hot Peas and Barley-O: Children’s Songs and Games from Scotland, Over the Garden Wall: Children’s Songs and Games from England, and Kentucky Mother Goose, co-authored with American folk legend Jean Ritchie. She is currently working on Giro Giro Tondo: Children’s Songs and Games from Italy and completing several new commissioned choral works.
Dr. Brumfield was honored in both 2012 and 2014 with the Texas Tech University College of Visual and Performing Arts Award for Outstanding Research, and as a two-time finalist for the President’s Book Award. She is a recipient of the Barnie E. Rushing Jr. Award for Research at Texas Tech University. She was recently honored as the 2025 recipient of the Texas Tech University President’s Excellence in Commercialization Award.
Questions? Please reach out to us at: info@NCAKE.org.
#NCAKE #OAKE #IKS #Kodaly #Music #Education
Choral Classroom Refresher (Saturday, January 31, 2026)
In collaboration with NCAOSA, NCAKE is proud to offer an in-person workshop with Dr. Matthew Otto!
Dr. Matthew Otto, Clinician
Saturday, January 31, 2026, from 9:00 am - 1:00 pm
The San Francisco School 300 Gaven St, San Francisco, CA 94134
Do you lead your school choir? Are you looking to learn innovative and successful repertoire, improve your conducting, and learn more about vocal pedagogy in the choral setting? Join Dr. Matthew Otto from the Young Women’s Choral Projects in this refresher to add valuable skills to your conductor’s toolbox.
Questions? Please reach out to us at: info@NCAKE.org.
#NCAKE #OAKE #IKS #Kodaly #Music #Education
From Fieldwork to Classroom: A Journey through Philippine Songs, Rhymes, Games, and DancesChoral Classroom Refresher (Saturday, March 28, 2026)
Dr. Miriam B. Factora, Clinician
Saturday, March 28, 2026, from 9:00 am - 4:00 pm
Online via Zoom, and by Zoom recording
Dr. Miriam B. Factora presents a workshop featuring materials she has collected from various regions of the Philippines, highlighting her journey in developing rich educational and cultural resources. Participants will engage in interactive activities that include exploring key musical examples, listening to select field recordings, and performing sample songs, games, and dances.
By the end of the session, participants will gain an introductory understanding of Philippine music and its diverse cultural contexts. Educators will leave with practical resources and innovative teaching ideas for integrating Filipino musical traditions into their classrooms—from early grades to advanced levels. The materials showcased in this workshop stem from Dr. Factora’s extensive fieldwork and years of classroom experience, culminating in a series of publications designed to promote meaningful and culturally grounded music education.
Dr. Miriam B. Factora is an energetic and accomplished educator who truly inspires students of any age group with her passion for music. She has a wide range of teaching experiences in early childhood, elementary, middle school, high school, university, and postgraduate levels in public and private institutions.
Dr. Factora is a fervent advocate for cultural relevance in education. As an esteemed music educator, international speaker, and clinician, she has shared this passion through keynote speeches, workshops, paper presentations, and training sessions for university students and teachers in different parts of the world.
As for her educational background, Miriam earned a Bachelor of Music in Music Education, magna cum laude, from the University of Santo Tomas, Philippines; specialized in conducting at California State University, East Bay; completed Orff Certification at the San Francisco International Orff Course, California; earned a Master of Music Education with Kodály Emphasis from Holy Names University, Oakland, California; studied Dalcroze Eurhythmics at the Juilliard School of Music, New York; earned a Doctor of Philosophy in Music from the University of Queensland, Brisbane, Australia, and was an International Kodály Society scholar at the Liszt Academy of Music, Budapest, Hungary.
Currently, Dr. Factora is serving as one of the Board of Directors of the International Kodály Society and is a co-chair of the International Kodály Society Lászlo Vikar Folk Music Research Forum. She has been a consultant for the Kodály Society of the Philippines for so many years. She retired from the California Public School System due to her decision to make a major move to Washington State to focus on research and writing.
To join OAKE and NCAKE, use the membership application on the OAKE web site.
Be sure to choose NCAKE for your chapter affiliation.
Reciprocal pricing honored for NCOASA members.