KINGSTON, Jamaica — Dannareo Fearon, chief executive officer of DF Entertainment Limited in Clarendon says the entity’s newly started ‘Excellence Music Programme’ is geared towards fostering creativity among registrants.

“At DF Entertainment, we are a group of people who understand the correlation between music and production and how it affects our day-to-day lives. That being said, music is a powerful life-changing agent and as such we saw it fit to not only give our clients top-tier service in production and live entertainment but also to give them knowledge and skills through teaching and learning which in return will be a life-changing agent for them,” Fearon told Observer Online.

Unit one of the programme started on February 18 and will run through April 15. The syllabi include teachings involving introduction to music, the music staff, keyboards, note identification, clefs, rhythm and meters, note values, dynamics, pitch, aural, major and minor scales, formation of harmonies and much more. Lessons primarily take place on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays, with exceptions being made in extreme circumstances.

Meanwhile, Fearon, who is also a trained musician, producer and teacher, explained that a mixed mode of delivery has been adopted for the lessons, with different experts on board for each topic.

“These topics give the student a deep dive into the essentials that make a proficient and well-rounded musician, one who reads and also plays well by ear. We take a hybrid approach with our lessons to meet persons where they’re at so the programme is both online and in person; adjusted or tailored to meet the needs of the student,” he said.

Fearon continued, “The classes have a number of teachers or facilitators as we call them, each of them assigned to their area of expertise which includes but is not limited to piano, drums, guitar, saxophone, vocals, as well as other classroom instruments.”

He further explained that there is an assessment process that will determine whether registrants pass.

“Well, the music programme essentially is broken down into units (Fundamentals of Music unit one to six) and at the end of each unit, there are various practicals, quizzes and tests with a full recap of all topics and lessons learned. After successfully passing those tests, each student is awarded a certificate of completion of that specific unit. These tests are set with the sole aim of seeing how each student is grasping the material as well as how they’re applying that knowledge to their practical playing or singing,” he said.

Interested individuals may apply through the company’s website or through a designated Google Form with a special discount being offered until the end of March.

— Kediesha Perry