What Do You Do
Truth
Sad Days

Scroll down for: Artist Bio, Teaching Resume, Course Descriptions, Student Credits and information on The National Youth Collaborative (©Pomfret 2008)

Artist Bio
Dana Pomfret is a singer-songwriter, recording artist and fine artist from NYC, now living in CT. She has recorded for Elektra, SBK and Warner Bros. Records, and has released four albums of original music: Talk, Soul Collage, realtime and Tracks. Soul Collage was released on Warner Bros, International, in Europe, Japan and Australia.
Dana’s CDs feature performances by rock legends David Crosby, Graham Nash and Danny Kortchmar, jazz bass phenomenon François Moutin, guitar masters Jeff Pevar and Jim Chapdelaine (co-producer: realtime) and renowned singer/songwriter Martin Sexton.
She has performed her original music throughout the United States and Europe and is signed to a publishing deal with Jean Davoust, Paris. Dana’s songs are used commercially and in film production throughout Europe.
She is currently in the studio recording her 5th CD, Float: release date, Summer, 2010.

Teaching Information
Dana's mixed-media programs currently include instruction in songwriting, Garage Band recording technology, fine art, Adobe Photoshop, iMovie, digital photography and creative writing. Dana travels with her own laptops, headphones, digital and video cameras: setting up recording/design studios onsite.
Together, students create and produce their own CDs and DVDs, which they take home at the end of each residency. They also create multi-media art installations comprised of visual art, film, songs/soundtracks, and written/spoken word pieces. Movies and slideshows incorporate original student soundtracks, songs, scripts, choreography, poetry, art/digital photography.
Dana has extensive experience working with interdistrict partnerships (CT Commission on Culture and Tourism: Hartford Stage: Hartford, Derby, Rocky Hill, Glastonbury Public Schools). Collaborative, multi-disciplinary classes strengthen written, verbal, social, mathematical and critical skills, while they promote tolerance and understanding among students from diverse cultures and backgrounds.
All program components can be offered separately, or in varying combinations, according to student/residency needs and requirements.
A Core Teaching Artist for the CT Commission on Culture and Tourism, Dana's programs have been cited for excellence by the State of CT and The National Endowment for the Arts.
Please access all of this website's pages to hear free MP3 downloads from all of Dana’s CDs, read reviews, news, in-depth bio and schedule information and view Dana’s art.

Teaching Resume
2009-2010
RJ Kinsella Magnet School of the Performing Arts: Multi-media Artist in Residence
Multi-media class in Recording, Songwriting, iMovie, Adobe Photoshop, Digital Photography.
Students collaborate to create songs, soundtracks, digital photographs, art, video - producing CDs, DVDs and a multi-media installation - in support of their 2009-10 curriculum.
April 12, 2010: Multi-media students at RJ Kinsella Magnet School for the Performing Arts will connect with future multi-media educators at Berklee College of Music, in Boston, via Skype. In 2010-2011 they will connect and co-create with students in Sweden, NYC, Los Angeles.
April 30, 2010: Around the World Installation; multi-media curriculum co-authored by Dana Pomfret and Elise Butson: ©2010 Dana Pomfret, Elise Butson
Around The World : This collaborative project tracks the evolution of technology throughout multiple cultures, from the beginning of recorded time to the present, in a variety of fields, including: the Arts (music, visual, literary, theater), communication, travel (from the wheel to the Concorde), medicine (leeches to lasers), cooking, language (hieroglyphics to computer code).
Students collaborate to research the history of technology in their selected categories. Using digital photography, Adobe Photoshop, Garage Band recording software, iMovie, Final Cut Express, iChat and Powerpoint, they create comprehensive displays highlighting technology’s growth in their subjects, from earliest recorded history to the present.
At project’s end, the audience moves through an interactive, multi-media installation comprised of original visual art (e.g., large-scale, photo-collage prints, video projected onto sculptural forms), film, songs/soundtracks, and written/spoken word pieces.
This year (2009-2010), our students have explored the development of technology in the following areas: medicine, travel, communication, fashion, language, textiles, painting, sports, recorded music, cooking. The project’s ultimate goal is to promote understanding of technology's development throughout time, in a variety of cultures: using that same technology to connect students of diverse populations, promoting tolerance and mutual understanding through collaboration.

MENC (Music Educators National Conference), Providence, RI
March 12, 2009: Dana and colleague Stefani Langol (Assistant Professor of Music Education, Berklee College of Music) present: Composition for All: Technology and Composition in the Middle School.

Richard J. Kinsella Magnet School for the Performing Arts:
April-May 2009: Curriculum-based songwriting and recording arts residency, using Garage Band software to produce songs, soundtracks, CDs.

Digital Photography Workshop: Windsor Locks Youth Services
May, 2009: Students create photos/photo collage using digital cameras, Apple technology & Adobe Photoshop.

NECAP (New England Consortium of Artist Professionals) Conference: Rhode Island School of Design:
June 19, 2009: Professional development for Arts Educators: Garage Band recording workshop.

2007-2008
Lewis Fox Middle School, Hartford, CT
Dana was a Michael Jordan Inspiration Grant recipient, in partnership with Lewis Fox Middle School.
As the primary artist-in-residence, she coordinated a unified arts project based on the book We Beat the Street.
Students learned Garage Band/iMovie technology, introductory Adobe Photoshop/digital photography. They created soundtracks, songs, poetry, prose, film, photos and art, based on the book, producing a CD, a DVD and a multi-media installation at Lewis Fox in May, 2008.
Dana’s colleague, Stefani Langol (Associate Professor of Music Technology at Berklee College of Music, Boston), came to Hartford to film the students for inclusion in a documentary which Dana and Stefani are creating.

Hartford Stage: ‘Words Alive in the Middle!’
Multi-media arts residency based on The Diary of Anne Frank.
This interdistrict grant joined Lewis Fox, Derby and Smith Middle Schools. Students created CDs, DVDs and art based on themes derived from study of the Holocaust: struggle, joy, courage, trust, triumph, despair, hope, tolerance, love. They journeyed together to Washington, DC, and performed at the culmination ceremony, which included their own film, photos, artwork, writing and soundtracks, at Hartford Stage, Spring, 2008.
The poster titled ‘Joy,’ created in Dana’s collage class, was exhibited online
in Hartford’s contribution to the international ‘Exhibition Coexistence’ project, funded (in Hartford) by The Hartford Financial Services Group.

Professional development: Hartford Stage, Lewis Fox, Smith and Derby: Instruction in Garage Band, iMovie, OS X.

2004-2008
Greater Hartford Classical Magnet School, Hartford, CT
Ongoing arts residency from 2004-2008
Specialized Instructor: 'Explorer' and 'Fast-Track Media'
Multi-media courses integrating music (songwriting and Garage Band recording technology), visual art (including digital photography, Adobe Photoshop, iMovie) and creative writing. Students took home CDs, high-quality photo-collage prints and DVDs.

Specialized Instructor: Recording
Recording students created original songs and soundtracks for their own CDs, using Garage Band software.

Hartford Stage (11/2006-4/2007): ‘Words Alive in the Middle!’
Multi-media Teaching Artist (recording, songwriting, visual art, digital photography, Adobe Photoshop, creative writing) for Interdistrict Grant partnering Lewis Fox and Derby Middle Schools. Theme: 'The Evolution of the Word.'
Culminating performance: 4/30/07 at Hartford Stage.

Hartford Stage, Lewis Fox Middle School (2006-2007)
Professional Development instructor for Teachers and Teaching Artists: Instruction in Garage Band, iMovie HD, iPhoto, iChat, iSight, OS X.

Discovery Museum: Bridgeport, CT (2007)
One day Garage Band workshop for students participating in technology/arts week.

Pomfret Community School (Spring, 2007)
Multi-media residency: Garage Band, Digital Photography, Adobe Photoshop.
Pomfret Community School
Professional Development for Teachers: Garage Band, iMovie.

Farmington Valley Arts Center Summer Program (Summer, 2007)
Garage Band, iMovie, Songwriting.

Greater Hartford Classical Magnet (Spring/Summer 2006)
Talent Show Coordinator
The 2006 Classical Magnet Talent Show, at Classical Magnet's Black Box Theatre, featured original student music, rap, dance/choreography, poetry and large scale photo-collage prints.

Pomfret Community School, Pomfret CT (Spring/Summer 2006) Recording and songwriting residency: May-June, 2006
Instruction in songwriting, Garage Band software: student-produced CDs.
Professional Development, Pomfret Community School: Garage Band Instruction.

Farmington Valley Arts Center Summer Program (Summer, 2006)
Songwriting/Recording master classes: Instruction in Garage Band software/Songwriting: student-produced CDs.

2001-2003
Connecticut Commission on the Arts: Teaching Artist and Interdistrict Grant Coordinator:
10/2001-5/2002
Teaching Artist: Songwriting and Creative Writing Residency for the CT Commission on the Arts' 'HOT Schools' program: Hartford Public and Rockville High Schools.
‘HOT (Higher Order Thinking) Schools' is a comprehensive educational philosophy/program (learn more at www.cultureandtourism.org).The HOT Schools Interdistrict Grant brings students from urban and rural (or suburban) schools together through music, writing, art, theater, dance.
The cultural starting point for the 2001-2002 program was the Harlem Renaissance. Students from the two high schools studied the rich literary, musical and artistic output of that period, then created original work based on themes of personal journey and rebirth.
Dana's Hartford Public and Rockville high school classes co-wrote and recorded 2 songs, made a CD and created a book of poetry. All were cited for excellence by the state of CT and currently rest at The National Endowment for the Arts.
Students performed their songs and poetry, complete with original choreography, at a powerful culmination ceremony at Charter Oak Cultural Center in Hartford, CT.
Interdistrict Grant Coordinator for the HOT Schools Program
Grant Coordinator responsibilities included: finding and securing performance and rehearsal space: coordinating all class schedules between Hartford and Rockville High students, teachers and artists: bringing in guest artists to augment the program: arranging for live recording within the high schools: coordinating rehearsal and performance schedules: managing payment for all artists/teachers.

Farmington Valley Arts Center (Summer, 2003)
Summer Arts Program:
Songwriting/performance workshops, Acappella Chorus (original student songs created and arranged for acapella performance), Poetry (written and performed).

Private writing students:
2001-2002:
Creative writing students participated in:
Breadloaf Young Writers' Conference, Middlebury, VT:
Connecticut State Writing Finals.

2002-2003:
Private writing students participated in: Independent, creative writing studies with Dana, receiving full course credit from Granby high school: won IMPAC, CT, State University Award for Young Writers: Hartford County.

Other
Adjunct Faculty:
New Centre For The Arts: Brookfield, CT

Circle of Artists: Pioneer Valley Performing Arts Schools: Hadley, MA

Course Descriptions:

Fast-track Media:
Fast-track Media combines: songwriting and recording (using Garage Band software), iMovie, digital photography, fine art, Adobe Photoshop and creative writing. Students create, produce and take home their own CDs and DVDs. Movies and slideshows incorporate original soundtracks, scripts, choreography, poetry, art/digital photography (Adobe Photoshop).
All components of Fast-track Media can be offered separately, or in varying combinations (eg: digital photography/Adobe Photoshop with creative writing, etc.) according to student/residency needs and requirements.

Music: Songwriting and Recording:
Instructor provides in-class use of Apple laptops and ‘Garage Band’ recording program:
Students create melodies, lyrics, beats - moving on to produce complete songs using cutting edge computer technology. Apple's Garage Band provides them with access to thousands of instrument samples and loops - as well as the ability to record audio (sung or played) sounds. We work on the basics: structure, melody, rhythm, chords, counterpoint and lyrics, while learning to stay open to the happy accident! When songs are sketched out, we move to Garage Band, and record their original music for CD production. In group classes, co-writing is encouraged, but the solo artist will find a home here, too.

This program can be especially exciting for the student who does not have easy access to instruments or computers, because it puts the sonic palette squarely under their fingertips. They can access a wonderfully varied orchestra (drum grooves, bass, piano, clavinet, violin, oud, djembe, guitar, etc.) with the flexibility to accompany any kind of music they can imagine: hip-hop to salsa, rap to rock and roll. The class gains experience and confidence using a high-tech medium which is surprisingly user-friendly, while it supports and promotes authentic discovery, creativity and collaboration.

Art: Supplies: wood, oil pastels, magazines, paper, found objects.
Instructor supplies in-class use of digital and video cameras.
Students use wood, paper, pastel (and any special objects they choose) to create dimensional, sculptural art. They learn collage and pastel ‘scratch’ techniques, and are encouraged to include their writing (lyrics, poetry, prose) in their art. All students have the opportunity to work with the digital camera.
After working with fundamental materials, students receive instruction in the use of Adobe Photoshop technology: editing and manipulating original images and art: designing and creating layouts for their books and for display.

Creative Writing: Lyrics, poetry, prose, stream-of-conscious writing: exploration of rhythm, rhyme, simile, metaphor, etc.
I encourage exploration of a wide variety of writing styles and subjects. We focus on finding each student's unique, 'true,' voice. W.H. Auden said it's important to 'strive for authenticity,' as opposed to 'originality.' Students read from e.e.cummings, Maya Angelou, G. Garcia Marquez, Edwige Danticat, Adrienne Rich, Langston Hughes, Rilke and more - then tell their own stories in poetry/prose formats. Whether based on personal experience or rooted in fantasy, I encourage creativity and freedom of expression in a safe, mutually respectful environment. Student writing is included in books, which also feature their art and photography. Books and art pieces are taken home by all students at session’s end.

Outcomes:
Students leave these multi-media classes with self-produced CDs, DVDs and books in hand, and with markedly increased self-esteem. In addition, verbal, written, collaborative, social, mathematical and critical skills are strengthened.

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Student Credits for Music and art samples at top of page:
MUSIC
Classical Magnet School, Hartford, CT
What Do You Do: Tichina Marshall
Truth: Dajavon Davis
Sad Days: Tichina Marshall
Michael Jordan Inspiration Grant: Lewis Fox Middle School, Hartford, CT
We Beat the Street: J. Williams, J. Hankerson, L. Nieves, J. Simpson
Tag: J. Williams, J. Hankerson
Classical Magnet School, Hartford, CT
Can't Sleep at Night: D. Davis
ART: Students from: Classical Magnet School, Hartford, CT, Michael Jordan Inspiration Grant: Lewis Fox Middle School, Hartford, CT, Derby Middle School, Derby, CT, Smith Middle School, Glastonbury, CT
Left Column, top to bottom
Brittany Shumpert, Cameah Wood, Clarisa Gadson, Tichina Marshall, Andrei Dufus and Shirley Jenkins, Elissa Riviere, Jermaine Ellis, Htfd Stage 'Words Alive in the Middle:' Smith, Derby, Fox Middle Schools, 'Words Alive in the Middle' collaboration, Brittany Shumpert, Shirley Jenkins
Right Column, top to bottom
Luis Nieves, Classical Magnet Collaboration, Theresa Mende, Nehemiah Gray, Sabine Riviere, Shirley Jenkins, Shirley Jenkins, Clarisa Gadson, Htfd Stage Words Alive in the Middle, Michael Jordan Inspiration Grant: Lewis Fox Middle School, Janeecia Gore, Jakar Hankerson

Dana is also an artist, specializing in collage and mixed-media pieces. She sells her pieces privately. Exhibitions include:
2002: The Axe Factory, Collinsville, CT. Group show
2003: 'It's Alive!' Gallery on the Green, Canton, CT

Portfolio and references available on request.
CONTACT INFORMATION:
e-mail: dana@danapomfret.com
website: http://www.danapomfret.com * CDs, MP3s, reviews, art gallery, schedule