School programs are highly creative and energized activities for the band. We cater to the needs of every school we attend, whether it's kindergarten to grade 8 or university level. Usually, we simply set up, play a set of music and interact with students for as much time as possible. We talk about song writing, playing together, or just stories we’ve collected along the way. Students respond quickly and walk away with a different look at modern, popular music or hum melodies for the rest of the day.
In addition to our one hour presentation, we conduct comprehensive workshops that take place anywhere from one to three days. Below is a typical three day enrichment studies plan we conducted in Moncton in March of 2004 for top music students.

EXAMPLE 3 DAY ENRICHMENT STUDIES PLAN WITH HOT TODDY

Professions in the music industry is a viable option for anyone interested enough. With home-based technologies and a serious growth in genre specific venues (festivals, concert series, etc.), groups or individuals can successfully crack the hard-shelled nut of the music world.

Our program’s aim is to empower students with the knowledge needed to make a career in music with artistic freedom and room for their individuality to grow and blossom. Even in a field like pop music, where corporate interests loom, anyone can create a viable career independent of big record companies. We bring to the students some of the nuts and bolts we’ve discovered along the way as an independent, commercially successful and artistic group. Broken down into three workshops, our program really represents the very core of what we do on a daily basis.

Workshop 1 Group Performance-Tom Easley
Workshop 2 Principals of Improvisation-Joel LeBlanc
Workshop 3 The Professional Musician-Thom Swift

Two “Hot Toddy” songs are arranged specifically for the student instrumentation and class size. Tom takes the students through charts and prepares them for their final performance on day three. This requires chart reading and group interaction/dynamics.This is an overview of the hard and soft rules of improvisational engagement. This includes; basic theory and how it applies to fundamental song forms such as a 12 bar blues, as well as, some of the long standing philosophical approaches such as; the art of listening and the importance of silence.

“The professional musician” breaks out of the academic world and introduces students to the nuts and bolts of running a band as a business and what it takes to work professionally. It’s based on all the Hot Toddy operational materials including; web-site, press package and media kits, professional photography, sound recordings, using a publicist, organizing tours, working with agents and promoters, performance and recording preparation, sorting through music conferences, getting reviews, selling product with distributors and off the stage, etc.