The Adjunct: Lessons Learned

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Lesson #1: Never underestimate the power of networking.

Last spring, I applied for a part-time position at a small church in a small town another state away.  I knew no one and no one knew me.  I sent my resume, had a few conversations, and sent a recording of some of my recent performances.  A few days later, I received an email from a Humanities professor at a college in a town adjacent to where the church was located.  She, too was a musician (with three degrees in organ performance) and had received my resume from the search committee at the church.  “Want a job?” she said in one email.  “We have an opening for a part-time adjunct teaching class piano.  You’d be great.”

What a vote of confidence!  I haven’t even met the woman yet!  I went back and forth on whether this was something I really wanted to pursue.  In the end, my final semester of school caught up with me and I was soon fully immersed in the day-to-day once more.

A few months went by.  I got the job for which I had originally applied, performed a collaborative recital, graduated from Eastman, and began moving plans.  Around June 1st, I received another email from the music professor.  “Are you still interested in applying for the adjunct position?  We’re getting ready to make a decision.”  I scrambled to update my CV and resume, write a cover letter, and fill out the application.  Two days later, I was offered the position via email by the Humanities Chair.  “Is this real?” I asked Steve.  “They haven’t even met me!”

Lesson #2: Welcome to the world of guessing.

So I got the job.  Now what?  I was full of questions:

Do I pick the textbook? Do I have to write anything specific in my syllabus? Is there a standard grading policy for the college? How many students are registered for these classes? Do I have an email address? I need office hours? I have an office?! How much does this pay again?

August 1st rolled around.  I moved, I started my position at the church, I began plans for opening my piano studio.  The semester feels as if it’s looming around the corner (it is – September 1st!)  Finally, I received an email from Human Resources with an overwhelming number of attachments (14, to be exact).  Contract, health insurance, mandatory contributions, direct deposit, etc.  By the way, I had five days to submit everything.  I somehow managed to fill out every form correctly and turn it in on time.  This was also the first time I met anyone at the college face-to-face.  “So what do I need to do from here?” I asked.  “Just wait for us to contact you,” the woman replied.

Three weeks later, having not heard anything, I took it upon myself to email Human Resources.  Finally, I’m official!  Now the fun begins.  Before my first class, I need to get a college ID made (building A), pick up a parking pass (building B), pick up a key to my classroom (building C), access Blackboard, find my office (building D), make copies of my syllabus (building E), find my classroom (building D), and figure out how all the equipment in the music technology lab works.

Lesson #3: All freedom comes with a little responsibility.

I feel an enormous amount of freedom in this position.  My first class is in two weeks and I haven’t met any Humanities faculty members.  I haven’t had any type of new teacher orientation.  No one has told me about grading policies, measurement and evaluation standards, or final exams.  I have no idea how many students are in my two classes!  I have a great responsibility to the department and the school.  Despite the challenges of being left guessing, the unknowns give me the great opportunity for freedom in my teaching.  I set the pace, I choose the text, I choose the methods of evaluation.  I am confident in my education and preparation and therefore, I’m ready for the challenge.

Wish me luck!

Saudades Do Brasil

Spring weather, vivid colors, hospitality, time to explore, and best of all: moments where music overcame language barriers.

My time in São Paulo, Brazil was my first experience with international travel and as such, I have many vivid memories.  I traveled that week with a group of friends from school.  The purpose of our trip: to share music and ministry at a small United Methodist Church outside of the city.  With the aid of two translators, we met and conversed over large family-style meals, learned the songs the children sing in the streets, and participated in several Portuguese worship services.

Other highlights of the trip include sightseeing in São Paulo (including a trip to the observation deck of the tallest building in the city) and visiting the large, indoor farmer’s market.

In Brazil, music is an integral part of the culture - it is a part of everyday events.  In the cool night following a delicious supper, an impromptu dance/singing circle made up of children and adults alike formed out of an innocent game of “football.”  The combination of complex rhythm (compared to our traditional 4/4 in America) and a cappella harmony was incredible – moments I wish I had captured in a form other than memory.

Rehearsal Relationships

It was a warm, sunny Saturday afternoon.

With a calm breeze and clouds drifting lazily across the sky, it was the perfect day to be outside enjoying the summer weather.  We, however, walked purposely towards our indoor destination; I found my mind preparing for what was to come that next hour.  Yes, it takes this mindset, this level of dedication to truly be successful in rehearsals.

As a younger musician, I dutifully set aside the time to practice but made every excuse possible to finish early, give myself more breaks, or take the lazy way out.  When the clock struck the magical number, my practice would immediately halt.  Often times, practice sessions like this kept me from ever really getting in touch with the musical depth of whatever I was studying.  I couldn’t immerse myself beyond the mere surface of the piece – for fear of who knows what… losing track of time, heaven forbid.  I struggled in performances to keep myself interested in what I was playing – imagine the poor audience!

I refuse to refer to myself now as an “older musician,” but as hopefully wiser, I’ve discovered how exciting and passionate rehearsals can be.  During my time at Eastman, I found myself with stacks of repertoire and not enough hours in the day.  Rehearsal time was precious and had to be productive.  I began practicing pieces in sections, studying and preparing my scores outside the practice room, and keeping a journal of what I practiced, time spent, and what I learned each day.  What a difference!  Practicing no longer felt like a chore and I had a very real way of charting my progress.  Suddenly, I became responsible for my own growth as a musician; I focused my time and energy on identifying problems and creating solutions.

So here we are on a beautiful Saturday making our way to a rehearsal of Brahms’ Sonntag.  This piece was originally written for voice and piano, though we transcribed it for tenor saxophone and piano.  The character is a young man pining after his “beloved,” a young woman in church who may or may not even know he exists.  We struggled with the interpretation of this piece – is he serious?  Is it sad?  How are the two verses different?  It often feels like you’re handed a stack of puzzle pieces and asked to make sense of them.  The text, the character, the composer’s intentions, the time period, the accompaniment, the musical phrases, the necessity for breath… which takes precedence and when?  There is no clear road map, unfortunately.  It’s a method of trial and error.

“Let’s try it again,” one of us encourages.  “This time, let’s bring out the subtext in the second verse a little more and see how that feels.”

Constant evaluation.  Passionate disagreements.  Music over text.  Text over music.  German translations.  Creating phrase shapes in perfect unison.  Breathing together.  Dialogue.  Setting the scene.  Sensing the text not spoken and learning to speak through the piano interlude.

“It’s laughter,” I said.

“What?”  Steve responded.  “What are you talking about?”

“The interlude - this measure that seems to come out of nowhere and is interrupted by your entrance – I think Brahms was writing in laughter.”

“Just because the word ‘laughter’ appears in the next line doesn’t mean that Brahms wrote ‘laughter’ into the musical interlude,” Steve said skeptically.

“This is just my interpretation, but I think this interlude represents the things the character won’t or can’t say aloud.  It’s his thought process.  He catches himself dreaming deeply about this beautiful girl and calling her his ‘beloved’ and maybe he realizes that she sees right past him and it’s impossible that they could ever be together.  Maybe he starts laughing at himself and then realizes that he was in the middle of telling a story – interrupting himself with verse 2.  It’s plausible, you have to admit,” I said, realizing how passionate I was about this revelation.

“Sure, it’s plausible, but who really knows?”  Steve said.  “Just playing the Devil’s Advocate here, what if Brahms just intended it to be nice music in between the verses?  Why can’t we just play this musically – why does everything have to represent something else?”

“For me, assigning ‘laughter’ to that musical figure helps me define it and it changes the way I play.  I need to think and feel something in that measure.  Playing and thinking have to by one in the same for me.  If I play without thinking, I won’t be communicating.  Listen,” I said.

I sat back down, having risen to my feet during my impassioned soap-box speech, and began the interlude again.  Version 1 was musical: carefully-shaped phrases, a decent amount of time at “the right musical moments,” and approaching the measure in question, I swelled and stretched the tempo, trying to fit it into the musical context of the preceding bars.  Version 2 was my attempt at communicating the character’s inner thoughts.  The first few bars were reflective, imaginative.  When I arrived at the measure in question, I played it substantially lighter, very little pedal, and with more forward motion, rather than pulling back.  As such, the entrance for verse 2 seemed to “interrupt” the musical figure rather than waiting for it to finish.

“Did you hear how my thought process changed the whole character of that interlude?  Music over text or text over music?”  I asked.

“I agree with you, I’m not saying I don’t.  I’m sure you could base a whole masterclass off this idea but who’s to say that there’s not another way of playing it out there that’s equally convincing?”

“I’m not saying there’s not but I am saying that we need to choose our interpretation and we both have to agree.”

Give and take.  Discussion.  Communication.  Alternatives.  Perspective.  Respect.  Willingness to try.  Aren’t these the great challenges of any working relationship?  It takes this and more to make a rehearsal work.  It’s mentally exhausting, it’s consumes you, and yet it drives you at the same time.  Did we ever reach an agreement, you ask?  Yes, for the sake of the music and being true to all the clues left to us by the composer, we opted to stay in character – speaking, sharing, thinking, mourning, and in the end, laughing.

What Does a Music Director Do?

I’m two weeks into my new job and absolutely love it! 

I am the Director of Music at the congregational church in town – about a 3-minute walk from home.  The people have been incredibly supportive and welcoming and made us feel right at home from the very first week.  You may be wondering:

What does a music director do?

Here’s a sneak peek into my first week on the job.

Week 1: First Sunday

July 4th!  I wanted to program something a little patriotic without being too blatant so I settled on the vocal arrangement of “Simple Gifts” by Aaron Copland with Steve on the saxophone.  It was the perfect Americana prelude. 

The rest of the music for the service included three hymns (selected by the pastor), an anthem, the Lord’s Prayer, an offertory, two congregational responses, two pieces for communion, and a postlude.  All in all, a lot of music! 

I was a little surprised when I received the first draft of the bulletin but I was also reassured that music plays a significant role in the life of this church.  I did a little bit of searching for arrangements that I could substitute for the last verse of each hymn.  It was a bold move not knowing how the congregation would respond.  For the closing hymn, “O Beautiful,” I segued quickly from verse 3 into a 4-bar interlude and I heard the congregation inhale and then pause when they realized my plan.  They came in right on time for the last verse, singing proudly and many came up afterward to tell me how much they loved being caught off-guard! 

Note to self: need more hymn arrangements.

Also, a note on the Lord’s Prayer – when the previous director, Ann, wrote in the music, “Follow them here,” she really meant it.  In addition to altering the rhythm throughout, the whole last section transitioned into a duple meter in the score (the congregation stayed in triple).  That will keep you on your toes! 

Note to self: before next Communion Sunday, transpose this piece down a whole step.

Week 1: The Choir Room

I have a desk!  And a chair!  I was excited to set up an informal workspace (and have internet) and get started on my work in the choir room. 

The room is a good size – two rows of oak spindle-back chairs stretch out in a subtle arc in front of the Clavinova.  There are two windows, a closet for storage and at least three sets of choir robes (children to adults), a bookshelf with files and stacks of hymnals, and a bulletin board. 

There is a small hallway connecting the choir room to the Sanctuary where the choir folders are kept on a white built-in bookcase and where decades of music is filed. 

Where to begin? 

I started in the closet – I found stacks of old choir folders, empty choir robe boxes, handbell gloves, a drum, and the tablecloths for the altar.  Nothing too out of the ordinary.  I straightened the bookshelves and found stacks of reference copies collected by previous directors.  Publishers love sending packets of free music for your perusal hoping that you’ll like something they send enough to buy it.  The goal is to sort through everything that’s sent so that the things you don’t like or won’t buy get recycled… good thing I have a recycling bin! 

The next task was to begin exploring the filing cabinets.  I set up my laptop on a music stand and began the long process of inventory.  Everything seems to be alphabetized and in order but many of the anthems are outdated and most likely out of print. 

Should I keep them filed and pull everything else out?  Or should it all stay combined in one filing system?

This week has been more of the same – inventory, updating the church website, preparing for Sunday, and a few planning meetings for the fall.  Stay tuned for more updates!

The Eastman Era

A phrase commonly spoken by many Eastman alumni, my own “Eastman Era” is coming to an end.  Of course, a threshold like this brings moments of reflection and thoughts of “where did the time go?” mixed with anticipation of what is to come and excitement of beginning a new adventure. It was August of 2008 when I first arrived in Rochester following a long move from Georgia.  Everything was new and exciting… though, like most things, I had to get through a period of adjustment before I felt like I really fit into life in the city and life at Eastman.  From the very first semester, I had wonderful teachers who guided and encouraged me to be the best that I could be.  Settling was never an option.  Through classes, coachings, rehearsals, and performances, I met great colleagues and learned much about the art of music.

When overwhelmed by my first semester of work and expectations, time felt like it was standing still.  Now, it’s a blur.  Looking back always makes time feel shorter somehow.  I have grown much in my recognition of who I am as an artist and a musician and how I can contribute to the field.  I have learned how to ask questions, teach myself, work hard, and achieve my goals.  I credit this to the support of my professors – in particular, my primary teacher, Dr. Jean Barr – and those who have been a part of my Eastman experience.  This is a time of my life that I will never forget.

Notes from the New School - Day 3

April 22, 2010 Logan, a student from yesterday’s Music Tree 1 class returned for a private lesson with Lis.  Because the group class is the primary lesson for these students, the private lessons follow the same lesson plan, reinforcing the activities from the class.  Logan began with his recital piece.  In classes and lessons alike, I was struck by the fact that every time a student played through a piece it was called a “performance.”  In this manner, Lis let Logan play through the piece completely before making suggestions about phrase-shaping and playing with a nice, firm sound.  The remainder of the lesson reviewed content from the class (Take a Trip, two new pieces, two rhythmic preparation activities, and a review piece of Logan’s choice).

Lauren Thompson taught another group of Music Tree 1 students in the afternoon.  I imagined that the content would be very similar but thought I might observe some difference in teaching approach.  “We begin each class with singing,” Lauren said, as the students gathered around her at the piano.  Immediately, the classroom was a different environment from what I observed yesterday.  The familiar melody from the students’ book was transposed to an appropriate singing range and Lauren smoothly segued into an echo activity with three-note tonal patterns using sol, mi, and do.  Soon, Lauren performed the patterns with a neutral syllable and had the students determine the direction and solfege syllables.  “I have pictures of these patterns,” Lauren said as she arranged four flash cards on the music rack.  “Which one do you think goes like this?” she said, demonstrating.  In addition to selecting the appropriate pattern, students were asked to name the intervals and direction notated on the card.  The next activity was a circle dance incorporating movement, form (counter-clockwise rotation, clockwise rotation during the repeat, and in towards the center during the B section), and singing in a minor key.  This easily segued into an echo activity using minor three-note tonal patterns with la, do, and mi.

The first playing activity was a review piece.  Two volunteers played the instruments at the front of the room while the rest of the class sang and played along on the wooden keyboards set out on the tables.  In order to build ensemble skills, Lauren appointed one of the volunteers as the leader responsible for cueing the beginning of the piece for the whole class.  “When the notes go higher do you think we should get louder or softer?” Lauren asked.  Following this discussion, the class performed the piece again with beautiful phrasing and lifts.  Drawing attention to the white board in the room with two rows of rhythm notated, Lauren said, “I forgot where the barlines go!  Can you believe it?”  Students took turns adding barlines for a duple example and triple example and together they performed the rhythm (clapping while counting).

One of the new pieces for the week was taught by rote before students looked at the notation in their book.  Lauren played the piece multiple times and asked a different question at the end of each performance.  “Was it smooth or bumpy?  Soft or loud?  Am I playing on the white keys or the black keys?  Which hand played first?  Raise your hand if you hear me play two right hand notes together.”  After several repetitions, Lauren asked one student to play the piece while the rest of the class played “air piano.”  Following this experience of sound and feel, students were invited to look at the score.  Lauren guided their study by having them circle the signs and add check marks after each slur.

The warm-up assignment from last week was peer-evaluated in what the School calls “players and checkers.”  Two students play the exercise while another two students check for crossed ankles, good posture, a relaxed arm, and a good hand position (space under the hand and strong knuckles).  After evaluating the performances, the students switch places.  Reading and writing activities preparing new concepts were also included during class time.  For reading, students were asked to identify the starting landmark of a notated phrase, name the intervals, and point out any repeated material.  For writing, Lauren drew a note on a line or space of the grand staff and asked students to “spot-place” the nearest landmark, naming the direction and the interval.  This activity reviewed seconds, thirds, and fifths.  The class concluded with work on another new piece and performances of the students’ recital pieces.

My final observation was a private lesson with Natalie Gibson and Kaelen, a second-year student.  In an effort to include me in the exchange and assess Kaelen’s interpretation, Natalie asked him to describe his recital piece prior to performing it.  Afterward, Natalie made a few suggestions regarding dynamics and phrase-shaping and the second performance was polished and musical (four weeks in advance of the recital).  Kaelen played his most recent composition–a waltz.  In preparation for the upcoming faculty’s “all-dance” recital, the New School students were learning about different types of dance music.  In preparation for Kaelen’s newest piece, “Star Wars,” Natalie asked him to transpose the familiar “High Dive,” a piece from last year into the key of G Major.  This was a way to reinforce the tonality and key of the piece and work on phrasing considerations.  This was the second lesson on “Star Wars” but surprisingly, the difficult rhythms and position shifts were fairly smooth.  Natalie assessed Kaelen’s self-awareness by asking him to identify ways to practice and particular measures that needed the most attention.  “Thank you for your great work on this piece,” she said.  “Next week, I can’t wait to play the duet with you because you’ll be ready!”

The remainder of the lesson was spent on activity book assignments reviewing tonic and dominant and triplets.  The four sight-reading series were studied at home so Natalie asked, “Which one of these is your favorite?”  After selecting one series, she asked, “Can you name the intervals?”  Next, Kaelen played on the keyboard lid while counting the rhythm followed by a successful sight-playing performance.  The last few minutes were spent reviewing a piece from Side by Side, a duet book by Ted Cooper and Amy Glennon.  Together, Natalie and Kaelen discussed a few considerations and identified practice steps for the coming week.

Previously: Notes from the New School - Day 1 Notes from the New School - Day 2

Notes from the New School - Day 2

April 21, 2010 Three sixth grade girls shared two benches pushed together in front of the piano keyboard as they rehearsed “Spring Violets” for the upcoming New School recital.  All three private teachers gathered in the studio to listen, observe, and coach.  “Who is the steadiest?” one teacher asked during a conversation about tempo and control.  Few verbal instructions were given to allow students time to play and self-correct.  Responsible for defining their practice at home, each student was asked, “What is your specific homework for this piece?”  Similar to previous observations, students verbalized their practice work as the teachers made notes on their assignment pages.

The trio rehearsal was only the first part of the lesson so the students dispersed with their respective teachers after 15 minutes.  I thought I would be able to tell which teacher taught which student; due to the collaborative nature of the faculty’s approach, however, I was unable to differentiate.  I remained to observe Todd Van Kekerix with student, Emma.  Todd was very soft-spoken in his approach and he often paused in reflection before asking a question or offering a suggestion.  Great emphasis was placed on phrasing in the piece, “Barcarolle” from Accent on Gillock.  “Analyze what you heard there,” Todd asked.  After discussing sequencing and shaping, Todd queried, “How are you going to apply what we just did to the second page?”  Assessing Emma’s understanding, Todd had her mark the “mores” and “lesses” of each phrase.

Amy Glennon and first-year student, Sophie began with a review of technique: a 1-5-3 pattern in B-flat Major.  In a span of five minutes or so, Amy discussed leaning to reach extreme registers, rotation of the wrist, graceful register shifts, and transposition (to C Minor).  Next they reviewed the scales of D Major, G Major, and F Major with the piece “High Dive” from The Music Tree.  They added A Major by expanding the already familiar five-finger pattern.  Sophie’s “special piece” for the recital was well-prepared and very musical.  Last week, Amy introduced the idea of voicing an inner melody within the right hand and Sophie incorporated this very well.  This week, the new concept was pedaling.  Sophie was introduced to the sound and feel of pedaling by listening to Amy’s demonstration, pedaling along with her performance, and then matching the sound she created.  “I’m going to give you your own special ‘Sophie’s Warm-Up,’” Amy stated.  She demonstrated broken fifths between the hands, pedaling every four beats (i.e. C-G [left hand], C-G [right hand] while chanting, “Up, down, hold it”).  This was intended as a practice exercise to prepare Sophie for the pedaling demands in her recital piece.

The Music Tree 1 group classes meet for an hour each week.  This particular class, taught by Amy and New School interns, Judith Jain and Lis Malcolm, had a full lesson plan of activities to accomplish.  As students found their seats in the classroom, the teachers checked practice logs and written assignments from the activity book.  The first activity, called “Take a Trip” reinforced intervals and direction through sound and feel.  A volunteer played the piano at the front of the room while the rest of the class participated by raising their hands, wiggling the first finger to play the exercise, and playing along in the air.  All patterns took place within a five-finger position and were often taken from new song material (another aspect of preparation).

Each student performed a “special piece” in preparation for the recital.  Great emphasis is placed on ensemble playing at the New School: Every student performed a duet with the teacher.  Class members followed along in their books and some played along on the wooden keyboards set at each place.  New songs were introduced by singing and speaking the text in rhythm, preparing hand movement (staccato vs. legato rotation), arm-swinging, walking, and clapping while counting.  Additionally, new concepts such as ties and upbeats were introduced in rhythmic activities–preparation for seeing the song notated in a few weeks.  At the end of class, the students were given a composition assignment: Rearrange a given, familiar piece for performance in next week’s class.

PEPS students meet in small rotation groups every few weeks and in a larger group class of eight students once per month.  Currently, there are 24 students in the program.  I observed two small group rotations and one group class, each an hour in length.  Marvin began each class with scales, often asking two students to play in ensemble: one ascending and the other descending.  The students had fluency goals for June posted in the room: 100-160, depending on age and ability.  Repertoire included Debussy, Clementi, a Mozart minuet (where Marvin led the students in an impromptu minuet around the room while singing words along with the melody), a Bach invention, a concerto by Vandall, and Sibelius’ Romance, to which Marvin stated, “Begin warm, soft, calm, and with a feeling of moonlight. . . .Music that is calm is even.”  Musical discussions included historical influences, theoretical considerations such as the importance of the cadential 6/4 progression, and phrasing decisions supported by careful pedaling.  Students were challenged in thought, touch, and sound.

Previously: Notes from the New School - Day 1

Notes from the New School - Day 1

“Frances Clark made piano teaching into an art and a science. . .Something to pursue in a professional and thoughtful way,” said Amy Glennon, Educational Director for the New School in response to my first question, “What was Frances Clark’s greatest impact on the field of piano pedagogy?”  Faculty member Tracy Grandy added the following to the list: intervallic reading, the inclusion of educational learning theories (creating a student-oriented pedagogy approach), experiential learning, and the emphasis on preparation. Marvin Blickenstaff, faculty member and PEPS Director said “the concept of preparation-presentation-reinforcement. . . .Most materials lack the preparation and the reinforcement so they really only present material.”  He also noted the unique approach to reading with landmarks and intervals.  Indeed, the primary aspects of effective and innovative teaching I observed during my time at the New School were intervallic reading; educational philosophy; and the complete cycle of preparation, presentation, and follow-through.

April 20, 2010

My first observation was a private lesson with faculty member and Admissions Director, Rebecca Pennington.  The student, Christina was in her seventh year of piano study.  Rebecca began the lesson with technique exercises: a diminished five-finger pattern progression, a tapping and counting activity in preparation for scale playing, major scales with cadences, and a one-octave arpeggio with review of when to use the third and fourth fingers.  Next, Rebecca played a series of blocked and broken intervals and asked Christina to name them.  “Is this a second or a fifth?” was soon followed by a more thought-provoking question, “How can you tell the difference?”  The teaching style was very student-oriented; Rebecca asked questions rather than giving answers, incorporated historical and theoretical contexts, and addressed the student by name frequently.  Practice techniques were taught and rehearsed in the lesson allowing Christina to learn through experience.

Next, I observed a private lesson with faculty member and Administrative Director, Scott Donald.  Sally was in her first year of study.  The lesson began with technique: a B Major scale, a discussion on thumb-crossing, and a review of the key signature for Sally’s “best” scale.  Scott asked many thoughtful questions such as, “How would you rate that performance?” and when working on pedal changes, “Was there a gap in the sound?”  Two measures of rhythm were reviewed on a white board in preparation for their musical context–Sally’s newest song.  As seen before, practice strategies were experienced in the lesson and Sally verbalized ways she would practice each piece in the days to come.  In preparation for the supplemental book, Jazz, Rags, and Blues, Scott introduced a five-finger blues pattern with swung eighth notes.  First, Sally copied his melody but then she had the opportunity to improvise in the same style and within the same five-finger pattern, accompanied by Scott’s walking bass.  This was a great way to introduce Sally to the sound and feel of jazz, rags, and blues.

Angela Leising teaches a bi-weekly repertoire class for eight 11-year-old students.  Structured in the form of a masterclass, each student brings a prepared piece to play and students who are listening study copies and extra scores.  Angela guided the students’ listening by asking questions: “What will you listen for in this performance?”  Following each performance, students were asked to provide comments (positive and constructive) and were encouraged to be specific.  This is an excellent opportunity for students to gain performance experience, work under another teacher, and gain feedback from peers.  Additionally, it provides a forum for students to articulate musical comments–a skill too often left to collegiate study.

Marvin Blickenstaff, and a high school PEPS student, Grace, were already in the midst of Chopin’s Etude in C Minor when I snuck in to observe.  Together, they identified the salient motives, determined the differences between the lines of each hand, rehearsed the rhythmic structure, and discussed Chopin’s individualistic thoughts on trills.  Similar to the other faculty members, Marvin sought answers from Grace by asking questions and engaging her in conversation about the music.  Comments such as, “Talk to me about the fingering in this scale” when working on the first page of the Pathetique Sonata and, “What are four ways you are going to practice this?” assessed Grace’s understanding and encouraged dialogue.

Road Trip

I am spending the week in Kingston near Princeton to conduct research on piano pedagogy at the New School for Music Study.  So far, it’s been quite an adventure – including a hotel fire alarm, a parking ticket, and plenty of GPS excitement.  My days have been full of observations and discussions on teaching approaches and curriculum.  I look forward to sorting through my notes and writing about this experience over the next few days. In the meantime, what is your philosophy of pedagogy?

Nocturne

Reflection on night, water, and starlight.  This is my recent Eastman performance of Nocturne II by Steve Danyew.  Enjoy! [audio http://www.ashleydanyew.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/07/02-Nocturne-II.mp3]