Re: Re: Re: question from a non-tubist


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Posted by Rick Denney on August 10, 2001 at 10:09:51:

In Reply to: Re: Re: question from a non-tubist posted by Randy Mac Iver on August 10, 2001 at 07:59:22:

But that is the whole point. This isn't a sousaphone vs. tuba issue, or a standing vs. sitting issue, but a marching vs. non-marching issue. Marching band asks the players to be in just the sorts of situations that Sean complains about. Most big school districts provide a way for the really gifted students to learn in a different environment. Does this make them arrogant? I'm not sure that I've seen that much difference between the special treatment at a regular school and the regular treatment at a special school. For a musician or artist of such gifts, however, I do think some allowances can be made, but they must prove themselves. This is the option for the one in a thousand, not for normal idiots like me.

I'm all for supporting the notion of everyone doing everything to be well-rounded, but some folks have talents so skewed in one direction that trying to make them well-rounded both fails in adding diversity and also fails in developing that one talent. History is full of examples of artists who did not fit into the school systems of their day, who were able to flourish only under special educational circumstances. Some of them turned out to be jerks, too, but others didn't. (I'm reading the biography of C.S. Lewis, the famous British author and educator, who failed miserably in formal school but not in private tutoring. And Ansel Adams, the famous American photographer who was trained as a concert pianist, was kicked out of several schools and only flourished under a private tutor. So this is not an indictment against modern American education.)

Rick "who has marched and stood and enjoyed it, but who showed no great gifts" Denney


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