Re: Tis the Season to Audition


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Posted by Kenneth Sloan on December 31, 2002 at 16:25:37:

In Reply to: Tis the Season to Audition posted by Chuck Jackson on December 31, 2002 at 04:07:22:

Same old, same old. Most of the points have been made, and I've made these points before - so I'll *try* to be brief. (good luck, Ken...)

My main point is that virtually NO undergraduate has even the slightest clue what they will eventually pursue as a career. Any time you find yourself plotting an undergraduate career (either your own, or someone you are advising) as specific training for a specific career, you are almost certainly making a mistake.

Undergraduate education should *open* career paths, not close them down. People who are absolutely sure of what they want to do should apprentice, not go to college.

In that sense, many "music schools" are not colleges at all. A place such as the Eastman School does not pretend to be a college - it's a music school. Go there *only* if you have given up on the idea of going to college and want to commit yourself to music performance. For the rare talented and motivated student, this is the right idea. Forget about The American Novel, Chemistry 101, and Micro-Economics - plant your butt in the practice cell and learn the trade.

In that environment, perhaps an M.Ed. degree is the only possible "Plan B". And that's a pity - because Education and Performance don't have all that much in common.

For almost everyone else, the best advice is to get an undergraduate liberal arts degree (with a major in music, if you like - but why not Persian Poetry, or Chemistry, instead?) and pursue music performance as an extra-curricular activity?

The analogy has been drawn with athletics. Football players who "major" in P.E.Ed. are very similar to music performance majors. They aren't really getting an education - they are satisfying requirments while apprenticing at their trade. And, there are about the same number of success stories. Far smarter is the kid who plays football - but also pursues a PolSci degree, so he can go to Law School.

And here's my main point: go to *college* to get a broad education. If you need job training, either skip college, or go to grad school (or professional school, like Law School, or Med School, ...or music school...) AFTERWARDS.

What this all boils down to is a tirade against the very idea of "music school" on a university campus. I'm all in favor of a Music Department - but Music Schools should be kept at a distance (just like Nursing Schools, Med Schools, Law Schools, and...sorry Rick...Engineering Schools).

Rochester has the right idea here. Eastman is part of the U of R - but it has a separate campus, reflecting it's different mission. And, the college students at the U of R have their own music department (for academic study of music) and performance opportunities (where they don't have to compete against the pros from Gibbs Street).

Spend 4 years getting an education (and study privately). Then, if you are good enough to go pro, spend 2 years of *concentrated training* becoming a performer.

By the way, I think this applies to ""Education Schools" too. First get an education - then train to become a teacher.

This may be why "performance" and "education" programs are so much in conflict with each other. It's easy to see a synthesis from studying Math and Economics, or Spanish and Chemistry - but it's damn hard to to "performance" and "ed degree" at the same time. Why? Because neither is "education" - both are "training".

D.C.



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