The beginner or expertise will benefit from reading Evoking Sound by James Jordan; this book is the total package for any conductor that is wiling to expand their knowledge upon this subject. It goes beyond the basics, yet it expands the deeper relationship between the conductor and the ensemble. It gives examples of how to produce the sound you want from an ensemble or even create a program; it gives many other examples that are truly valuable and creative.
Jordan’s overall “take” on choral conducting is relying on thy inner self, focusing on mutual agreement within an ensemble, teaching the way of singing, and passing along the passion of music.
Jordan stated, “ My experience as a conducting teacher has prove to me that, until a student trusts themselves and their inner musical voice, virtually little progress is made(…)Musical creativity requires faith—almost blind faith in one’s ear and one’s inner musical voice” (7). Knowing thyself is a crucial part in conducting. With that being said, “Music aptitude does not continue to develop after age nine; rather, the aptitude level th...
When society envisions a Wind Ensemble, talented musicians, grand music halls, and difficult arrangements typically come to mind. However, a modern-day Wind Ensemble includes a variety of musicians,
Lefebvre, Eliza. "Choir gives voice to kids’ confidence." Buffalo News 14 March 2013, n. pag.
The field of music education is one with which I have become rapidly familiar. This statement is not to be confused with me claiming that I have an intimate knowledge of the subject matter. In my student teaching semester, I found myself immersed in a great number of ideologies toward the profession, many of which were in conflict. In regard to music education, my greatest quandary at this juncture of my career is choosing from the myriad of philosophies which relate to the field. In relation to the information I have gathered from those in the profession at the public school level, I have a disproportionately large amount of information from professionals who teach at the collegiate level and theorists who benefit music education by performing studies. If I were to perform research about the field of music education, my goal would be to gather information from these three sets of professionals which would bring my knowledge base about each to an equitable level.
MENC- The National Association for Music Education (1991). Growing up complete: the imperative for music education: The report of the national commission on music education. Retrieved November 20, 2004 from http://www.menc.org/publication/
Music education has always been an underappreciated concept, but as a future teacher it terrifies me to know that there are children that be...
Many schools today have instituted several different art programs. These programs range from music programs, both vocal and instrumental, visual art, drama and dance. The music classes encompass both vocal and instrumental teachings. Typically, children have specified music classes they ar...
The way children learn even in today’s society has changed drastically over the years and will continue to change in the future. Music teachers in particular are not excluded from this statement. As a music educator myself, I have learned that all students learn at different paces and learn
Music majors do have some respite from the demands of our discipline. For voice majors, there is choir. Choir provides an opportunity to learn in a more passive manner. The choir director leads the members of the choir toward the desired goal – the mastery of the piece of music to be performed. While choir members must be attentive and receptive, the burden is primarily carried by the director.
In your early childhood have you ever needed direction for something you understood, but needed guidance on how to do it? This is the life of a musician under a conductor. Musicians look to the conductor, as a child looks up to his or her mother and father. Conductors specialize in educating, teaching, and instructing Musicians to become better players. Without a conductor a music ensemble could not be successful.
There is no doubt that conformity is essential to the harmony of society. It allows for individuals to work together under a uniform set of rules and norms. In childhood and adolescence, the time during which students go to school, children begin to learn these basic rules of civilization. They socialize with others, learn respect and become well-rounded individuals. This requires students to not only develop their talents but also their weaknesses. This Achilles' heel may be academic, such as math and science or more artistic, like vocal music (Source F). Although students may not be pursuing a future in these areas, learning them is part of becoming a balanced person academically. Only strengthening and focusing on a student’s specific talent could create an image...
The conductor raises his arms, the ensemble takes a collective breath and… The life of a Music Conductor will be long and tedious with little to no recognition. The amount of time consuming adolescents that cannot focus longer than a minute will be insurmountable. It takes a decade to find that one ensemble that has the capacity to bring forth a conductor’s desirable vision. But when he finds them, wow! The possibilities are endless. True music will blossom into a life changing experience. The music will take on a metaphorical body, complete with a soul. So, there they are - the conductor and his ensemble, standing on stage. Preparing themselves for the magic that is about to bloom. A Music Conductor is the head of an ensemble/symphony and
Throughout choir this school year, huge advancements have been made within many of the students, leading to tremendous growth. Coming into the first few weeks of choir class, the confidence of the students were low and it was a lengthy process to get through warm-ups, solfege, and ta-ka-di-mis correctly and on pitch. Walking into class currently, more students can be heard singing out and scales being sung in tune with ease. As voices have matured over this school year, many positive growths can be seen. For most students, this being their first year of high school choir, have more room to improve and achieve the level of talent as the members of concert choir. As the final concert of the year comes to a close, progress and direction for future years can be heard and seen through the music.
This past semester’s experience conducting has proven to be beneficial for my skills on and off the podium. I learned through practicing and class meetings how to make my mind and hands independent from each other. Going into the class, my primary fear was separating the lead hand from the other. The exercises with dynamics and practicing them separately made the desired independence come naturally to me. It is still not where I would like it, but dynamic control has definitely improved throughout the semester. I would prefer to work on my cues and discover different ways of giving them to the musicians.
1998 Henry B. & Jocelyn Wallace National Research Symposium on talent development, Scottsdale, AZ: Gifted Psychology Press. 219-227.
To test whether or not this hypothesis is true, one should not do what every other researcher in this field has done in previous years: measure the immediate intelligence level after receiving music lessons through IQ tests or something similar. Rather, one should test for a statistically significant difference between the success of musicians and nonmusicians in their futures. This can be done through observing successful and failed business starters and their past musical experiences. By looking at successful business starters and owners and comparing them to failed business starters, one could whether or not there is a correlation between musicianship and success as an entrepreneur, one would be able to determine if playing an instrument actually has a role in success later in life. Very few, if any, studies have been done on people’s musical abilities and their success in the future, creating an area that has the potential to end the arguments between these opposing viewpoints by coming to a conclusion based on career success rather than the inconsistent results of immediate cognitive