Got Questions? We've got answers!!!

Session to answer any questions at all...

I arrived late to this session after checking out of my room and dropping off bags, so please forgive the short post.

Presenters in this sessions are Ingrid Clarfield, Pete Jutras, Randall Faber, & Scott McBride Smith.

Pete Jutras:
We can learn a lot from video game makers. Most games have a goal right in front of you. There is an intermediate goal that is right there, then an advanced goal that may take weeks or months. It's important to give kids a short- term goal so that they feel a sense of accomplishment as a step to the larger goal.

Randy Faber:
The problem of only focusing on competitions is that the students are only focusing on polish on those pieces. They need easier pieces to keep building skills at the same time, so that sight reading, theory, etc, aren't neglected.

Ingrid:
The assignment in the assignment book should look by different for the pieces that are being polished. Week before a competition: Clear ideas on dynamics, tempi, opening and closing gestures. If its a back-burner piece, there are diff tempo goals (1/2 tempo, for example) and goals to think about balance in certain sections, etc. Ingrid stressed that it is important to have different goals for pieces depending on what the goal is for each piece.

Randy:
Someone asked a question about licensing and copyright of arraignments. Randy suggested that he contact the copyright holder or the company that owns the exclusive contract to the work, and you might get rights, but it's not easy. Congress passed a bill for recording. They legislated that the publisher has the right to say who does the first recording, but then afterward, everyone can record it after that with payment of mechanical royalty, but there is not a similar l for print music.

Studio management:
A teacher asked a question about working with continual transfer families (military families).
Scott : you do what you always do; "teach away." Give them your best work, just like you would with any other students. Also explore Skype teaching!

Method books: a method book doesn't move. A student moves. A book is just a book.
You don't have to do unit 3 on Tuesday because it's Tuesday. You do unit three when the student is ready.

Early level study ... Keep the music and repertoire moving. When we hit the post intermediate level, the students hit a phenomena of playing only 3 or 4 pieces at a time, and that's where we run into the problem.

Double-jointed students: Randy: teach these kids the same way you teach others. Many teachers make a mistake of having kids over curl the fingers and that collapses the bridge. Think of playing a finger and the process of moving into the curl so that there is a balance. That handles the issue of the flat finger.

Method book: do you recommend that students stay in one method?
Randy: a student has to see a lot of the same thing to take in the perception. When you move from method to method, you jeopardize the sequence. You're introducing a liability instead of an asset. In the 60s, pedagogy programs pushed teachers to use mixed methods to build reading, but now, teachers are better off NOT jumping around bc you won't get the value of what was intended within the methods.

Scott encourages his students to write their own methods. He said he finds that American methods go too slow and feels we need the ear involved and we go quicker.

A student with nails that are cut every day but the nails are still in the way. Have the student keep cutting it back. You can adjust the angle slightly.

Wrap up: what advice from the panel to young students and teachers?

Scott: Passion and love of music will carry you over every difficulty

Ingrid: So excited to see teachers taking notes. Continue to think of yourselves as students for the rest of your lives. There is not one day of my life where I teach a lesson and where I don't do something wrong.

Pete: never stop learning. Never lose sight of WHY you went into music. We get stuck in details of teaching and don't always let the magic show through. If the students aren't getting the magic, then we are missing out. The kids should see the passion.

Randy: be yourself. The way you interact with a child is very unique. You'll have special gifts and loves and those will convey in special ways. You can make a difference with every student.