| JC,
In my opinion (and please remember that it's only that), art can't be standardized and neither can education. You mention on the other thread that Eric is fabulously successful at helping students with problems. I'm certain that this is because he's teaching each student as a individual and not teaching a standardized curriculum.
We're witnessing rapid changes in music these days and the schools who are small and facile enough to respond are doing so. . . both in North America and in Europe (particularly in the UK, Holland, and France). The days of the cumbersome "this is music and this is how it must be played" Hochschules are probably coming to an end. Hopefully, a new crop of musicians with a wider range will appear as a result.
By the way, I rarely teach orchestral passages to my students, preferring to let Strauss' language say what needs to be said about Ein Heldenleben, etc. Along this line, I edited the complete trumpet parts of Mahler (soon to be released) for Universal Edition in Vienna a few years ago, providing a general preface and then describing the conditions found onstage for each work. My original manuscript (abandoned after Symphonies #1-5) told the reader how to play most passages and, upon reflection, I was aghast at my presumption in telling another musician that (s)he must do this and that. Every musician is unique as is every performance.
Please tell me more about your studies (when/where/with whom) and your observations. Your viewpoint will be very interesting to all!
Watching here,
EC |