Comments on: Re-imagining the University Ensemble Experience

By: Callie

Callie — Fri, 03 Feb 2012 01:35:54 +0000

I visited lots of website but I believe this one contains something extra in it in it

By: David Cutler

David Cutler — Fri, 16 Jul 2010 12:25:30 +0000

It’s great to hear about some other ensemble models that universities are trying out. Would love to know about more.

By: New Visions of Music-Making « Horn Insights

New Visions of Music-Making « Horn Insights — Thu, 08 Jul 2010 17:08:05 +0000

[...] 8, 2010 by horninsights This post is a trope on the felicitous phrases “Re-Imagining the University Ensemble Experience” and “Re-Imagining the Music Degree Recital” by David Cutler, author of the book [...]

By: Jeffrey Agrell

Jeffrey Agrell — Wed, 07 Jul 2010 16:05:57 +0000

I was delighted to hear about your experiences with the Collective. At the U of Iowa, our Latitude Ensemble is similar. Most of the members are grads of my Improvisation for Classical Musicians class; there are also several faculty in the group. It’s very difficult to start a new group of any kind since everyone is already booked to the eyeballs. So we improvise all our concerts; as long as at least four of the fourteen can make several rehearsals and the concert, we’re in business. Audiences love our approach – very different from classical concerts where everyone knows what to expect. Here, no one knows what is going to happen, and that makes it exciting. I think we have much to learn from you. Although the improvised format has worked well (it makes dealing with random orchestration vastly easier), I think we need to follow your example and encourage and commission compositions for the group, or to be more precise, for smaller groups within the group – we often select from the larger group for each piece or movement (and often let an audience member do the deciding). When we do use the whole group, we often use Soundpainting (see http://www.soundpainting.com), a gestural system of structuring improvisation in groups. We also might use assorted SP gestures in other non-SP pieces when useful.

Anyway, it’s a great article, and I wish more schools would follow your example. I think what would be really interesting would be to have a mixed concert – straight ahead classical pieces leavened with chamber improv pieces. It would be both fun and edifying for both audience and performer.

By: Scheimer

Scheimer — Mon, 03 May 2010 04:54:00 +0000

Great article! You know what would really help a lot of us? If you had an email blog feed, so that I could get these words of wisdom directly in my inbox. The newsletter is great, but I love the convenience of not having to remember to look for your new posts! Just my two cents.

By: Gwyn Roberts

Gwyn Roberts — Fri, 30 Apr 2010 13:42:23 +0000

Glad to see this post! I teach recorder at Peabody Conservatory, and I have been teaching and coaching ensembles in ways that are very much in line with your approach for several years. For example, I tell my baroque music chamber ensemble each year that their work together is the most direct on-the-job training that they will get while at school, since chamber music is what most of us do most of the time as professionals. The group that I formed last year has now spend two years programming their own concerts, scheduling rehearsals, problem-solving in rehearsals, promoting themselves to presenters and playing concerts. I am there to help and advise, but they are the ones that do it.

I also run my Early Woodwind Literature class as a kind of programming boot camp, with assignments centered around creating viable concert programs out of the repertoire we explore. This leads to learning about program order, timing, themes, use of personnel, pitching the programs to presenters and program notes.

If we don’t teach our pre-professional music students to be professionals as well as musicians, we are not serving them well. I teach recorder, for heaven’s sake. There’s no such thing as first chair recorder in the National Symphony, so this stuff is absolutely essential.

By: Jon Harnum

Jon Harnum — Fri, 30 Apr 2010 10:58:02 +0000

Your thoughtful and completely rational post raises some great issues the academy has to address if it’s to stay relevant and useful, in my opinion. This sounds like a great first step towards more eclectic (and dare I say more real-world usefulness?) offerings for students. Makes me think of the other issues the large ensemble raises. For example, if a talented punk rocker, or hammer dulcimer player or… (insert non-traditional-ensemble instrument here) wants a degree in music ed, or performance, they’re not able to even get in many schools because their instrument doesn’t fit into this old model. They can’t get an audition and there is no faculty to help them further their study on their chosen instrument. The other issue your post brings up is the difficulty of institutional change.

Anyway, I really enjoyed the post, David, and it’s certainly raised important issues in how we teach and learn and create. Thanks!

By: Julie Stroud

Julie Stroud — Fri, 30 Apr 2010 03:30:36 +0000

What a cool idea! It’s too bad this kind of thing isn’t a required element of performance programs.

By: Tom Chapman

Tom Chapman — Thu, 29 Apr 2010 17:24:20 +0000

What a wonderful article! My friend, Robby, is currently in this ensemble and I love the experience you provide through this group. The philosophical basis is also very interesting and I agree with it. The deeper you get in to music the more you realize that playing your instrument well is just a portion of being a successful musician. Thanks for this.