Posted by Daryl on May 17, 2002 at 10:49:25:
In Reply to: Re: Re: How Was Your Year? posted by Jarrod Robertson on May 17, 2002 at 01:19:30:
"got a C in 20th Century Music History...... but actually it makes me very happy...because that means I practiced a lot more than I studied, and that's what we're here for."
UGH! Sorry to be a jerk about it, but this attitude among some college students absolutely kills me! You CANNOT effectively perform a piece of music without having at least a basic understanding of the style and tradition of the time that it was written in. Chops are important and practicing is important, but it is a *HUGE* mistake to sacrifice a complete musical education in the interest of practicing. I can almost accept the low grades in Logic and Theater, but MUSIC HISTORY??? For shame......
Might I suggest instead that you find a way to use what you're learning in these classes and apply it to your playing; TONS of players have monster chops, but I would suggest that FEW are able to use them to communicate with their audience effectively. There are also TONS of players with no steady gig, as opposed to the FEW that do......get my drift?
Can you think of a way that Theater could be useful to you as a player? I can. And being that all of the original solo music for the tuba was written n the 20th century, can you see a use for an understanding of 20th century theory? I DEFINITELY can.
If you have any questions about how unusual training can be useful to your playing, please feel free to email me. But do yourself a favor - PLEASE take your academics more seriously.
Daryl Bean
MI