Sunday, January 23, 2005
Teaching composition
As someone who teaches composition (here), I have to respond to David Toub’s post (and the comments that followed) doubting the possibility that composition can be taught.
Every composer I’ve known considered him/herself self-taught in some fundamental way, and there’s no denying how much truth there is in that self-image. At the same time, there are two observations I’d like to offer to the mix.
First, it is always a revelation to me to find out how much my students don’t know about composing, how the simplest comments from me can lead to significant breakthroughs in their work. I am pretty sure that they are largely unaware that these breakthroughs are taking place, much less that they were a result of my seemingly casual comments. They may even believe that these breakthroughs are entirely their own doing.
Second, composition has traditionally been taught as a craft. Only in recent years has there been a serious inquiry into other aspects of creative pedagogy. One of the most significant roles a composition teacher can play is in keeping a student from being his/her own worst enemy. In that sense, creativity is not something given to you by a teacher, but something a teacher helps you access within yourself. An experienced teacher can guide a student toward developing a mindset that will allow a steady flow of creative work for fifty years and more, simply by helping the student avoid bad thinking habits that can lead to creative crises decades later.
Will the student recognize this gift when s/he receives it? Doubtful. But the benefits will be there even if they are unacknowledged.
But again, David is right to assert that there is nothing better for a composition student that listening and studying scores. As Vincent Persichetti used to say, “You have the best teachers in the world: Stravinsky, Mozart, Schubert...” Put whatever names you like on the list.
posted by Lawrence Dillon
10:30 PM
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