Attached below is the link of a blog entry that I found interesting. This blog is titled "ChorTeach Preview: Reflections on the Conductor's Role and More!" This post highlights short segments of four articles by world renound musicians/conductors/writers. Although this is only a preview of the full articles, there is a lot of information we can gain from reading it.
The first paragraph we read is a segment by Joseph Flummerfelt and it is titled "Reflections on the Conductor's Role." This is the section I would like to focus our class discussion on.
Flummerfelt explains that "conducting is more about connection and far less about controlling." I love this quote! I believe that our role as a conductor is to remind our players of different ideas (such as tempo and dynamics) and interpretations of the music, but it is not our job to be controlling, and dictate every musical decision they make. It is VERY important not to have an ego!
The reason I enjoyed this article was because we have all had conductors who believe that they are the most important part of the ensemble. It is important for us, as future condcutors, to remember that this is not the case and we need to insure that we are not a controlling leader. If we trust our students, and their ideas, it will be our job to guide them, and make a connection between musical ideas.
http://www.choralnet.org/2016/09/chorteach-preview-reflections-conductors-role/
This was a great article! I liked that it said "and our fear of being vulnerable with our singers and audiences". It is important that we are vulnerable with them in order to show our emotion. Being vulnerable in front of your singers or students shows them that you are human and you make mistakes.The students will be able to connect with you more. Being vulnerable with your audiences is how we portray the emotion of the music to the them. It is better than being a conductor with a ego and dictating everything about the music to the singers.
ReplyDeleteI completely agree Kenzie! As choral educators we are asking our students to deliver emotionally authentic performances to captivate audiences. They do this by being vulnerable and accessing their own personal raw emotions. If we, as conductors, are not willing to do this, it is not fair to expect it in return. Furthermore, without this emotional engagement, it is virtually impossible to create a meaningful performance and experience for our students and audiences. Our vulnerability as teachers thus becomes of the utmost importance. In this way, it is equally valuable to remember that we are part of the group and the musical experience. If we see ourselves as a separate entity, or rather allow our egos to get in the way, we obscure the music making process and its authenticity. Ultimately, like Charlene mentions, we need to remember that it is about the education of our students and not the enhancements of our egos.
ReplyDeleteConnection vs control is a great thought! I think that different ensembles require varying amounts of each! I think that although we might not realize it, when we have a guest conductor, it can feel weird! especially if they are used to leading a community choir or something like that that needs more control to stay together. I think this weird feeling is possibly the change in amount of control, and a possibly lessened connection. This could just be a coincidence, but it is definitely an interesting idea!
ReplyDeleteCharlene - I really liked this and I can't wait to actually read the entire articles one by one. From the article it shows that all these articles have so much information that can be useful for the school conductor, church conductor, or any setting for that matter.
ReplyDeleteAs you said the quote above: “conducting is more about connection and far less about controlling”I liked how in the ChoralNet it continued this thought and said: " It serves as a reminder to approach music with a composer-centered instead of a conductor-centered mind-set". I think this is very important as well since we are delivering the composers message by singing the music they wrote. In the score certain things are written (such as dynamics, articulations, text, key etc) for a reason. As conductors it is our job to ask: why did the composer want "fortissimo" in this section... what are they trying to deliver here?
If we can perform a piece of music the way a composer wanted us to, we are doing our jobs - all while teaching students about it all!
I also like the idea that conducting is more about connecting more than controlling. I feel that a conductor is there to act as a unifying agent for all the emotion and musicality of the entire ensemble. Without some sort of leader, I feel like a choir could easily lose focus. The conductor's job is to keep everyone on the same page and ensure that the choir is singing with one voice. However, conductors are usually experienced, talented musicians who have studied choral music, so sometimes they will try to lead the choir in a certain direction with some aspects of the music. I think this is definitely okay, as long as they do not become too controlling with the ensemble. Conductors must always remember that it isn't about them... it's about the music!
ReplyDeleteThe article about the blind conducting student sounds very interesting to me. From my experience, the main prompt for singers to express themselves through music has been by making eye contact; I also make a visual connection with my choir through conducting gestures inspired by my emotive experiences and the emotions I receive from the singers, enhancing the spiritual, meaningful and releasing nature of a performance. With this in mind, it is hard to understand how the same level of connectivity and communication can be achieved when this visual element is not present. I'm very interested to find out how this blind conducting student is able to lead an ensemble without having the visual sense, and if the resulting performance achieved the same level of expressivity as in performances of music with conductors who do have sight.
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