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South African Music Teacher |144 | November 2006 �

� Suid-Afrikaanse Musiek Onderwyser |144 | November 2006


UKUSA is based at the Durban campus of UKZN. It is a develop-mental community performing arts NGO for students sixteen years and older. It offers beginner’s tuition in music, dance, and drama. Initiated in 1987, UKUSA was one of the first local arts out-reach programmes for historically disadvantaged people in Kwa-Zulu-Natal. About 300 students take lessons in keyboards, trum-pet, saxophone, lead guitar, bass guitar, maskanda, drumming, dance, drama, choir and music theory. At the end of each year certificates of merit are awarded to successful students. UKUSA aims to help students who show willingness to work, ability in the creative arts, and a desire to share what they have learned with others in their communities.


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There are x-chromosomes which we all have (some twice as many as others); x-rays which are useful, but also harmful if we are exposed to them without proper care; and The X-Files of which each episode is supposed to

baffle us until the end when we sometimes feel a huge sense of relief. Many of us have xses (and many have too many) whom most of us would prefer not to experience again.

Then there are x-zams. Many musicians have (had) them (some many more than others) — they are useful, but can be harmful; they certainly baffle most of us, and only when they are over do we sometimes feel a great sense of relief. Many of us would prefer not to experience them again.

Thirty years ago evolutionary biologist Richard Dawkins made himself a couple of friends and more than a few enemies when he published his book The Selfish Gene, in which he argued that the reason for our existence — and those of all living creatures — is simply to serve as survival machines that ensure the preservation of replicators, those egotistic molecules known as genes. Dawkins’s idea of the selfish gene found its way into the minds of many thinkers and so did another, even more controversial idea: the selfish meme. Memes would be the cultural equivalent of genes and our minds — simply meme machines.

I toyed with these ideas when trying to understand this perplexing phenomenon of music exams. I must confess to having strong and contradicting feelings about music exams, and to being unable to make up my mind. Sometimes we seem to be taking exams, and often we seem to be taken hostage by them. So I have been asking myself: might those music exams be pernicious examples — indeed proof — of the theory of the selfish meme? Or are they responsible ways to aid the progress of our learners?

The editor would like to include many voices in The South African Music Teacher. If you are interested in con-tributing to the magazine, please contact the editor via email for advice and guidelines on the editorial process and the format of articles and reviews. Contributions will most likely be edited to suit the vision, style and format of the magazine. Please send photos and graphics as hard copies and/or electronically as cmyk jpeg with a resolution of at least 300 dpi and a compression ratio not less than 8.

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The South African Music Teacher is the official organ of the South African Society of Music Teachers (SASMT). It is

published and distributed biannually in the interest of music and Southern African musicians. The SASMT is an association not for gain incorporated in terms of Section 21 of the 1974 Companies Act, and all following amendments to the same,

and applies its income to the promotion of its goals.

Reg. no. 1932/004247/08ISSN:0038-2493

Copyright © 2006, South African Music TeacherAll rights reserved

No article, picture or portions thereof in this magazine may be reproduced, copied or transferred in any form whatsoever without the express written consent of the writer(s) and the editor. Contributors keep the intellectual property rights to

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Opinions expressed in this magazine are not necessarily those of the editor, publisher, the SASMT, sponsors or advertisers.

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c o n t e n t s ~ i n h o u d

design: Heilene Oosthuizen (Polar Design Solutions)

features ~ artikels12 Michael Whiteman — Reino Ottermann14 assessing progress in music — Janet Mills17 dis te ver om te ry... — Marietjie Wessels20 no more hating theory — Jacomine Pretorius & Hannes Taljaard24 Waar is die musiek in die musiekteorie?— Bertha Spies27 the jazz exam dilemma — Mike Rossi43 the music faculty of the NIHE — Faan Malan

news ~ nuus7&9 SASMT AGM10 scholarship winners11 the 2006 Sanlam competition26 AGM 2006 26 ISME 40 honorary members52 SAMRO Scholarship winners53 Oemf

4 preamble8 editorial9 letters

7, 33, 37, 49, 51, 55 reviews 39, 40, 51 resources56 subscription form

report ~ verslag36 reader’s survey — Hetta Potgieter

reviews ~ resensies29 W. Meuris et al. Speel Viool! — Estelle Stuaffer 29 P. Murray. Essential Bass Technique — Marc Duby30 M. Dartsch. Der Geigenkasten — Estelle Stauffer31 P. Inglis. Guitar Playing and How it Works— Jenny Bonsignore32 S. Bernstein. With Your Own Two Hands— Waldo Weyer46 Starting and Running a music studio— Hannes Taljaard

columns ~ rubrieke41 in diaspora — Mariné Rooi50 PG: an emphasis on performance — Janet Mills

opinion ~ opinie34 in pursuit of excellence — Jaco Kruger

competitions ~ kompetisies26 Music Giveaway #143: winners26 Reader’s Survey: winners47 Music Giveaway #144


Well-known British pianist Joanna MacGregor’s edition of twelve contemporary pieces for piano — Unbeaten Tracks — is published by Faber Music (ISBN: 0-571-52409-5). It is indeed a pleasure to notice so many unfamiliar names on the cover: Parricelli, Mukaiyama, Lodder, Hinde, McGarr and a few more. MacGregor writes in the introduction: “I asked a group of creative, talented musicians to come up with pieces that would not only stretch you technically, but would also give you other important things — a sense of groove, the chance to improvise, music that would unlock your imagina-tion.” My impression is that the ‘you’ here refers to pian-ists from about Grade IV to Grade VII level. The ‘biopics’ of the composers and their realisations in sounds are fascinating, and well-worth investigating.

r e v i e w s ~ r e s e n s i e s

Universal Edition produced Soundsnew. 19 Easy Piano Pieces (ISBN: 3-7024-2921-2) edited by Peter Roggenkamp. The technical demands of the pieces cor-respond to Books II and III of the Mikrokosmos. Roxanne Panufnik, Johannes Maria Staud and Ian Wilson wrote works specifically for this collection, while pieces by Bartók and Webern, as well as by Jenö Takács, Karl Heinz Füssl, Friedrich Cerha, György Kurtág, Anthony Hedges, Arvo Pärt, Peter Roggenkamp, and Richard Rodney Ben-net are also included. Notes on all the composers are included in German, English and French. Since new techniques and notation are gradually introduced, this collection can form part of a very interesting discovery of new music by young pianists.


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presidentDr Tim Radloff

president-elect ~ aangewese presidentProf Hubert van der Spuy

past-president ~ uittredende presidentMev Marie Gaerdes

vice-president ~ vise-presidenteastern cape ~ oos-kaap

Mr Pierre Malan

vice-president ~ vise-presidentkwazulu-natalDr Ros Conrad

vice-president ~ vise-presidenttransvaal & free state ~ vrystaat

Mev Riètte Swart

vice-president ~ vise-presidentwestern cape ~ weskaap

Mr Leon Hartshorne

executive officer ~ uitvoerende beampteMr Jaco van der Merwe

executive committee ~ uitvoerende komiteeDr Tim Radloff (president)

Ms Carolyn Stevenson-Milln(minuting secretary ~ notule)

Ms Mandy CarverMs Jillian Haarhoff

Mr Pierre MalanMr Ian Smith

standing committee ~ vaste komiteeMr Hannes Taljaard (chair ~ voorsitter)

Mr Jaco van der Merwe(executive officer ~ uitvoerende beampte)

Ms Dikonelo BooysenMrs Estelle Stauffer

honorary members ~ ere-ledeMrs Noreen Currie, Ms Inga Heineberg, Ms Diane Heller, Mr

Ivan Killian, Prof Rupert Mayr, Prof Reino Otterman, Prof Hubert van der Spuy, Prof Michael Whiteman

official correspondence ~ amptelike korrespondensieExecutive Officer SASMT ~ Uitvoerende Beampte SAVMO

PO Box 20573Noordbrug 2522

South Africatel./fax. +27 (0)18 299-1699

[email protected]://www.samusicteacher.org.za/

I think most people discover somewhere near the start of their careers that it is almost as easy to criticize as it is difficult to develop and implement improvements. This can have the paralyzing result that we simply accept the status quo and keep on doing things the way they have been done, without reflecting upon the outcomes of our actions. This is clearly not a suitable course of action for educators.

The difficulty of evaluating and improving current practic-es should not make us reluctant to criticize where criticism is due. The unpleasant (for most) experience of receiving criticism should not seduce us into ostracising those who dare speak their minds. It is easier to live together cosily, but it is not conducive to growth and excellence. We need a bit of sibling rivalry, and often criticism highlights what is good and gives more energy for further improvements.

Sometimes pupils are taught exams, not music — this is not the fault of the examination boards.

When educators are trying to produce good and happy cooks, here is what they will not do. Make the child choose four recipes. These recipes should be from four different countries, but the child should not have clear ideas about the culture of those countries. Have them practise inces-santly only these four recipes at home for eight months; taking them to cooking lessons once a week. They may be allowed to make a sandwich once in a while, but do not confuse them. Now get some background into their heads. Make them endlessly copy a few other recipes. Be inven-tive: leave out certain words and then teach them rhymes and riddles so that they will know which words were left out. Above all, make them count the letters, and show them the dresses of the people in those foreign countries. Do not forget — they should memorise the names of those dresses: kimono, sarong, kilt, kikoy, aba, camis. It does not really matter if the pictures are old and not so realistic. If you do not have pictures of the dresses, the children should still know all the names. Then have them take a cooking examination during which the cooking teacher should look worried, as if their self-esteem depended upon the outcome of this examination.

One often hears criticism of music examinations. “It’s all UNISA’s fault.” Is it? I think not. Music educators, be they private or part of an institution, have considerable freedom — and responsibility — to choose what they do before and after music examinations which for most pupils are played and/or written but once a year. The problems in music education in South Africa is less the result of the presence of music exams and more the necessary consequences of our teaching strategies. Improvements of strategies can happen when we are learner-centered and when we try to establish authentic musical contexts for the activities of our pupils. Examinations can be part of a healthy music education, but never the only or the most important one.


Thank you for my copy of issue 143 of the South African Music Teacher. It is full of interesting and in-formative articles. The contents, layout and general production have given us a magazine of the high-est quality and one of which the SASMT can be truly proud. Congratulations.

There are, however, some points that cause con-cern. The magazine belongs to the members of the SASMT. Society developments and activities are of interest to them and many would welcome space being allocated to bringing some of these to their attention.

In March / April 2005, the Annual Conference took place in Natal. Apart from Marie Gaerdes’s thought provoking presidential address, there is no further mention of the conference. Several impor-tant matters were discussed and decisions taken. In-teresting papers were read and master classes were presented by leading members of the society. Facts regarding resolutions passed and short reviews of other activities would surely encourage a higher attendance at future conferences. Part of the time was devoted to the election of new office bearers. These are of utmost importance for the well–being and future of the SASMT, but few of our members are aware of the results.

Since 2004, three prominent members, Prof Rupert Mayr, Prof Hubert van der Spuy and Mr Ivan Kilian have been awarded honorary membership. This is the greatest honour the society can bestow and is surely worthy of a photograph and some bio-graphical notes appearing in the magazine. Reading of the achievements of these senior members could well lead to the formation of role models for ex stu-dents and less active members, which is something our society desperately needs.

Diane Heller, Johannesburg Centre

Artikels, resensies en nuus kan in enige van die amptelike landstale geskryf word. Bydraes word geplaas in die taal waarin dit ontvang word. Voorstelle oor die ingewikkelde taalkwessies is altyd welkom.

l e t t e r s ~ b r i e w e

Baie geluk met ‘n puik tydskrif. Die voorkoms, same-stelling en leesinhoud beïndruk en ek vind die artikels, spesifiek dié oor die Alexandertegniek baie insigge-wend en leersaam. Ek sien met afwagting uit na die vol-gende uitgawe vir nog interessante leesstof.

Marietjie Renison, Parys

Voor ek die laaste uitgawe van Die Suid-Afrikaanse Musiekonderwyser in die hand gehad het, was ek nie ‘n gereelde leser daarvan nie. Dit het nou verander. Die tydskrif lyk so goed, en wanneer ‘n mens begin deurb-laai is dit duidelik dat dit nie net aanbieding is waaraan julle aandag gee nie. Die tydskryf het ‘n samehang en variasie van inhoud wat geen klein prestasie is nie. En dit behandel temas en bring inligting aan die bod waarvan ek nie andersins sou kennis neem nie. Alles baie profes-sioneel en vakkundig solied. Bravo! Ek sien uit na die volgende uitgawe.

Stephanus Muller

Is there something in the magazine that you find informative, provocative, challenging, annoying or even infuriating? Maybe you would like us to remove some content or change some aspect of the magazine’s layout. Did this issue of the magazine connect, inform, challenge and support you?

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Write to: The South African Music Teacher, PO Box 20573, Noordbrug 2522, South AfricaFax. (018) 299 1699 / [email protected]

n e w s ~ n u u sImprovisation Re-visited

The AGM and conference of the South African Society of Music Teachers will take place at Rhodes University in Grahamstown from 2 to 5 April 2007. Please send suggestions and submissions for contributions before 15 January to the president: [email protected].

Die algemene jaarvergadering en konferensie van die Suid-Afrikaanse Vereniging van Musiekonderwysers sal plaas-vind vanaf 2 tot 5 April 2007 by die Rhodes Universiteit in Grahamstad. Stuur voorstelle vir bydraes voor 15 Januarie aan die president: [email protected].

�0 Suid-Afrikaanse Musiek Onderwyser |144 | November 2006

Twee jong Suid-Afrikaanse musici het in 2005 en 2006 die musiekkamp in Bottineau, Noord Dakota, by die International Peace Gardens op die grens van Kanada bygewoon.

Deo du Plessis (2005)

Hierdie jong perkussiespeler van Pretoria was een van ongeveer 200 leerlinge waarvan 35 van buite die VSA afkomstig was. Die personeel van ongeveer vyfhonderd het wêreldberoemde leermeesters en dirigente ingesluit. Deo is gekies as leier van die perkussieseksie in beide die International Youth Band en die International Wind Ensemble. Hy het ook vir ‘n week lank deelgeneem aan die marimba en vibrafoon kursus, verskeie meestersklasse ontvang, en as solis saam met ensembles opgetree.

Gedurende die twee weke het Deo saam met 120 ander musici deelgeneem aan ‘n World’s Fastest Drummer kompetisie. Hy was die algehele wenner en kon die meeste note binne dertig sekondes op ‘n spesiale trom speel! Deo was verder een van net dertig leerlinge wat ‘n Outstanding Camper-sertifikaat ontvang het.

Deo is hierdie jaar in matriek aan Pretoria Boys High waar hy as dux-leerling ook die toekenning vir die beste musiekstudent van 2002 tot 2006 ontvang het. Hy het hierdie jaar sy graad VIII perkussie-eksamen met lof geslaag en deelgeneem aan die UNISA beurskompetisie op 13 Oktober waar hy een van nege musici in die finale rondte was. Hy was ook die dux-leerling by Pro Arte Alphen Park se Musiekakademie. Deo beplan om volgende jaar meganiese ingenieurswese te studeer, maar steeds in ensembles en bands betrokke te wees. Hy wil graag na voltooiing van sy studies in Amerika sy studies in perkussie — veral ligte musiek — voortsit.

Annelize de Villiers (2006)

Annelize het in 1999 by die Hugo Lambrects Musiekskool onder Elize Nel met klarinetonderrig begin. Sedert 2001 ontvang sy verdere onderrig by Charlene Verster. Sy het al haar eksamens met lof geslaag en verskeie cum laude diplomas by die Stellenbosch Eisteddfod ontvang. Sy het al in verskeie ensembles en orkeste gespeel: Hugo Lambrechts Simfoniese Blaasorkes (2003, 2004), Nasionale Jeug Simfoniese Blaasorkes (2004), Hugo Lambrechts Simfonie Orkes (2004), en die Hugo Lambrechts Houtblaaskwintet. In 2005 word sy genooi om aan die Stellenbosch Internasionale Kamermusiekfees deel te neem en slaag haar UNISA Graad VII eksamen met 86%.

Sy het vir twee weke deelgeneem aan die International Youth Band Program waarin sy eerste klarinet en seksieleier was in beide die International Youth Band en die Honour Band. Een van die dirigente — Dr. Reed Thomas, Director of Bands by Middle Tennessee State University het haar genooi om aan sy universiteit te kom studeer.

Hulle het daagliks vir ‘n uur meestersklasse gehad, en sy het ook beide weke in ‘n houtblaaskwintet gespeel wat elke dag vir ‘n uur geoefen het, en ‘n paar keer uitvoerings gelewer het. Sy het drie toekennings ontvang: Outstanding Music Camper, Outstanding Achievement by a Band Member (wat slegs aan een meisie en een seun toegeken is) en ‘n beurs om die sewende sessie, ‘n ekstra week, by te woon.

n e w s ~ n u u s Musiekkamp Beurse 2005 & 2006

South African Music Teacher |144 | November 2006 ��

The Sanlam National Music Competition 2006

Sanlam competition. The fruits of the Sanlam competi-tion are evident when the ever-increasing tender age of prize-winners at the ABSA Competition is considered. This year Reabetswe Thipe (2004 overall winner of the Sanlam competition) and Michael Duffet (a participant in the 2003 and 2004 Sanlam competitions) won joint first prize at the ABSA competition. Both winners are fif-teen years of age and perform with consummate skill. Numerous entrants in the ABSA competition frequently continue to develop their performance careers in early adulthood through participating in the ATKV national competition as well as through appearances with pro-fessional orchestras. In 2004 seven out of twenty-eight finalists in the ATKV competition were former Sanlam participants. All this clearly displays the musical and educational value of the Sanlam competition.

A further dimension of the Sanlam competition is the promotion of South African compositions. This is due, to a certain extent, to the existence of a prize for the best performance of a South African composition during the competition. During this year’s competition the works of thirteen South African composers were showcased with Peter Klatzow and Hubert du Plessis each represented by two works. In previous competitions the Cape Town composer Dimtri Roussopoulos was commissioned to write works which were premiered by participants at the competition, such as The Edge of Eternity (2003) for flute and Song of the Old Buccaneer (2004) for saxophone. The trend was unfortunately not continued this year. It is, in my opinion, an important aspect of the competition which ought to be endorsed and expanded by partici-pants and their teachers, since the competition strives to inculcate both the creative and performance aspects of South African classical music.

A successful innovation at this year’s competition was the inclusion of a short recital performed by the 1991 winner, guitarist James Grace. This is a feature which the organising committee could successfully develop in future competitions. The opening programme on Monday, 18 September, highlighted the talent of the 2005 winner, Jacqueline Wedderburn-Maxwell. She per-formed with musical insight the Bruch Violin Concerto, and was supported by the Hugo Lambrechts Symphony Orchestra under the direction of Leon Hartshorne. The appearance of both Wedderburn-Maxwell and Grace during the competition displays the interest of the or-ganisers in building upon the foundations of the com-petition and in forging a festive atmosphere during the week of the competition.

This landmark event has evolved into a celebration of South African talent and deserves the support of all who encourage our young and growing musicians.

Dr Jeffrey Brukman

From 18 to 22 September this year the Tygerberg cen-tre of the SASMT successfully presented the eighteenth Sanlam National Music Competition in the marvellous auditorium of the Hugo Lambrechts Music Centre in Parow, Cape Town. Over the past two decades this event has become an important, permanent feature of the South African cultural landscape.

The overall winner this year was the thirteen year old saxophonist, Hamman Schoonwinkel, who delivered an impassioned recital programme, maturely conceived and executed. He was ably supported by the emotionally charged piano playing of Phillipus Hugo. Hamman’s programme comprised a complex set of pieces, and included a masterful interpretation of Pequeña Czarda by Ilturralde. Selmari du Toit (also thirteen years old), a pianist who was participating for the seventh consecutive year, was awarded the second prize. Her performance of numerous advanced compositions included the demanding third movement from Ravel’s Sonatina. Selmari’s playing was marked by clarity and precision, transparent textures and stylistic awareness throughout the competition. Christina Brabetz, twelve years old and a violinist, was awarded the third prize. A strong, dashing player, Christina rendered works by Wieniaswki and Paganini-Kreisler like a virtuoso. This exciting tour de force was given substantial backing by Tersia Downie, who officiated at the piano. Jason Mayr (twelve) was awarded a category prize for ‘other instruments’ for his recorder playing.

The identification and fostering of exceptional learners during their primary school years is one of the aims stat-ed by the founder of this competition — Prof Hubert van der Spuy. The success of participants after the competi-tion is proof that this aim is achieved. The competition provides a unique and rewarding learning experience for each participant, and an atmosphere of supportive camaraderie exists between the participants, their par-ents and teachers. A ‘family spirit’ is experienced dur-ing the competition week, and fostered in and outside the performance venue. Marie Gaerdes’s observation in her presidential address (SAMT, May 2006: 26) that “the healthy music education of the very young child [is one aspect, whilst] on the other hand [there are] competi-tions” suggests a polarisation of the two activities. The positive and amicable climate which has been guarded at the Sanlam competition since its inception and the results of the competition show that Gaerdes’s observa-tion is not necessarily universally true.

To progress from the Sanlam competition to the ABSA competition (for high school learners) has become a natural path for most Sanlam participants. For exam-ple, in 2004 nineteen of the forty participants in the ABSA competition had previously ‘cut their teeth’ in the

�� Suid-Afrikaanse Musiek Onderwyser |144 | November 2006

Michael Whiteman, musician, mathematician and mys-tic, completed a lifespan of one hundred years on 2 No-vember 2006. And he still is very much up and about! Those who know him are incredulous of the idea that he has, in fact, aged in years. Admittedly, his body has not been able to escape all attendant symptoms of aging (his knees are a bit ‘wobbly’ and he had to sell his car!), but his indefatigable mind and spirit are as agile as ever. Always active, they are constantly weighing up new ideas against handed down traditional beliefs, probing with relentless logic and dissecting with the sharp edge of a scalpel. That is Michael, the mathematician and scientist.

Michael the mystic is another side of this great mind, developing profound strands of thought on mysticism, comparative religion, philosophy of science, parapsy-chology and psychopathology — writing and publish-ing widely. His next book is due to be published in time for his hundredth birthday celebrations.

When thinking of Michael the musician, what first comes to mind is his unselfish dedication to the South African Society of Music Teachers through more than five decades. (I partly quote from my presidential address in March 1991 at the Stel-lenbosch conference, when Prof Whiteman’s 50 years as editor of our society’s journal were cel-ebrated; published in The South African Music Teacher, vol 118, June 1991.) He became editor of this journal in July 1941 (No. 20) and continued compiling, editing and seeing through publica-tion, each and every issue of the journal until No. 127 in December 1995. Apart from this he has been President (1948, 1957 and 1962), Vice-Presi-dent Western Cape (1950, 1952-1956), member of council for at least 50 years; also member of many executive committees, for many years trus-tee of the SASMT Benevolent Fund, also for many years representative of the SASMT on the CAPAB Music Committee, our anchor and adviser in con-stitutional and other matters of the SASMT and — how else could it be? — an outstanding music teacher in his own right. He regularly held licenti-ate classes for piano teaching method and paper work and prepared piano students for their prac-tical examination, resulting in about 65 diploma successes.

A major contribution to the structure of the SASMT was his reworking of the constitution in

Prof Michael Whiteman on his 100th birthday Reino Ottermann

order to also include institutional membership for uni-versities and other centres of music education. Those of us who have been more closely associated with the SASMT remember him as the indefatigable defender of the constitution of the SASMT, sometimes to the irrita-tion of less informed conference members, but many times saving us embarrassment vis-à-vis our own con-stitution or, even worse, being caught off-side to our own detriment. No wonder that honorary membership of the SASMT was conferred on him in 1971.

Michael Whiteman was born on Tulse Hill, London, on 2 November 1906. He was educated at Highgate School and at Caius College in Cambridge. After some time in his father’s publishing business and a number of years as scholastic head of Stafford’s School in Harrow Weald he and his wife, Sona, came to South Africa in January 1937 where he accepted a position at the Diocesan


College in Rondebosch. In 1939 he joined the University of Cape Town’s staff, lecturing pure mathematics and, later, applied mathematics. In 1943 he was awarded a doctorate for research into the philosophical founda-tions of mathematics. And then, also in 1943, he be-came lecturer in music at Rhodes University College in Grahamstown! His eminent suitability for this post is best proven by a quotation from the South African Music Encyclopedia (vol. 4, 1986) in which his development as a musician is outlined:

His piano lessons had started in 1913 and later were continued with his future wife Sona at Staf-ford’s School. In 1938 he obtained the L. Mus. TCL in composition and then consecutively the FTCL (1940), the B. Mus. of UNISA (1943), and an M. Mus. of the University of Cape Town (1947). From 1937 to about 1942 he devoted himself to the French horn and to conducting (under the supervision of Professor Stewart Deas). In Cape Town he acted for many years as an additional horn player in the city orchestra and as the originator and conductor of a small orchestra which performed at ballet per-formances produced by Dulcie Howes and at Rose Ehrlich’s Shakespearean Productions. Between 1940 and 1942 he also applied himself to learning the cello and eventually participated in chamber music performances.

In Grahamstown he lectured, played chamber music and two piano works, conducted a madrigal choir and occupied himself with composition. But he returned to the Department of Applied Mathematics at Cape Town University in 1946 where he finally became Associate Professor. What a fascinating life story!

When I think of Michael Whiteman, loyalty, reliability and integrity, absolute dedication, sincerity and mod-esty, and a wonderful sense of humour are some of the most outstanding characteristics that come to mind. All this is not only supported, but also, as it were, transillu-minated by the profound spirituality which I so deeply admire in him. We are indeed fortunate to have a man like him who has through all these years not only shown but also lived an unconditional involvement in the weal and woe of our society.

Prof Michael Whiteman became involved in the affairs of the SASMT at the beginning of 1941. And now, after 65 years and after a lifespan of a whole century, he still has the affairs of the society at heart — albeit somewhat detached, leaving space for all the other interests which have made the life of this remarkable musician, math-ematician and mystic so unique.

We congratulate him on this extraordinary birthday and thank him for everything he has done for our society. May the following years be as rewarding and brimful of the marvellous thoughts and ideas that have been the distinctive features of a life richly and humbly lived.

South African Auditions for The World (Youth) Orchestra

International tours in Canada and Europe

The World Orchestra of Jeunesses Musicales International (WOJM) is preparing its annual auditions for the 2007/08 season. South African musicians and musicians of all nationalities wanting to become members of this wonderful project can apply for auditions online on www.lmwo.org before the 15th of November 2006. Candidates must be aged between 18 and 28, and auditions will be organised in each country by national sections of Jeunesses Musicales – in South Africa by Jeunesses Musicales South Africa, based at the Potchefstroom campus of the North-West University, step one being applying online.

Since WOJM moved its headquarters to Valencia (Spain), it has toured China, the Netherlands, Austria, Spain and Cyprus. New members will join The World Orchestra for the next season to travel in Canada and Europe.

As UNESCO Artist for Peace, The World Orchestra is committed to peace, interculturality, solidarity and cooperation between cultures. Formed by a hundred musicians from forty countries and conducted by Maestro Josep Vicent, WOJM tries to communicate its message all over the world.

The new WOJM focuses on contemporary classical music of the 20th and 21st centuries and encourages interactions between other musical forms and traditions such as ethnic, jazz or contemporary non-classical music. The repertoire always includes new pieces specially written for the orchestra.

www.jmwo.org

Department of Culture, NWU, Potchef-stroom, 2520. Tel (018) 2992844, Fax. (018) 29928942.


Much has been written on assessment in music. For ex-ample, the US publication Assessing the Developing Child Musician by Tim Brophy (2000), runs to almost 500 pages. I do not intend to duplicate all that effort here, but to make some observations about what it might mean to assess progress in music musically.

The system for assessing music in the national curriculum for music in England is ‘holistic’ rather than ‘segmented’. Instead of giving students marks (perhaps out of ten) for many different aspects of music, and adding them all up to give a total mark that tells you how good a student is (seg-mented assessment), teachers are expected to consider a student ‘in the round’ (what I would call holistically), and to consider which of the published ‘level descriptions’ they match most closely. While I have already questioned some of the content of the published level descriptions,1 I think that this is a musical approach to assessment.

Let us take the example of performance in music. As I leave a concert, I have a clear notion of the quality of the performance that I have just heard. If someone asks me to justify my view, I may start to talk about rhythmic drive, or interpretation, or sense of ensemble, for example. But I move from the whole performance to its components. I do not move from the components to the whole. In particu-lar, I do not think: the notes were right, the rhythm was right, the phrasing was coherent, and so on – therefore I must have enjoyed this performance. And I certainly do not think something such as:

SKILLS + INTERPRETATION = PERFORMANCE

I recall performances that have overwhelmed me, despite there being a handful of wrong notes. I remember others in which the notes have been accurate, and the interpreta-tion has been legitimate, and yet the overall effect has been sterile. A performance is much more than a sum of skills and interpretation.

Segmented marking systems are used routinely in some other subjects, and may be appropriate in some fields of music. For example, teachers assessing students’ recall of

factual information about music, or success in solving a mathematical problem, typically use such schemes. The point is that the assessment needs to fit the behaviour be-ing assessed. A musical performance is not a mathematical problem.

Mathematical problems are sometimes set to provide a context for the assessment of qualities such as aspects of mathematical thought. Here, it makes sense to use a seg-mented marking scheme that will tease out the aspects to be assessed, and to ask students to present their solutions so that they can be given a mark for each of the aspects that they have grasped. Otherwise, a student who has been through the intended thought processes, but has produced no evidence of this, and who perhaps gives an incorrect answer because of some trivial computational error at the end, for example, will not receive appropriate credit. Musical performances are not like this. There is no need for musical performance to be set in a context: it provides its own. The musical performance assessor is fortunate in being presented with the actual behaviour that he or she is to assess. It makes no sense to dissect the performance, give a mark for each of the bits, and then reassemble them by adding up the marks.

One sometimes hears teachers arguing for segmented as-sessment on the grounds that holistic assessment is ‘sub-jective’. Of course, all assessment is subjective, in the sense that human beings determine how it is done. Even the most detailed mark scheme for a mathematics problem — perhaps one that justifies exactly what a student has to write in order to gain each mark — is subjective because it was designed by a human being. Other human beings might have set a different problem, or structured the mark scheme in some other way. That assessment is subjective, in the sense that human beings are involved in it, is surely something to be celebrated rather than bewailed. The ma-terial being assessed is, after all, human endeavour.

Subjectively, then, I would argue is not necessarily a prob-lem. But what of reliability? Are students who are assessed holistically more likely to be given differing marks by

A s s e s s i n g P r o g r e s s i n M u s i c

T h o r o u g h r e s e a r c h o n t h e a s s e s s m e n t o f m u s i c p e r f o r m a n c e s , r e v e a l s u n e x p e c t e d i n s i g h t s . F a r f r o m b e i n g i m p e n e t r a b l e a n d u n r e l i a b l e , i t m a y b e a p a r a d i g m f o r s u m m a t i v e a s s e s s m e n t i n o t h e r s u b j e c t s .

Janet Mills


different assessors than students who are assessed using a segmented scheme? Not necessarily. Holistic assessment is not totally reliable, in the sense that all assessors will always come to complete agreement. On the other hand, neither is segmented assessment totally reliable. It is not clear why marks for components of performance, such as rhythm, should be any more reliable than marks for per-formance itself, and a segmented marking scheme simply combines a series of marks for such components. In fact, Harold Fiske,2 working in Canada, reported an experiment in which holistic assessment was found to be more reli-able than segmented assessment. Fiske collected cassette recordings of a series of trumpet performances, and asked music students to assess them on five scales used in lo-cal music festivals: overall, intonation, rhythm, technique, and interpretation. He found greater interjudge reliability for the overall grade than for any of the segmented grades. In other words, there was much less agreement about rat-ings for intonation, rhythm, technique, and interpretation than there was for overall ratings. Why should this be? I would suggest two reasons:

Overall performance is real. In other words, all the judges hear the same performance. If we are to assess a component of the performance, such as rhythm, on the other hand, we must filter out much of the other material. Our ability to do this, or our technique of doing this, will vary. Thus our perceptions of the rhythmic element of a perform-ance may differ. Abstracting rhythm from melody is not a conceptually simple matter like filtering out impurities from a sample of rain water, or absorb-ing light rays within some defined frequency range: melody consists of a dynamic relationship between rhythm, pitch, and a host of other variables. Indeed, it is not clear what the expression ‘the rhythm of a performance’ really means.We are practised in the assessment of overall per-formance. Every time we listen to a TV theme tune, a pop song, a Mahler symphony, or the ringing of mobile phone, we have the opportunity to make judgements about what we hear. On the other hand, we are less frequently presented with examples of pure rhythm or intonation, whatever either of these mean, to assess.

It might be possible to train assessors to become more reliable in segmented assessment. But why should one bother to do this? If holistic assessment is already more reliable, surely it makes sense to use training in an attempt to strengthen it further?

Holistic assessment is sometimes criticized on the grounds that assessment is credible only if it is possible for an as-sessor to verbalize exactly what they are doing. Musical performance is an essentially nonverbal activity, and its reduction to a verbal common denominator seems of un-certain value. Yet there are elements of holistic assessment that can be verbalized, as an experiment that I carried out some years ago illustrates.3

1.

2.

I started by arguing that, as holistic assessment has some inter-judge reliability, it is reasonable to suppose that there are common aspects to individuals’ holistic assessments. However, we do not know what these common aspects are: the experiment was intended to find them.

The theoretical background to the experiment was drawn from personal construct theory (PCT).4 George Kelly, a psychotherapist, believed that a person sees other people through a personal system of constructs. A psychothera-pist who knows a client’s construct system has a basis for planning, and then starting, therapy. But clients typically cannot explain their construct system to the psychothera-pist: it has to be elicited. Consequently, Kelly developed a technique that he called triangulation: a client is presented with the names of three people he or she knows, and asked to state a way in which two are the same and the other is different. The extent to which the factor suggested is one of the client’s constructs is then explored.

In my experiment, I looked for the constructs that might be used as a framework for holistic assessment of perform-ance in music. Again, they were hidden. But a substantial difference from Kelly’s situation was that I hoped to find a universal, not personal, system. However, triangulation again proved a useful technique.

Initially, I made a videotape of five solo musical perform-ances, each on a different instrument. All the perform-ers were judged by their teachers to be of at least Grade 8 standard, and were of similar age (15-19). Eleven student teachers with widely differing musical experience watched and ranked the five video performances, and then I inter-viewed each of them individually. I chose three perform-ances, and asked students to describe a characteristic that two performances had, but the other lacked. I then asked students to tell me whether the remaining two perform-ances had, or lacked, this characteristic. By repeating the exercise with different groups of three performances, I established what was, I hoped, some of the individual’s constructs. I then pooled the supposed constructs of the eleven individuals, obtaining the following list:C1 The performer was CONFIDENT/NERVOUSC2 The performer DID ENJOY/ DID NOT ENJOY playingC3 The performer WAS FAMILIAR WITH/HARDLY KNEW the pieceC4 The performer MADE SENSE/DID NOT MAKE SENSE of the piece as a wholeC5 The performer’s use of dynamics was APPROPRIATE/ INAPPROPRIATEC6 The performer’s use of tempi was APPROPRIATE/ INAPPROPRIATEC7 The performer’s use of phrasing was APPROPRIATE/ INAPPROPRIATEC8 The performer’s technical problems were HARDLY NOTICEABLE/DISTRACTINGC9 The performance was FLUENT/HESITANTC10 The performance was SENSITIVE/INSENSITIVEC11 The performance was CLEAN/MUDDYC12 I found this performance INTERESTING/DULL


The next stage was to see what happened when another 29 assessors were asked to use C1-C12 to judge perform-ances. This time, the video recording consisted of a series of ten solo performances, each on a different instrument. There were two groups of assessors:

Group 1: Twelve music teachers and student teachers specializing in musicGroup 2: Seventeen student teachers specializing in sub-jects other than music Some members of this group had shown interest in music through, for example, joining their college choir. But none had studied music at school beyond the age of 16, or taken instrumental lessons since leaving school.

The assessors were asked to imagine that each perform-ance was part of a Grade 8 examination, and to assess the performance as seen and heard without making any allow-ances, for example for performers who looked younger. For each performance there was a double-sided sheet to be completed. On the first side, the assessor gave a single mark of up to 30 using the Associated Board of the Royal Schools of Music’s criterion-referenced classification sys-tem (distinction, merit, pass, and fail) as a guide. On the second side, the assessor rated the performance on each of the twelve bipolar constructs using a four-point scale.

The marks given by individuals for performances were con-verted into ranks, with the performance given the highest mark being assigned a rank of one. The constructs were scored from one to four according to their placing on the four-point scale. There was a positive correlation between each of the constructs and the overall rank ranging from r = 0.4 (C6) to r = 0.7 (C10 and C11) (n = 290).5 I followed this up with another statistical technique: multiple regres-sion analysis.6 This showed that the constructs accounted for more than two-thirds of the variance in the ranking of the performances, for both Group 1 and Group 2. This indicates that the holistic assessment could be accounted for in terms of common constructs to a substantial extent.

It is interesting that there is so little difference in the results for Groups 1 and 2, i.e. that there is little apparent differ-ence in the holistic assessment according to the extent of formal musical expertise. This offers tentative support to the theory that the reliability of holistic assessment stems, at least partly, from practice in every situation.

We have seen that holistic assessment has advantages over segmented assessment. It is more musically credible, in the sense that it is more like assessment made of musical performance in the real world. In addition, it can be more reliable, and no more subjective.

This discussion has been possible only because there is some general understanding of what is meant by ‘per-former’ and ‘performance’. We have some idea of what as-sessment systems in this field are trying to predict. We can tell if the marks produced are nonsense.

This is an unusual situation. Much educational assessment with an outcome of a single mark or grade takes place in a less certain context. We may know what a performer is, but do we know what a musician is? Yet we routinely com-bine marks obtained for listening, composing, and per-forming to give a music GCSE, or A level grade. Is there an understanding of what a mathematician or a scientist is? Yet we combine marks to give single grades also in these subjects.

It is sometimes argued that there is something particularly difficult about assessment in the arts. Might it not be that some areas of the arts offer opportunities for particularly rigorous assessment? If we understand what behaviour we are trying to measure, then we can tell if the marks we obtain are sensible. Perhaps those who devise summa-tive assessment systems for non-arts subjects could learn something from looking at aspects of the arts.

BIBLIOGRAPHY AND FURTHER READINGFISKE, M. 1977. Relationship of Selected Factors in Trum-

pet Performance Adjudication Reliability. Journal of Research in Music Education. 25(4):256-263

KELLY, G. 1955. The Psychology of Personal Constructs. New York: Norton.

MILLS, J. 1991. Assessing Musical Performance Musically. Educational Studies. 17(2):173-181.

MILLS, J. 2005. Music in the School. Oxford: Oxford Uni-versity Press.

Reproduced from Music in the School by permission of Oxford University Press (www.oup.com). ISBN 0-19-322300-7

Janet Mills is a Research Fellow at the Royal College of Music, Lon-don. She began her career as a secondary school music teacher,

and was a teacher trainer prior to working for ten years as an HM inspector of Schools. She works widely in schools, universities and the community. Her writing includes Music in the School (OUP 2005), Music in the Primary School (CUP 2001) and many research articles.

See Mills 2005:156Fiske 1977Mills 1991Kelly 1955Correlation coefficients (denoted r) can range from 1 (perfect positive correlation) to 0 (no correlation) to -1 (perfect nega-tive correlation). So the marks that assessors gave the perform-ance were influenced most by whether the performance was clean or sensitive, and least by whether they thought that the tempo was appropriate.The multiple regression analysis searched for values a1 to a12 such that a ‘regression’ equation of the form:

Rank = a1C1 + a2C2 +a3C3 + … + a12C12accounts for as much as possible of the variance in ranks, when calculated across the 29 x 10 = 290 performances heard. The regression equation that was calculated here accounts for 71% (n = 290) of the variance in the ranks. The separate fig-ures for Groups 1 and 2 are 73% (n = 120) and 69% (n = 170) respectively.

1.2.3.4.5.

6.


D i s t e v e r o m t e r y . . .

I t w a s t o o f a r t o d r i v e . . . W i t h t h e n e a r e s t e x a m i n a t i o n c e n t r e s i x h o u r s ’ a w a y , t h i s m u s i c t e a c h e r d e c i d e d t o e s t a b l i s h o n e i n h e r h o m e t o w n .

Marietjie Wessels

Royal Schools of Music (ABRSM), and similar systems in other countries. I was keen to find a corresponding system in the United States, and work to get up to at least Grade 8 level. To my surprise, I couldn’t find anything similar in the United States. The closest I could get was the pro-gram of the National Guild of Piano Teachers that offers 18 different levels of adjudication, in six different catego-ries, but with no prescribed lists of repertoire to choose from (only guidelines). The Guild system did not seem to set any national standard for music teaching and learning, and my music teachers were not participating members of the Guild at the time, so I abandoned the idea of enrolling in their program.

In September of 2003 we received our permanent resi-dence permits (‘green cards’), and I was now allowed to work in the United States, something my husband had been looking forward to! There was no way I was going to give up my piano and music lessons, so I had to make a plan. A friend suggested that I become a piano teacher. I balked at the idea initially because I felt I had not been trained as a music teacher. However, both Olga and Tom encouraged me to do that, and suggested that I join the local piano teachers’ associations. In the summer of 2004 I joined both the Cary-Apex Piano Teachers’ Association (CAPTA — 53 members) and the Raleigh Piano Teachers’ Association (RPTA — 140 members), and slowly became involved in the world of piano teaching.

When we moved to the United States in January 1999, I knew that my life would change dramatically. I had always been a ‘career woman’, working full-time through my preg-nancies and while bringing up two boys. Now, because of visa restrictions I would not be allowed to earn an income in our new country of residence. I decided to throw my-self into being a ‘lady of leisure’, which meant running a household, driving two teenage boys and their friends to and fro, and getting involved in volunteer work. After four years of this, I felt I needed something new in my life. The dream of returning to piano, which I had always pushed away far into the distant future, finally became a reality when I signed up for lessons with Olga Jaynes at Burt Mu-sic School, in Cary, my new hometown in North Carolina. In the fall of 2003 I also signed up for theory lessons with Tom Lohr at the School of Music at Meredith College for Women, a local private university, in Raleigh, our capital and neighboring city. Olga, originally from Ukraine, and a recent transplant like me, inspired me with her love for the piano and her dedication to her students. Tom at the same time opened up a whole new world for me with his knowledge of music theory and his amazing ability to con-vey all this knowledge in a concrete way to a student. I was hooked, and knew that from now on piano would be a ma-jor part of my life, as it had been when I was growing up.

Coming from South Africa, I knew about the music ex-amination system of the University of South Africa (UNISA) as well as those of the Associated Board of the


In January 2005 I noticed in a RPTA newsletter that RACE was looking for a center representative in North Carolina. When I made further enquiries I found out that RACE was the acronym for Royal American Conservatory Examina-tions, which had just been established in the summer of 2004. When I logged on to their website (http://www.roy-alamericanconservatory.org), I became really excited. This was just what I had been looking for!

RACE offers a Certificate Program in collaboration with The Royal Conservatory of Music, founded in Canada in 1886. As is the case with the UNISA exams in South Africa, students are assessed in the practical areas of rep-ertoire, technique, ear training and sight reading, while there are separate theoretical examinations in rudiments, harmony, keyboard harmony, counterpoint, analysis and music history. Unlike the UNISA system, the levels in both the RCM and RACE systems range from Grade 1 to Grade 10, with the top certificates being the Performer’s and the Teacher’s ARCT (Associate of the Royal Conserv-atory of Toronto). In addition, RACE offers two pre-grade levels, namely, Preparatory A and Preparatory B, roughly corresponding to one and two years of piano study respec-tively. In order to receive their Preparatory Level Certifi-cate, students need to do both the A and B levels practi-cal examinations, and write a Preparatory Theory paper. Another difference between RACE/RCM and the UNISA system is that the former offers the student a much bigger choice of repertoire in each list. For instance, in Grade 8, the number of works ranges from 21 in List B (Classical and Classical-style) to 56 in list D (20th century).

What I found particularly appealing about RACE is that their certificate program offers a national standard, based on an internationally recognized system that is more than a hundred years old. (More than 17,000 teachers and 100,000 students are involved in the RCM/RACE program every year, the majority of them being from Canada at this stage.) I knew that I had found the program I wanted to do, but was not sure whether I was ready to take on the task of becoming a RACE center representative, since that would take time away from my own music studies. (By this time I had switched to Tom Lohr for piano instruc-tion and was also taking music courses (for non-degree purposes) in the Department of Music at Meredith Col-lege.) However, when I saw that the closest RACE center was about six hours’ drive from Cary, in the neighboring state of Virginia, I started toying with the idea of getting a center started in our area. I contacted the president of RPTA, Kathy Sparks, who informed me that no one had responded to the invitation yet.

To cut a long story short, in the summer of 2005 I signed the contract to become the first RACE center representa-tive in North Carolina, with my home studio being the center for the time being. Kathy Sparks was very enthusi-astic, and recommended to the Board of RPTA that they invite Dr Scott McBride Smith, president of RACE, to come and do a workshop on RACE at the November RPTA meeting.

The workshop was open to all interested piano teachers, parents and students in the area, and was attended by about one hundred people. It was a great success. For close to two hours Dr Smith kept the audience informed and entertained with background on the state of music teach-ing in the USA, and the objective of RACE to provide a national standard. A point he stressed is that RACE uses

examiners who are trained to be as objective as possible and assess performance according to a uniform standard. Examiners are also constantly monitored to ensure that they ‘stick to the standard’ and provide useful, informative comments on the evaluation forms. After the workshop I was approached by Janet Mahoney, a fellow CAPTA mem-ber, who offered her brand new business, Village Music School, Inc. in Carpenter Village subdivision in Cary as a possible center for RACE. (A subdivision is almost like a gated community development in South Africa, but with-out the gates.) When I visited Village Music School, Inc. and saw the lovely facilities I knew that I had found the ideal venue. So, in December 2005, Village Music School, Inc. officially became the first RACE center in North Carolina.

RACE encourages students to register online, to speed up the process and cut out unnecessary pa-per work for the RCM staff in Toronto, who do the administration. Teachers are also encouraged to register with RACE and obtain a Teacher Number.

When students register online, they get the oppor-tunity to enter their teacher’s number, which gives the teacher access to the students’ examination information on the RACE web site, via the Teacher Services link. When students register the first time, they receive a Candidate Identification Number which they keep for as long as they take part in the RACE program. They also receive a confirmation number and get the opportunity to print out an Ex-amination Appointment Confirmation form, as well as a Piano Examination Schedule. The latter form includes all the student’s particulars, the scheduled time of the practical examination, and the Piano Examination Program. Students are required to in-dicate on the Examination Program whether they prefer to start with the repertoire or the technical requirements during the examination. They also need to list all pieces played in the order in which they will be played for the judge.

On the day of the examinations candidates need to bring both forms with them to the examination center. The center representative checks the first one against her/his list of registered candidates, and checks that the second one is completed correctly before the candidate hands it to the examiner.


In the meantime I had received the facility booking forms (electronically) from Robin Virzi, the very efficient RACE Center Coordinator in Dayton, Ohio, which required me to estimate the number of students who would take part in the practical and theory examinations in May 2006. (RACE offers examination sessions twice a year, in De-cember and in May, but because ours was a new center, we had to wait for the May session.) Since examiners are sent from Canada for the practical examinations, I also had to provide names and addresses of suitable hotels on the booking forms.

By then I had put together an email list of interested teach-ers, who sent me their estimates for the examinations. It seemed that there would be around 20 students doing the practical and two doing theory examinations. On 10 Janu-ary 2006 Robin informed all center representatives that online registrations had opened, with the due date set as 27 February (which was eventually extended to 6 March). In April I received the paperwork for the theory and prac-tical examinations via courier from Toronto. It turned out that two students had registered for the theory examina-tions as expected, while 23 students had registered for the practical examinations, covering a range from Preparatory A to Grade 7. The RACE/RCM theory examinations have a fixed timetable, with examinations taking place on the Friday afternoon and the Saturday morning of the second weekend in December, May and August respectively. So, on Saturday, 13 May, I supervised (or proctored, as they say over here) the two theory candidates, aged 6 and 8. The experience brought back memories of my own child-hood, and the writing of similar exams decades before in South Africa. I thought about how much had happened in my life since then. When I wrote my theory papers in the early seventies, who would ever have dreamt that more than 30 years later, I would be supervising two students in the USA, doing the same kind of examination!

On 20 May, the next Saturday, I arrived early in the morn-ing at Village Music School, armed with my list of instruc-tions for the day, posters to be put up in conspicuous plac-es, and food and drink for the examiner, Judy Home, who arrived shortly after me. (I took my role as host to the ex-aminer very literally, to her amusement, I suspect). Soon after that, the first nervous-looking student arrived. (For USA students, a RACE examination is something totally new). Judy showed me how she would like the examina-tion program to be filled out, and then we were ready to begin, a few minutes ahead of schedule.

As the day went on, students and parents turned up in drips and drabs, according to their scheduled times, and I had the opportunity to interact with a number of new people, and put faces to the names on my lists. It was an interesting mix of students and parents: some were from the UK originally and were keen to find a system similar to those of the ABRSM and Trinity-Guildhall; some were

from Canada where they partici-pated in RCM exams; others, like my students, were USA born and

bred — or immigrants, like the young student from Russia — but keen to investigate something new.

At the end of the day, Judy and I packed up and said good-bye, both hoping that this was not the last time we would see each other. (We had got to know each other a bit over the lunch break that day, when we swapped life stories over a salad and a cup of tea at the pleasant little café right next door to the music school.) We expressed our thanks to Janet Mahoney and her husband (the ‘general manag-er’) for their trouble to make the first RACE session at the North Carolina center in Cary so memorable for every-one involved. As I drove home that afternoon I felt really good about how the day went, and proud that I could have been part of the process of getting RACE established in North Carolina. I have since ‘handed over the reigns’ to Dean Leviner, a fellow teacher, who teaches at Village Mu-sic School so that I can focus on my own preparation for future RACE examinations. (My music ‘studies’ had to be pushed to the back burner this past year, unfortunately.) Who knows, perhaps in May 2007 I will be a nervous-looking student in the waiting area of the RACE center in North Carolina, clutching my forms and books while waiting to be called into the examination room!

BELVILLE ACADEMY OF MUSICRegistrar: Julian Weyers, BMus (UK) UTLM(thc) TJD

Curriculum includes:All instruments, Singing and Music Theory (Junior Musicianship, General Musicianship, Grade 8 Har-

mony and Licentiate Harmony)

Examinations: UNISA, Associated Board of the Royal Schools of Music, Trinity College of London

(from beginners to licentiate in both categories)

Practical Music Grade Examinations in Piano, Guitar, Violin, Recorder (descant and treble),

Singing (children and adults), Clarinet and Saxophone

Studios available for practisingRegular concerts

Background music:(Classical and Light Music)available for all functions

Training: of children’s voices from 8-16 years

Enquiries: The Registrar

Belville Academy of MusicPO Box 50337535 Belville

Tel./Fax. (021) 945-4979


Music educators can try to understand their learners in many ways. One way is to see them in terms of what role music will play in their vocational lives once their formal music education has ended. This perspective allows us to place our learners on a continuum with, on the one end, those learners for whom music will be a (hopefully en-joyable) part of their lives, but not a means to earn their livelihood. Some learners may occasionally earn income by performing at weddings or arranging something for a choir — or whatever strikes their fancy and will seem worthwhile for them to do. They differ in degree from those at the other end of the continuum for whom music will be a career. We do not suggest that teachers apply this continuum in order to differentiate their actions towards their learners. No, becoming aware of the ways we think, may help us avoid — even if only in hindsight — the traps that our own thinking sets. Should we as educators not aim to enable all our learners to participate as fully as they would want to in the music of their communities, while they are studying, and afterwards? If we take this ques-tion as a guiding aim of music education, we should ask ourselves: “What skills, knowledge, attitudes and values should I cultivate in my learners?”

The contexts in which educators work are of course very different. To pretend that we can give general guidelines for music theory examinations that can be applied gener-ally would be nonsense. Therefore, as a starting point for this discussion of the principles of assessing outcomes in music theory,1 we ask twelve questions on teaching and, by implication, on testing and examinations. These questions may enable our readers to understand the perspective from which we write, and may be a guide for those who want to reflect critically about music theory exams.

Some assessment practices (also some that are current) can most definitely strain the development of a learner’s musicianship, while other practices can develop it. One of our tasks as educators is to know the difference and apply our insight! This need for responsibly informed critical reflection extends to all our (educational) prac-tices as musicians — also because our learners need role models. David Elliott writes: “Music education should be carried out by teachers who are musically competent themselves. […] This is how children develop musician-ship themselves: through actions, transactions and inter-actions with musically proficient teachers.”2

Critical reflection is a daunting task, but one that is made somewhat lighter when we have philosophies that can guide us. Our study of the literature on assessment, also in music education, has led us to believe that construc-tivism is such a philosophy. We researched and discussed publications on assessment, and discovered that the cur-rently recommended principles of assessment are congru-ent with the basic tenets of constructivism in education. Explaining constructivism might require one whole issue of this magazine; therefore we suggest the reading of some of the publications mentioned here as a starting point for exploration. For us, one principle of constructivism has proved very valuable in guiding our reflection on assess-ment: learner-centeredness. Sandra Stauffer3 writes that “In the end, assessment should be a celebration of each student’s learning — a time when he or she can say with assurance and pride, ‘I can do these things, I know these things; I am a musician.’”

We identified fifteen principles of assessment during our research. Reflecting on these principles led us to

N o m o r e H a t i n g T h e o r y : M i s s i o n I m p o s s i b l e ?

W h e n a s s e s s m e n t i n m u s i c t h e o r y i s g u i d e d b y s o u n d p r i n c i p l e s , w e m a y b e a b l e t o e n g a g e o u r l e a r n e r s ’ l o v e o f m u s i c t o m o t i v a t e t h e i r p r o g r e s s i n m u s i c t h e o r y . We m a y h a v e t o r e t h i n k a f e w o l d f a v o u r i t e s , t h o u g h …

Jacomine Pretorius & Hannes Taljaard


re-evaluate almost all our current assessment practices and helped us to design and implement new ways of discover-ing how our students are achieving the desired learning outcomes. In this article we present some of these princi-ples, and our experience of working with them, as advice to teachers.

the role of the teacherTeachers are the most important agents of change in the classroom,4 and they form an integral part of the social construction of meaning by learners.5 When we as educa-tors understand the important functions that assessment and the results of assessment play in our learners’ lives, we can find the initiative and enthusiasm to develop the best possible ways to assess. Educators will do well to ac-knowledge that things can be done better, to value our own enquiries and uncertainties as life-long learners, and then take the difficult and time-consuming steps necessary for good intentions to become actualised in effective behav-iour.6 We must look critically and with an open mind at the tests and exams that our learners write, and answer

very specifically the question: How do these activities contribute to developing the musicianship of learners? Educators need to be trained and allow themselves to be trained! Strategies to ensure accountability should be im-plemented. Sharing of ideas between colleagues can lead to improvement and a sense of achievement, and should be encouraged. We should, however not overemphasize assessment to the detriment of our other important tasks concerning the facilitation of learning.

the curriculumA well-structured curriculum will provide answers about what we should assess and indications of how to do this. The curriculum entails all teaching and assessment ac-tivities and is more than the syllabus, which is often pre-scribed by schools, education departments or examining bodies. Ensuring the development and implementation of a good curriculum is the responsibility of every educator.Assessment influences curriculum and vice versa. The in-fluences of traditional written assessment on the teaching of music notation are not always salutary. Harry Torrence7 writes in general about similar assessment techniques: ”Traditional paper-and-pencil tests can have a narrowing effect on the curriculum, in terms of both curriculum con-tent and of teaching methods employed, such an approach to learning can result in children coming to know certain things without understanding them and without being able to generalize from specific examples to similar prob-lems in different contexts.” This happens when learners are coached in a “narrow range of test taking skills” instead of learning a “broader range of higher-order competencies and understandings.” We certainly have heard testimony from our students to substantiate our impression that Torrence’s observations are not imagined and applicable to current music theory instruction in South Africa!Changes in syllabuses and in assessment practices often necessitate new forms of instruction. This means that those who design syllabuses and methods of assessment have very real and far-reaching responsibilities. The teach-ing of music notation and music theory in South Africa is often driven by the paradigms suggested by examining bodies, and only seldom with positive results!What should educators do? They should focus on the process of assessment as well as on the products,8 and formulate to a sufficient level of detail outcomes related to the development of musicianship. The achievement of outcomes should be described clearly in terms of criteria. These criteria should be negotiated with the learners and form the basis for useful feedback.

assessment and instructionIt is clear that assessment should form an integral part of good instruction, and that its results — indeed the whole process — should help us to shape the learning process in the best possible way to the real advantage of our learners who are certainly hoping to become better musicians. This means that assessment will become formative. Traditional music theory exams are not examples of formative assess-ment unless teachers make them so. Children do not re-ceive feedback on their exams, and the exam experience is

Do my learners become infected with my per-sonal interest in music and my enthusiasm for self-growth through the setting of increasingly complex musical challenges?Are my learners motivated to discover for them-selves and to find value in their engagement with music?Does the growing understanding of my learners enable them to use music expressively?Am I creating opportunities for meaningful in-teraction with musical material and with other learners, musicians and audiences, and encour-aging my learners when they create these op-portunities for themselves? Are learners progressively mastering a wide gamut of musical skills?Can I describe my learners as musically literate?Will my learners become — partly through my efforts — independent judges of their own thoughts and actions as musicians who are able to improve themselves?Do my activities as educator foster individuality, exploration, spontaneity, originality, experimen-tation and invention?Do I allow concepts to mature in learners’ minds until they become part of their (musical) aware-ness and intuition?Am I providing my learners with opportunities to fully engage in and enjoy music making — op-portunities that will allow them to practise mu-sical skills and internalise relevant knowledge?Do I effectively integrate the perceptual and the conceptual in order to foster the interdepend-ence of thinking and listening?Am I flexible and tolerant of — even interested in! — the personalities and interests of my learn-ers (which may sharply differ from mine), and in-formed about musical worlds unlike my own?

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not used to further their learning, except (in most cases) in order to make them write their theory exams better. What a terrible anaemic version of what training in music theory can be! Why should we be even a little surprised that most learners hate music theory?

Can this sorry state be mended? With effort, yes, and with sensible steps, which would in-clude (some of) the following.

Center efforts above all on the real learning needs of pupils who must develop their musicianship above the level of mediocrity, instead of on the exam results and their influence on the teacher’s reputation.Employ varied and flexible assessment strategies and include the authentic musical activities of composing, performing (also improvisation) and listening into the strategies. Aim to cultivate an integrated under-standing of musical concepts.Ensure that assessment is valid, reliable and fair. We may have to ask our learners and colleagues their opinions on this, since it is often hard to evaluate our own actions, especially when they were ingrained over many years.Ensure that assessment is part of a positive learning environment, and that it does not diminish other well-intended efforts. Observation of the assessment principles that we have identified will help to create such an environment.Include peer assessment and self-assessment as im-portant aspects of the learning experience. Both in-teraction with peers and self-assessment lie at the heart of a constructivist philosophy of education and their benefits are manifold.Allow yourself and your students to explore the grey areas between ‘right’ and ‘wrong’ answers. Even in music literacy and music theory the most interest-ing discussions, and the most fruitful learning, are initiated when we consider and implement alterna-tives to assessment that can be done with the crosses and slashes of a red pen. Usually these discussions will promote higher-level cognition and motivate learners. They can be fun!Design and implement consistent and suitable strate-gies that will ensure regular, timely and useful feed-back to learners. Feedback is most often best when it is ipsative (self-referenced) and criterion-based rather than normative (stated in terms of the achievements of other learners).

In assessing music theory outcomes, educators should do all they can to make sure that musical concepts are not divorced from their aural and kinaesthetic contexts. We should aim for holism and integration, even in assessment and examinations. Still, we should not reflect so much that we do not take action. We found descriptions and discus-sions of very stimulating assessment techniques during our research. We list some of them here, with references for further study. Not all these techniques are new. Many educators are surely already applying them.

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When is assessment valid and reliable?

Validity and reliability are complex concepts. Lambert & Lines (2000:7,9,11) summarised ideas first published by Stobart & Gipps in 1997 in their book Assessment: A Teacher’s Guide to the Issue in order to define some of the terms.

A test’s degree of predictive validity indi-cates the extent to which its results will forecast subsequent performances.

Tests that are concurrently valid are inde-pendently valid, and are accurate in measuring the same aspects.

Construct validity refers to the degree to which a test assesses those attributes it purports to assess.

When an exam is content valid, it is successful in testing the contents of a syllabus.

The concept of unitary validity is more recent and involves the appropriate use of the results of assessment.

Consequential validity is obtained, accord-ing to Lambert & Lines (2000:132) when it can be shown that assessment has positive impact on student learning.

Reliability gives us an indication of how con-sistent a test is. Test-retest reliability is determined by repeating the test and comparing the marks obtained. Mark-remark reliability compares the agreement between assessors, and parallel forms or split-half reliability indicates whether simi-lar tests produce similar marks. The reliability of classroom assessment is sometimes described by the term dependability.

When is assessment fair?

As educators we often wonder whether our assess-ment is fair. How will we know if it is? Siebörger & Macintosh (1998:13) summarised and adapted five factors identified by Frith & Macintosh (1984).

Does the importance and length of the assessment match the amount of work done?

Does the choice of assessment techniques match the way in which learners learned?

Do all learners understand the questions and in-structions?

Are conditions appropriate, with enough time, and access to resources?

Is marking as objective as possible, and should learners know how they will be assessed?


oral assessmentsMusic theory teachers are used to asking questions in class and to receiving verbal feedback as part of formative as-sessment. Verbal feedback can become summative assess-ment: learners can, for example, present a lecture recital of an original composition using the concepts and terms that they have learnt. The verbal communication skills of musicians are often needed when we teach, or even in so-cial conversation. Interviews can be considered as a type of oral assessment, and offer many advantages to the mu-sic educator, as noted by Mitchell Robinson.9 Other op-portunities for oral assessment include the observation of contributions to class discussions, learners’ responses in class,10 role play and debate.11

projects and reportsA project consists of several authentic musical activities such as simple compositions, organising and presenting performances and the teaching of music rudiments to fel-low learners, or even to younger learners. When learners have to compile a report on their project (which may even be a documentary film made on cellular phones!) it helps them to reflect on their own learning. It will be wise to ask experts to judge learners’ live presentations of projects and to give feedback during informal conversations. The more authentic the assessment strategies become, the closer they will come to being task-based assessments, the im-portance of which cannot be overestimated.

essaysAlthough music literacy is mainly about the actions of stu-dents, the writing of essays — using good examples from journals and magazines as guides — can promote reflec-tion. The skills of essay writing become gradually more im-portant as our learners progress in their studies of music theory. If the topics interest learners and feedback is effec-tive, learners will develop critical thinking and communi-cation skills. Essays may also be presented in the form of reviews of textbooks, or of recordings and performances. These reviews may be authentic assessments, since most musicians are required at times to voice opinions about books, recordings or performances using the vocabulary of the discipline.

portfoliosLearners can compile material documenting the proc-esses and products of their own learning and assessment into a portfolio according to the teacher’s guidelines and informed by learners’ own choices. The many advantages of portfolio assessment have lead to its increasing promi-nence in all fields of education. Not only is this an example of authentic assessment: in helping our students to learn how to compile and discuss good portfolios, we are also preparing them to be independent life-long learners, to apply for jobs, and to establish their reputations as mu-sicians. One can imagine how a compilation of different meaningful and interesting projects in a portfolio lasting over a year or more will change learners’ attitudes towards their music theory studies, help them to gain confidence and to remain motivated.

It is clear to anybody who has been involved in the nuts and bolts of teaching that the process of learning will nev-er be perfect. It is messy, because it is human. Constant calls from utopia to involve every educator in some or-chestrated strategy to make the real world the ideal world, bring but few improvements and many pains in the neck. Maybe the road ahead is best travelled by taking small reflecting steps each time we set a test or exam paper, or study a syllabus, or register and prepare a learner for those theory exams.

BIBLIOGRPAHY AND FURTHER READINGDONALD, D., Lazarus, S., Lolwana, P. 2004. Educational

Psychology in Social Context. 2nd ed. Cape Town: Oxford University Press.

ELLIOTT, D.J. 1995. Music Matters: a New Philosophy of Music Education. New York: Oxford University Press.

ELLIOTT, D.J. 2002. The Praxial Philosophy of Music Matters. The South African Music Teacher, 139 (1): 16-19, January.

FRITH, D.S., Macintosh, H.G. 1984. A Teacher’s Guide to Assessment. Cheltenham: Stanley Thornes.

LAMBERT, D., Lines, D. 2000. Understanding Assessment: Purposes, Perceptions, Practice. London: Routledge Falmer.

PHYE, G.D. 1997. Epilogue: classroom learning, looking ahead. (In Phye, G.D. ed. Handbook of Academic learning: Construction of Knowledge. San Diego: Academic Press.)

ROBINSON, M. 1995. Alternative Assessment Techniques for Teachers. Music Educators Journal, 81:28-34, March.

SIEBöRGER, R., Macintosh, H. 1998. Transforming Assessment: A Guide for South African Teachers. Kenwyn: Juta.

STAUFFER, S.L. 1999. Beginning Assessment in Elementary General Music. Music Educators Journal, 86:25-30, September.

TORRENCE, H. ed. 1995. Evaluating Authentic Assessment: Problems and Possibilities in New Approaches to Assessment. Buckingham: Open University Press.

Jacomine Pretorius is a postgraduate student at the Potchefstroom Campus of the North-West University. She was a teaching assisstant at the university for four years, and now teaches privately.

Although our research focused on music literacy, many of the findings apply to the teaching of music theory, and to most other aspects of music educa-tion. We consider the material covered up to Grade IV UNISA theory, and parts of that in Grade V, as aspects of music literacy. For us music literacy definitely includes rudimentary composition, performance and listening skills.Elliott 2002:18Stauffer 1999:30Phye 1997:595Donald et al. 2004:100Torrence 1995:xi

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Torrence 1995:2, 145Lambert & Lines 2000:130Robinson, 1995Lambert& Lines 2000:149Siebörger & Macintosh 1998:47

7.8.9.10.11.


Hierdie kort bespreking handel oor die onderrig van musiekteorie, ‘n onderwerp wat gewoonlik met heelwat passie bespreek word wanneer ‘n klompie teorie-onderwysers bymekaar is. Dan word probleme met die leerders, die sillabus, die eksamens, ensovoorts gewoonlik betrek sonder dat die aard en funksie van die musiekteorie as dissipline in ag geneem word.

‘n Grondige kritiese ondersoek na die metodes en doelstellings van die musiekteorie is lankal nodig, dit wil sê een met heelwat meer diepgang as hierdie kort bydrae. By ‘kritiese ondersoek’ bedoel ek dat sowel die positiewe as negatiewe aspekte van die manier waarop musiekteorie tans onderrig word, verreken behoort te word. Hiermee wil ek dus nie die voordele van gespesialiseerde strategieë wat aan musiekteorie as dissipline die status gegee het wat dit verdien, prysgee nie. Ek pleit egter vir ‘n sterker klem op die artistieke musikale aspek van die musiekteorie wat hopelik sal vergoed vir die negatiewe effek van meganiese tegniese beheersing.

Tans lyk dit asof meeste leerders nie die nut van musiekteorie kan insien nie en dit net as ‘n straf beskou. Redes vir hierdie negatiewe siening kan wees dat kennis en vaardighede wat met die teorie te make het nie met die musiek gekoppel word nie en dat musiekteorie net met meganiese drilwerk ge-assosieer word. Die probleem is egter dat dit feitlik onmoontlik is om musiekteorie baas te raak sonder ‘n aansienlike hoeveelheid drilwerk. En drilwerk bevorder nie artistieke en kreatiewe doelwitte nie. Len Holdstock, ‘n Suid-Afrikaanse sielkundige, skryf in hierdie verband dat

the emphasis on rote learning and rigid logic in our schools and universities undoubtedly does great damage to the creative ability of many, if not most young people. … Studies indicate that a child’s creativity plummets 90 percent between the ages five and seven when schooling is introduced. It is estimated that by the time they are forty most adults are about 2 percent as creative as they were at five.1

Musiekteorie kan met grammatika in taal vergelyk word, eerstens omdat musiekteorie te make het met die manier waarop die musiek ‘aanmekaar gesit’ is en, tweedens, omdat klein musikale eenhede met leksikale eenhede vergelyk kan word.2 As leerders die letters van die alfabet in die korrekte volgorde kan opsê, beteken dit egter nog nie dat hulle regtig met taal besig is nie. Dit is eers wanneer gewerk word met patrone van letters wat anders gerangskik is as in die alfabet, dat taalvaardigheid ter sprake kom. Indien hierdie situasie na musiek ‘getransponeer’ word, kan ‘n mens sê dat toonlere nog nie regtig musiek is nie. Waarom heg ons dan soveel waarde aan toonlere? As die identifisering van betekenisvolle eenhede in ‘n komposisie die eerste stap is in die proses om sin te maak van die musiek,3 moet leerders nie eerder so vroeg as moontlik leer om musikale patrone te skryf waar toonhoogte en ritme van die staanspoor af op kreatiewe wyse gekombineer kan word nie?

Meer as ‘n eeu gelede het die Duitse opvoedkundige en dirigent, Hermann Kretzschmar gekla oor die verouderde onderrigmetodes in harmonie en kontrapunt en dit reguit gestel dat musiekteorie daardie musiekvak is wat die dringendste hervorm moet word omdat dit so eksklusief gerig is op die harmonie. Hy betreur die feit dat musiekteorie net by geskrewe oefeninge bly, dat studente nie by die klavier werk nie, en dat oefeninge net in halfnote gedoen word. Volgens Kretzschmar is musiekteorie onpopulêr en word dit vermy deur onderwysers wat praktiese onderrig gee. Die beste geleenthede om betekenisvolle verbande tussen teorie en praktyk te trek, dit is in die praktiese lesse, gaan onbenut verby.4

Waarom moet ons in die een en twintigste eeu nog na musiekteksture kyk soos wat Jean-Philippe Rameau dit in die agtiende eeu gedoen het? Daarmee wil ek niks wegneem van die belangrikheid van sy bydrae tot die sistematisering van die harmonie as vakgebied nie. Thomas Christensen, die president van die Amerikaanse Society for Music Theory (1999-2001), skryf egter dat Rameau se status as die belangrikste figuur in die musiekteorie na die middeleeue tot vandag toe nog nie bevraagteken is nie.5

w a a r i s d i e m u s i e k i n d i e t e o r i e ?

O n s h e t n u w e i d e e s n o d i g o m m u s i e k t e r u g t e b r i n g i n m u s i e k t e o r i e . ‘ n G r o n d i g e b e s k o u i n g v a n m u s i e k t e o r i e - o n d e r r i g e n g e p a a r d g a a n d e a a n p a s s i n g s b e h o o r t ‘ n g r o t e r b e w u s s y n t e k w e e k v a n m u s i e k a s k u n s .

Bertha Spies


Dit is juis hier waar die probleem lê, naamlik dat Rameau se benadering tot die musiekteorie op die metodes van die natuurwetenskappe gebaseer is, ‘n strategie wat nie die artistieke potensiaal van die dissipline verreken nie.

In die voorwoord tot sy Traité de l’harmonie (1722), skryf Rameau soos volg:

Music is a science which should have definite rules; these rules should be drawn from an evident principle; and this principle cannot really be known to us without the aid of mathematics. Notwithstanding all the experience I may have acquired in music from being associated with it for so long, I must confess that only with the aid of mathematics did my ideas become clear and did light replace a certain obscurity of which I was unaware before.6

Volgens die gerespekteerde musiekhistorikus, Paul Henry Lang, het die koppeling van die musiek met die natuurwetenskappe inderwaarheid die ontwikkeling daarvan as ‘n kuns gekortwiek. Hy verwys na skrywers van die laat-Barok, waaronder ook heelparty praktiese musici getel het, wat talle rasionalistiese opsommings en kodifikasies die lig laat sien het in ‘n poging om musiek op ‘n hoër intellektuele vlak saam met die natuurwetenskappe te plaas. Volgens Lang was die gevolg ‘n verstening van die ‘elastic spirit of living art into inexorable rules and definitions’ en voeg by dat dit jammer is dat hierdie tradisie deur die eeue op onkritiese wyse voortgesit is.7

Soos die titel van Rameau se verhandeling aandui, is sy teorie gerig op die harmonie, meer spesifiek was sy doelwit ‘to validate chords as primary musical constructs’. Sy bydrae tot die harmonie het onder andere die sistematisering van drieklanke, tertskonstruksie, omkerings van akkoorde, grondnote, die beweging van grondnote (fundamental bass) en kadense betrek.8 Om die vertikale aard van die musiektekstuur as die primêre fokus in die musiekteorie te beskou, is myns insiens ‘n reduksionistiese siening. Die temporele verloop van musiek en alles wat dit behels (soos motiewe en temas) word effektief op die kantlyn geskuif. Dan is sake wat wesenlik is tot die aard van musiek en wat nie met toonhoogte verband hou nie, soos ritme, toonkleur, dinamiek, register, digtheid, artikulasie nog nie eers verreken nie. Hiermee probeer ek nie te kenne gee dat Rameau se teorie verkeerd was nie. Maar om leerders vir soveel jare te dril om in terme van vertikale klankstrukture te dink, help nie om musikaliteit en kreatiwiteit te ontwikkel nie.

Hoe kan musiekteorie dan leerders se musikaliteit en kreatiwiteit ontwikkel? Weens beperkte ruimte word die volgende voorstelle net kortliks genoem.

Skep van die heel begin af ‘n klankbeeld van ‘n teoretiese konsep deur dit by bekendstelling voor te sing (indien van toepassing) en op die klavier voor te speel. Leerders moet van die begin af verstaan dat teoretiese konsepte in die eerste plek nie wiskundige konsepte nie maar musikale konsepte is.

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As leerders teoretiese konsepte van die begin af by die klavier leer en self speel, sal hulle besef dat F en F# byvoorbeeld twee verskillende note en twee verskillende klawers is. Die ideaal is dat teorie tydens die praktiese musiekles geleer word. Teoretiese konsepte word dan aan die hand van musiek wat leerders self speel, geïllustreer en self gespeel. Populêre musiek kan ook betrek word. Persoonlike ondervinding het my geleer dat leerders musiekteorie geniet as dit vanuit die musiek self geleer word want dan maak dit vir hulle musikaal sin. Om teoretiese konsepte te koppel met musiek wat vir leerders ‘n werklikheid is, sal dalk help om leerders se negatiewe houding teenoor teorie te temper. ‘Werklike musiek’ kom voor in ‘werklike boeke’. Fotostate behoort net in noodgevalle gebruik te word omdat mense van hulle inkomste beroof word as boeke nie gekoop word nie. As sportouers vir hulle kinders die ‘regte toerusting’ kan koop, kan musiekouers dit ook doen. Balanseer drilwerk met aktiwiteite wat op die ontwikkeling van musikaliteit en kreatiwiteit gerig is. ‘n Alleenstaande noot, interval of akkoord is nog nie regtig musiek nie. So ook nie ‘n toonleer in ewe lang heelnote buite ‘n musikale konteks nie. Die feit dat eksterne eksamens hierdie konsepte so hanteer, beteken nie dat teorie-onderwysers hulle onderrig daarop moet baseer nie. Gee van die staanspoor af vir leerders opdragte wat hulle kreatiwiteit ontwikkel, soos byvoorbeeld om ‘n ‘liedjie te skryf ’.Benut geleenthede waar insig in musiekstrukture die leerder se spel en interpretasie kan verbeter. Kennis van kadense kan byvoorbeeld help met frasering. Die beginsel van ‘wat hoort bymekaar’ verhoog ook insig in die fatsoenering van die musiek. Melodiese nootpatrone wat musikale eenhede vorm, kan logiese melodiese fatsoenering bevorder.Melodiese nootpatrone is aanduiders vir akkoordkeuse wat nie alleenstaande akkoorde nie maar die beweging van een akkoord na ‘n volgende suggereer. Ek het vroeër aangedui hoe melodiese nootpatrone reeds in musiek vir beginners basiese harmoniese progressies kan voorstel.9

Probeer om ander konsepte as toonhoogte te betrek want tempo, dinamiek, artikulasie, register, digtheid, ensovoorts is almal faktore wat saamwerk om van die musikale voordrag ‘n artistieke gebeurtenis te maak. Net omdat toonhoogte die hooffokus in die sillabus van eksterne musiekeksamens is, beteken nie dat ander musikale aspekte onbelangrik is nie.Terme in sogenaamde ‘vreemde tale’ sal vir die leerder ‘n werklikheid word as dit gekoppel word met die musiek wat die leerder self speel.Die memorisering van lyste harmonie-reëls bevorder gladnie musikale insig en kreatiwiteit nie.Net soos wat mense in ander professies voortdurend vir opknappingskursusse gaan om op hoogte te bly van die nuutste ontwikkelings op hulle onderskeie vakgebiede, net so moet musiekonderwysers ook verantwoordelikheid aanvaar vir hulle eie

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ontwikkeling. ‘n Mens hou nooit op om te leer nie. Begroot jaarliks vir die bywoning van kongresse, kursusse of seminare, asook vir die aankoop van nuwe boeke (soos wat ander professies ook toerusting aankoop). Onderwysers wat nie toegang tot biblioteke of musiekboekwinkels het nie, kan sulke boeke op die internet bestel, byvoorbeeld by http://www.amazon.com. Die ongelooflike moontlikhede van die internet is egter ‘n onderwerp vir ‘n ander artikel.

As ‘n mens krities lees en krities luister, stimuleer dit jou eie ontwikkeling en help musiekteoriese kennis ‘n mens om die musiek beter te verstaan en dit meer te geniet. As teorie-onderwysers met nuwe idees kom om die musiek in die musiekteorie terug te bring, sal leerders verstaan waarom hulle dit moet leer en kan die studie vir hulle ‘n interessante en opwindende belewenis word.

BIBLIOGRAFIE

AGAWU, K. 1999. The Challenge of Semiotics. In Rethinking Music, Cook, N. & Everist, M. (eds.), Oxford: Oxford University Press, pp. 138-160.

CHRISTENSEN, T. 1993. Rameau and Musical Thought in the Enlightenment. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

HOLDSTOCK, L. 1987. Education for a New Nation. Riverclub : South Africa Transpersonal Association.

KRETzSCHMAR, H. 1903. Musikalische zeitfragen: zehn Vorträge. Leipzig: Peters.

LANG, P. H. 1941. Music in Western Civilization. London: Dent.

LIDOV, D. 1994. Music. In Encyclopedic Dictionary of Semiotics. Tweede uitgawe. Sebeok, T. A. (ed.), vol. 1, 579-587. Berlin: Mouton de Gruyter.

RAMEAU, J-P. 1971. Treatise on Harmony (1722). Transl. P. Gossett. New York: Dover Publications.

SPIES, B. M. 1993. Reduksietegnieke in die Onderrig van Harmonie. Musicus 21(2): 56-63.

Bertha Spies was tot haar aftrede in 2003 Medeprofessor in Musiekteorie aan die destydse PU vir CHO. Tans is sy Navorsings- genoot by die Noordwes-Universiteit.

1987: 76-77.

Lidov 1994: 579-580.

Agawu 1999: 149.

1903: 66-67.

1993: 1.

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The financial contributions and logistic support of the following institutions are gratefully acknowledged.

School of Music and Conservatory, North-West University (Potchefstroom Campus)

Samro Endowment for the National ArtsUnisa Music Foundation

n e w s ~ n u u sSASMT AGMThe 84th Annual General Meeting of the South Afri-can Society of Music Teachers took place at UNISA on 17 June this year. It was attended by nine members of the society, most of them members of council. Because this is the smaller AGM (the larger one coin-cides every two years with the conference), no mo-tions were passed and those present mainly received financial and other reports. Decisions regarding the website were taken: centres and office bearers will be listed on the websites as well as more information concerning the listings of all members.

The recommended minimum fee for private tuition was not changed. The recruitment and appointment of a new Executive Officer was also discussed and centres have already received notifications as well as the necessary information.

Benevolent FundThe current chairperson of the Benevolent Fund is Ms Diane Heller. Chairpersons or secretaries of centres can apply on behalf of deserving members.

ISMEThe 27th Biennial Conference of the International Society for Music Education (ISME 2006) was held in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia from 16-21 July. The six day event at the world-class Kuala Lumpur Convention Centre was attended by delegates from around the world. The venue is equipped with the state-of-the-art wireless telecommunications and digital audio-visual facilities. The event was hosted by one of Malay-sia’s largest institutions of higher learning, Universiti Teknologi MARA; as well as the Malaysian Association for Music Education (ISME’s Malaysian chapter), the Ministry of Culture, Arts and Heritage, the Ministry of Education and the Ministry of Higher Education. The next ISME World Conference will be held in Bologna, Italy, from 20 to 25 July 2008.

http://www.isme.org

Music Giveaway # 143 — WinnersVal Heard (Camps Bay)C Coetzee (Durbanville)MS Oersen (Kuilsrivier)Sheila Horwill (Hilton)Julie Young (Scottsville)Estelle Stauffer (Klerksdorp)

Reader’s Survey — Pencil CasesEstelle Stauffer and nineteen of her pupils beat every-one to it. Congratulations and thank you! Thank you very much to every one of the teachers and learners who also responded.

1971: xxxv.

1941: 59, 442.

Christensen 1993: 28, 43.

Spies 1993.

6.

7.

8.

9.


During a jazz exam convincing musical statements have to adhere to the basics of an accepted performance practice. Not unlike those involved in Western classical performance exams, jazz examiners can also follow two basic ideas concerning competent musicianship: tech-nique and artistry. Was the performance technically correct with sufficient attention to pitch, intonation, dy-namics, time, rhythm, finger facility or evenness, articu-lation and tone? As for artistry — was the performance played correctly in terms of the conventions of improvi-sation, style and interpretation, and presentation?But maybe these two important sounding words (tech-nique and artistry) do not provide enough useful guide-lines for fair and valid assessment, especially for those who are not experienced examiners. I would therefore like to present an overview of a system that has been used by numerous jazz examination panels at the South African College of Music (UCT) for the past five years and which has been experienced positively by students and teachers alike. The system consists of carefully cho-sen syllabuses, specific written feedback, guidelines and mark sheets.

syllabusesTo avoid unnecessary exam pressure, teachers can at the start of each term or semester announce in writing what will be requested and expected of students when playing the exam. Each year slight changes and revi-sions are made to the prescribed material based on the level of student musicianship, teaching style of a spe-cific teacher and changes in repertoire and scheduling.

Course outlines can be altered as long as the necessary material of an appropriate standard is covered by the teacher before the exam. I encourage all teachers to se-lect new repertoire often, possibly from lists supplied by the convenor. To avoid teacher, student and class bore-dom — keep it fresh! For a ten to fifteen minute exam, three pieces are randomly requested from the exam repertoire list by the examining panel. Technical mate-rial should be prepared in all keys and the melody and chord changes of each piece must be memorized.

Jazz Improvisation 1 — mid term examinationMajor scales starting on the 2nd, 5th and rootThe lydian scalePentatonic scales (major and minor), blues scales8 note dominant and major bebop scalesDiatonic one and two bar phrases

Jazz Improvisation 1 – end of yearLydian & lydian dominant scalesHarmonic minor scale: modes 2 and 5Dominant bebop scale from the root, third, fifth and seventhDiatonic one and two bar phrases with resolutions (ii-7 V7 I)

Examination repertoire for Jazz Improvisation 1Afternoon in Paris, All of Me, Autumn Leaves, Blue Bossa, Cantaloupe Island, Doxy, Footprints, Ladybird, Maiden Voyage, Misty, Mood Indigo, Perdido, Satin Doll, Silver’s Serenade, Sugar

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R e f l e c t i o n o n t h e a s s e s s m e n t o f j a z z i m p r o v i s a t i o n s b e c o m e s d i f f i c u l t w h e n w e a r e t o o s t r o n g l y u n d e r t h e s p e l l o f t h e w o r d i m p r o v i s a t i o n . P e r h a p s g r a d i n g a n e x a m i n a t i o n i n ‘ m a k i n g m u s i c u p o n t h e s p o t ’ s e e m s q u e s t i o n a b l e t o t h o s e n o t f a m i l i a r w i t h j a z z s t u d i e s . I t c a n b e d o n e .

Mike Rossi

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Jazz Improvisation 2Locrian & locrian #2 scalesDiminished scales —whole/half (mode 1), half/whole (mode 2)Whole-tone scalesDiminished whole-tone: mode 7 of the melodic minor scaleMulti-coloured one or two bar phrases, and with resolutions (ii-7 V7 I)

Examination repertoire for Jazz Improvisation 2All Blues, All the Things You Are, A Night in Tunisia, Body and Soul, Confirmation, Four, I’ll Remember April, In a Sen-timental Mood, Jordu, Oleo, On Green Dolphin Street, Orni-thology, Peace, Star Eyes, What is This Thing Called Love?

feedbackDuring each exam the teacher is encouraged to make written comments to be returned to the students at the conclusion of the marking process or at the first class of the next semester. Students enjoy receiving comments or feedback in writing as encouragement to progress to the next musical level. Feedback helps them to under-stand what needs to be addressed and to comprehend the given mark. Comments from past panels have in-cluded the following.

“Good time and feel.” This means that the assigned work was played in relation to the ground beat/pulse. To achieve this, students have generally practised the material with metronome or backing track and have listened to the jazz masters.“Very poor time” means that the melody, improvisation, lines, scales or technical material were not played in time or in relation to the ground beat/pulse. This is gen-erally an indication that the student does not listen to the jazz masters or doesn’t practise or practises without a metronome or backing track.“Good, flowing phrases” generally translates to: ‘it swings’ or ‘it is in the groove’. This is a clear indication that the student has listened closely to the jazz masters, has practised the assigned work, and has a good inter-nalized metronome and a developed sense of phrasing in the jazz style.“Stiff phrases.” The student plays the required material but doesn’t swing; usually an indication that the stu-dent practises but doesn’t listen to the jazz masters or perhaps listens primarily to Pop, Jazz-Rock and/or Fu-sion.“Head played well.” It is a musical joy to hear a melody (head) performed well. Experience has taught us that even well prepared students do not give the melody (head) the respect it richly deserves. I can’t stress enough the importance of having students learn and play the melody well from memory.“Learning scales, phrases or lines and technical material would improve your ability to play ideas convincingly and help you develop a jazz vocabulary and language.”

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This is an indication that the student generally is not practising the assigned material.“8th-note lines are swinging.” Swinging eighth note lines are a central aspect of the jazz language. Like the im-portance of playing a melody well, 8th note lines played with good time and feel are found in all great solos by the jazz masters.

guidelines and mark sheetsGuidelines as recommended by the International Asso-ciation for Jazz Education (IAJE)

Improvisation: Evaluation is based on the soloist’s awareness of stylistic and harmonic content and the ability to communicate ideas to make creative, personal and musical statements.Style/interpretation: Evaluation is based on the solo-ist’s and the group’s awareness of a stylistically cor-rect performance and interpretation of the chosen composition.Presentation: Evaluation is based on the appropri-ateness of the music in relation to the group’s or the soloist’s abilities and how the music is presented.Musicality: Evaluation is based on emotive communica-tion — the extent to which technique is used to create a performance that is expressive and meaningful for per-formers and the audience.Time and rhythm: Evaluation is based on the perform-ance of the tempo (beat) and the figures (rhythms) rela-tive to one another and to the rhythmic concept of the compositions.Ensemble: Evaluation is based on the ability of the group to consistently perform the music in a fundamen-tally correct manner concerning aspects like phrasing, accents, dynamics and balance.Intonation: Evaluation is based on the ability to perform in tune, within and between sections. Technique/diction/articulation: Evaluation is based on the ability of the soloist and group to perform clean, clear and articulate musical phrases.

continued on page 45...

An example of an examination mark sheet ��



This is a beginners’ tutor, and I can truly say it is the most enjoyable tutor for violin that has ever come into my hands! The copy

which I have for review is a Flemish edition, which makes it very easy to understand as Flemish is so close to Afri-kaans. It is also published in Dutch, English, German and French. (The ISBN number of the English edition is 90-431-2439-70). A separate piano accompaniment book is available (ISBN 90-431-2373-0), also including a CD of performances on a grand piano.

The tutor includes, amongst other valuable material, suggestions and exercises for learning to play pizzica-to, the two first finger patterns, fluent bowing, change of strings, basic scales, harmonics, and simple double stops. There is much emphasis on the development of good intonation, aided by ‘echo’ exercises. Many of the exercises have two tracks on the CD: the first provid-ing the melody, and the second only accompaniment. Understanding of the instructions is supported by the clever use of witty illustrations. A fairly unique feature for a beginner’s book is the inclusion of some improvisa-tion exercises. I tried these with most of my pupils, and was quite amazed to see how many of them battled with this activity!

The general rate of progress is tuned to the devel-opment of most young pupils. Open strings are used up to track 29 on the first CD, so that by this stage the pupil should have a good grasp of rhythm, including crotchets, quavers, and their rests. When the first finger is used there are listening exercises to make the pupil very aware of the sound. The same method is followed

Meuris, W., Van Elst, J., Van Rompaey, G. 2005. Speel Viool! Vioolmetode 1. Heerenveen: de Haske (ISBN 90-431-2326-9) http://www.dehaske.com

Estelle Stauffer

with the other fingers. The progressive introduction of rhythms and new notes is very logically planned. Note values in Book 1 include semiquavers and dotted crotchets, as well as compound duple time. I tried the exercises with pupils who had progressed far beyond the scope of this book, and yet they found the exercises most enjoyable, and sometimes not even very easy! They all loved playing from this book, and were eager to know when Book 2 would be available. So I asked, and the compilers replied that the Dutch edition will be available as from November. The other language edi-tions will follow soon after.

The rhythm clapping exercises are very useful, espe-cially now that most South African primary schools no longer have class music as part of the curriculum. Most of our individual lessons are not long enough to include all these extras, but in Speel Viool they are a natural part of the process.

Useful information about the construction of the violin, as well as the lives of a few famous violinists is included. At the back of the book is a crossword puzzle which acts as a little ‘test’ to see whether the informa-tion in the book was remembered.

I will definitely use this book if I have new beginners, as I find it superior to the other books which I have used thus far. From the same publishers two other books, Famous Songs and Classical Pieces will appear later in the year. These can be used concurrently with the tutor.

Estelle Stauffer taught violin at an extra-mural music centre. Since retiring she has been teaching privately at her home in Klerksdorp. She has been a member of the standing committee of the SASMT for the past four years.

The Canadian bassist Peter Murray deals with the elements of technique for players of the bass guitar, in this short (48 pages) but comprehensive introduction to the ergonom-ics of musicianship on this instrument. Illustrated with a wealth of photographs, which provide practical examples of what he regards as good and bad technique, Murray sys-tematically examines such topics as practising, posture, correct left and right hand posi-tions, string muting, shifting between positions, and a range of ‘micro-elements’ of play-

ing ergonomics that have bearing on factors like tone production and physical endurance.Murray’s approach is practical, explaining the reasons why he classifies some techniques as useful or otherwise,

and his over-arching concern throughout the discussion is to encourage players to reflect critically on the wasted

Murray, P. 2001. Essential Bass Technique. 2nd edition. Milwaukee, WI: Hal Leonard Corporation. ISBN 0-634-03267-4

http://www.halleonard.com http://thermidormusic.com

Marc Duby


energy that results from uneconomic physical action. In discussing the basic principles of technique, Murray emphasizes economy of motion as follows (p.6):

Great musicians, on any instrument, tend to make their playing look effortless. They can play incredibly complex music and not break a sweat, and their hands seem to glide across the fingerboard with ease. It looks easy because they’re only moving as much as they have to—which is usually not a lot.

Drawing on research in biomechanics and kinesiology, Murray explains the basic principles of natural move-ment and strength as they relate to tone quality and production. Importantly, he highlights the positive ef-fects of correct technique as a measure for preventing injuries (p.7):

When you develop technique with ‘natural movement’ in mind, you’re working efficiently and reducing the likelihood of pain and injury. It’s unnatural finger and hand movements that lead to cumulative trauma dis-orders such as tendonitis and carpal tunnel syndrome.

He suggests that the best way to achieve endurance and strength on the instrument is not by hand exercises or weight training (which may develop muscular strength in inappropriate areas), but through applying his ideas to practising, in a reflexive and self-aware manner. To fa-cilitate this process, Murray makes constructive sugges-tions that are relevant not only for beginners but also for intermediate and advanced players.

For Murray, the right mental attitude, paying atten-tion to the quality of what one is practising, and the use of tools like metronomes and timers, are all fac-tors contributing to improving one’s technique, which he deals with in a common sense, practical and some-times humorous fashion. Throughout the book, Murray

demonstrates concisely and clearly the benefits to musicality, obtained by ‘stepping back’ from one’s in-grained habits to consider them critically. This requires a certain amount of self-discipline and introspection on the musician’s part. There may be a need to check one’s progress with a teacher from time to time, although studying the illustrations provided will go a long way to identifying obvious technical and ergonomic problems. Consistent with his focus on the technical elements of the bass guitar, there are few examples of musical exer-cises per se. The quasi-chromatic exercise (p.47), which Murray suggests as a point of departure for the player to cross-check such factors as finger spacing, fingerboard contact, muting, finger distance and pressure, is provid-ed in both musical notation and tablature.

In conclusion, I would thoroughly recommend this book as addressing central issues of playing ergonomics for the bass guitar in a reasoned and methodical man-ner. Not being designed for academics, however, the bibliographical information is rather sketchy, and if it included a DVD demonstrating the techniques, it would be a formidable teaching and learning tool for players at whatever level of accomplishment. These are minor criticisms of what I regard as a very good method book. Murray also thoughtfully provides links to some useful websites for bassists, which similarly discuss technical aspects of the instrument.

Marc Duby’s career as bass-player, composer, and music educa-tor of some thirty years experience includes performances locally and abroad (UK, France, India, and the Arabian Gulf) in genres ranging from cabaret to Western art music and free jazz. He is currently Head of Department of the School of Music at Tshwane University of Technology. e-mail: [email protected]

Dartsh, M. 2004. Der Geigenkasten: Materialien für den Violinunterricht. Heft 1. Wiesbaden: Breitkopf & Haertel. (Edition Breitkopf 8771). ISMN 004 18186 7

Estelle Stauffer

This beautiful book, illus-trated in colour, contains little ‘gems’ of knowledge about the history of the violin and about a few composers. It is the first of three volumes and in-

cludes a CD with accompaniments for many of the piec-es, and also some compositions by famous composers. Most of the exercises are presented as duets with an easy part which becomes progressively more challeng-ing, and a more difficult part for the teacher or a second pupil. The CD first plays the easy part, then the more dif-ficult part, and then the complete piece, thus giving the pupil the possibility to play along three times in a row. As far as I could ascertain, Book 2 is not accompanied by a CD. The CD for Book 1 has no ‘count-in’ clicks or beats

— the pieces start as soon as the ‘play’ button is pressed. One must thus be absolutely ready to start or have the teacher operate the CD player.

The book won the German Music Edition Award 2005 in the category ‘Teaching Methods for Children and Young Adults’. I quote the following from a letter written by the publisher:

The Geigenkasten is a new supplement to every teach-ing situation containing a long list of songs, numerous exercises and a CD. The Geigenkasten is organized ac-cording to themes containing more than 80 songs and pieces, which are almost always in two parts. They are underlaid by texts, which stimulate singing along. The Geigenkasten contains pieces for every situation. This guide is appropriate for children from the first violin class for individuals as well as for groups. The edition


This book contains some interesting ideas but as-sumes that the reader has a good knowledge of music notation. It would be quite useful to some-one who has been playing the guitar for a while to

see what the Alexander Technique (which is quite well known in some other disciplines) is all about with re-gard to guitar playing. A classical guitarist who has gen-erally been taught to sit correctly and to hold the guitar correctly to maximise movement and control, and use a foot stool or support for the guitar, will find that the ba-sic techniques are no different. The author advocates a relaxed ‘loose’ approach: lying down and stretching the spine or walking about and swaying the arms. Relax and act natural is the message.

In order to understand the book, one would need to have had a good education. Ideal readers will be terti-ary level students — who have previously learnt music and who seem to know everything — or adults, who have had previous musical experience and who would (possibly) understand the English and the music nota-tion used. It was interesting to read explanations and descriptions of some of the guitar terms like rasgueado and tremelo — but again a good knowledge of mu-sic would be necessary to understand these. I suggest that this manual might also appeal to a teacher who is having trouble getting a pupil who might have been taught incorrectly, to hold the guitar in a manner that is both comfortable and makes for better technique, or to

Inglis, P. 2003. Guitar Playing and How it Works. www.thewholeguitarist.com

Jenny Bonsignore

How did other people react to this book?

Another music teacher:For the already competent guitar player it gives new (and old) ideas on technique. The descriptions are not easily understood especially if you do not have a good idea of music notation, values and grouping etc. The pictures are unclear (blurred).

A few advanced school music pupils:Not very user friendly — quite difficult to under-stand, unless you are a music teacher or have pre-vious musical experience. It may ‘cover it all’, but perhaps things could be explained more simply for a more enjoyable learning experience. Random dance pictures? Why? They do not really fit with the book. Easy to understand at the beginning but gets very complicated after a few pages!

An advanced adult pianist:Not suitable for a beginner without a tutor to guide and assist the pupil through the book. Perhaps an accompanying DVD/Video may be helpful. Pupils using the book without some musical training will, I think, be lost. The written text needs to be checked for spelling and grammar!

An experienced adult male guitar player who can read music (piano and drums and TAB), but has never

tried notated guitar music:I paged through the book and I would not be inter-ested, it just looks too difficult!

contains along with comments intended for the teach-er and a relevant list of songs, a CD with tuning notes, play-along pieces and some specially enriching insights into violin literature.

I tried this book with my pupils. The more advanced pupils enjoyed playing along very much, but several of the younger ones found it rather difficult. However, they loved the appearance of the book and the beautiful il-lustrations. I would personally use this book as a supple-mentary tutor for younger pupils, as the progress, in my opinion, is too quick for most youngsters. It would be more suitable for older beginners, or possibly for pupils who already play a second instrument and thus have more background knowledge of music. All the pupils loved the German words accompanying the pieces — I sang to them and they loved the way the words fitted the note values so well.

This book presumes (correctly from the German writer’s perspective) that children studying violin will

have certain basic music skills. In my opinion this can be a problem, since children in South Africa no longer have class music at school. In the previous curriculum every child was given the opportunity to learn rhythm clap-ping, note reading and the playing of Orff instruments. In the present curriculum music is a subsection of Arts and Culture, and very little time is devoted to music. An additional problem seems to be that many of the teachers of this subject are not really trained in music, thus lacking the necessary background to train young children in certain music skills, with the result that the instrumental teacher often has to teach even the very basic aspects of this important subject. But this ‘prob-lem’ of the book can of course be overcome by any good and inventive music teacher!

I recommend this book very highly as a very valua-ble supplement to other methods. Most pupils who buy the book will be loathe to part with it when (s)he has completed the work, as it is a wonderful book to have in one’s own collection!


someone who wants to change their technique. Many people think they can’t learn to play the guitar because they have small hands. Alexander Technique definitely helps here, but so does using correct basic principles re-garding posture and holding the guitar correctly.

The book is definitely not suitable for beginners. The music notation is far too advanced, and includes no ex-planation of basic concepts of notation or note reading at all — even on the ‘easy pages’. It does not progress in a logical fashion, but jumps randomly between topics that are simple to understand and others that are highly technical, with fairly advanced rhythms, tuning meth-ods etc. (Not everyone has a tuning fork on hand, or understands the physics of sound.) For beginners espe-cially, the Alexander Technique ideas would need to be presented in conjunction with suitable music. The pres-entation of scales is very confusing for someone who is doing music for the first time. What is a scale? What is a fret? Arpeggios within the octave and dominant sev-enth arpeggios!? I don’t really agree with Mr. Inglis that almost everyone has a basic concept of Western ma-jor scales! Some of the teaching ideas in the book are very strange and confused. The author assumes a good

knowledge of music by the reader, and then explains a very elementary musical idea in the next sentence. One would need to buy a basic rudiments of guitar music book to get anywhere with it, and have lessons with an Alexander teacher. (Not very appealing for the regular teacher to lose his pupils to an AT specialist unless the teacher is willing to spend time learning this approach. Most teachers are too busy to start again and are set in their ways in any case!) Perhaps workshops could be run to introduce the concept to teachers.

The book seems a bit gimmicky to me with all the dance pictures — rather over the top and irritating to be honest. The pictures showing hand positions were mostly with the guitar lying flat!! — not a good sublimi-nal image for a new guitarist! The book has possibly not been edited yet, since it is full of errors.

Jenny Bonsignore (a professional member of the SASMT) has been teaching music for 25 years, including piano, recorder and voice. For the past 14 years she has taught class music with guitar as one of the instruments: “…folk and classical at a very elemen-tary level. Most learners have never held a guitar before — I teach them to hold it correctly.”

Bernstein, S. 1981. With your own Two Hands: Self-discovery through Music. New York: Schirmer. ISBN 0-7935-5712-7. Distributed by Hal Leonard.

www.halleonard.com.

Waldo Weyer

It is not too often that you find an instruction book in which the author has re-ally managed to envelop the spirit of its intent. Sey-mour Bernstein’s With Your Own Two Hands is such a book. This internationally

known pianist, teacher, and composer guides the mod-ern pianist out of a wealth of experience to the heart of music and music making. As the subtitle declares, the reader is directed towards self-discovery through mu-sic. In the preface the author expresses the wish that every musician must acknowledge that “I am what my talent is.” Most importantly, the author urges musicians to be contributors — not only of artistic values, but of human values as well. The book is therefore in many ways an endeavour to help both the amateur and the professional to merge the personal and musical self and as a result realise his or her full potential. He writes in an informal style and the many narrative accounts on a personal level make the book even more accessible. His commitment to a life in music is inspirational and should motivate students and professional musicians to journey with perseverance and enjoyment.

In the first of three parts, Bernstein confronts the most fundamental problems every student of music must deal with at some time or another. His advice on

the issues involved in practising is offered with great candour. Students and teachers alike will find the five profiles on the different kinds of pupils and their habits of practising enlightening. Flowing from this, Bernstein discusses issues concerning the relationship between teacher and pupil with penetrating discernment. The art of practising is also looked upon from the all impor-tant perspective of concentration. A vast array of ideas is given to assist a musician in the quest for a sincere involvement with music. Bernstein concludes this first part with an insightful section on feeling. His explana-tion of physical adaptability to sound is compulsory reading for any instrumentalist.

The second part stresses with wonderful simplicity some of the key factors that will assure musical play-ing and physical comfort at the piano. The disciplines covered in these chapters include: tempo, rhythm, and pulse, the importance of listening, as well as a variety of technical problems, including the relaxation myth. It is, however, the final section of this part, concerning choreography, which I found most applicable to my own teaching and playing. The chosen examples from the music literature are most apt. Even more so are the articulate descriptions of the variety of movements that are needed to convert the symbols of musical notation into physical actions (or muscular responses) and that will ultimately result in a musical and expressive render-ing of the composition.


With all the aspects regarding preparation and technique dealt with, the third and final part follows logically, as it addresses the core of our interaction with music: fulfilment through performing. Bernstein reveals the misconceptions regarding the world of performing and urges us to be responsible to our talents. The argu-ments put forward hold true for the amateur as well as the professional musician who strives for the highest artistic standard.

An extensive section on memorisation commences with a historical survey of the subject. Different meth-ods to memorise music are presented, all presupposing a systematic approach and a well-organised programme of repetition. His step-by-step outline contains many helpful hints to reduce frustration and really makes memorisation an achievable goal. As a motivational af-terthought, Bernstein emphasises that maintaining our memory skill will keep us young through perseverance and quickening the mind. The book concludes with a reflection on nervousness. The inquiry into this matter yields many vital questions and I can only reiterate that in fact all instrumentalists will find his discussions and solutions applicable to their specific needs.

Seymour Bernstein writes with wisdom and convic-tion. I can recommend this book to anyone interested in teaching and performing music. The book is proof of an innate pedagogical gift. It displays a true knowl-edge of the many learning theories that have come to

Other publications, cd’s and compositions by Seymour Bernstein. The best seller, Monsters and Angels: Surviving a Career in Music, deserves special mention.Chopin: Interpreting His Notational Symbols, 20 Lessons in Keyboard Choreography, Musi-Physi-Cality, Birds, Books I and II, Moodscapes, The Earth Music Series, Books 1-5, New Pictures at an Exhibition, Lullaby for Carrieann, Insects, Books 1 and 2, Belinda the Chipmunk, Raccoons, Books 1 and 2, Köchel and Sheila, Concerto for Our Time, Fantasy on a Theme by Francisco, Ten Organ In-terludes, One World CDs: A Retrospective, Seymour Bernstein Per-forms His Own Compositions

www.seymourbernstein.com

define our understanding of education. His grasp of the psychological complexities that characterise mankind, is evident. The result is a comprehensive analysis of the pianist and the various issues that could impact his or her professional development. These aspects put aside, the advice on purely a practical level is sound and to the point, leaving no room for ambiguous interpretations.

With Your Own Two Hands is in A5 format and com-prises of 296 pages. An index is supplied and footnotes refer the reader to the relevant sources, many of which are considered seminal works.

Another publication by ABRSM Publishing is Sixty for Sax: Progressive Studies for Unaccompanied Saxophone by Alan Bullard (ISBN 1-86096-537-7). The pieces are suitable for all saxophones and explore the instrument’s versatility and the performer’s ability to portray differ-ent moods and characters. They progress from grade 1 tot grade 8, covers different aspects of technique and have been tried and tested by various saxophone teach-ers and pupils. The pieces will also work well in concerts. Every sax enthusiast will love the pictures on the cover. Maybe ABRSM can publish a poster for the aficionados?

www.abrsmpublishing.co.uk

Florian Bramböck and Universal Edition cooperated to bring us Afro-Latin Sax Duets (ISBN 3-7024-3043-1; UE33 060). These easy to moderately difficult duets serve as an introduction to the genre and presents “some Latin and African grooves.” Two of the familiar melodies — Chan Chan Son and La Cucaracha — are presented in two different arrangements. Other favourites include Gunatanamera and Pata Pata. Among the sixteen at-tractive pieces are also original compositions.

www.universaledition.com


o p i n i o n ~ o p i n i e

Debate on the role of competition in music education is characterised by two divergent perspectives. These po-sitions are based on different perceptions of humanity and its music making. The first essentially treats musical performance as a specialist activity for a select few, while the second regards it as part of the core curriculum. The exclusive approach adopts an evolutionary stance: Hu-mans compete in education because they compete in life. Consequently, an expert minority emerges in music, sport and science by a natural and inevitable process of elimination. There is at times a discomforting awareness of such biological crudeness, expressed in the adage that competition is an evil necessity. However, this un-ease is overcome by the belief that competition “builds character” and ensures high standards of performance. From this perspective, excellence can be achieved best by competitive behaviour.

The divergent view argues that competitive behav-iour is so integral to our lives that we often are blind to its damaging effects. Our photo albums bear testimo-ny of a life-long contest, from tricycle races in nursery school to selection for retirement home committees. While appearing constructive, such behaviour generally is divisive, dehumanising and demotivating. Eric Holm, a columnist for Beeld, suggests that competition is the bogey that the industrial “brave new world” employs to line up its cannon fodder, pointing out that “this is ugly and extremely unchristian.”

This is most evident in sport, which is one of the cornerstones of our education system. A recent news-paper photograph shows Ruud van Nistelrooy of Man-chester United, after failing to score against Deportive la Caruna in the European Championship League: He has pulled the bottom front of his shirt over his head in shame. Research accordingly shows that up to 80% of all teenagers in Western countries prematurely stop participating in competitive sport, which is described by Holm as a terrifying means of beating (even injur-ing) and humiliating fellow participants. His is not the only voice against the undermining social effect of competition in sport. Only recently a number of leading rugby-playing schools in South Africa agreed to put an end to ranking their teams, while a prominent Gauteng school withdrew from a regional rugby contest because of what was described as excessive competitive behav-iour. Such behaviour is overwhelmingly egocentric and demands constant comparison with others. It promotes unwarranted tension, violence on and off the field and the use of banned substances. More insidiously, it en-courages unrealistic goals and dubious self-perception. Austin (1990) notes that young competitors often at-tribute success to ability rather than effort, while “habit-ual losers, starved for psychological rewards, eventually

abandon the positive, coping strategies associated with striving for success and adopt tactics designed to avoid failure.” They come to believe that human value is not intrinsic, but determined by the total number of certifi-cates, badges and cups accumulated.

While sport is an explicit model for understand-ing competition, its psychological effects are no more harmful than those of competitive music making. Aus-tin (1990) complains that it is “difficult to tell where the athletic field ends and the music classroom begins”, and that musicians “cling to the tradition of competi-tions and contest with a level of single mindedness that defies logic.” It is not unknown for supporters of choirs that compete in local competitions to assault one an-other, and for adjudicators to succumb to intimidation. But lest we protest our innocence of such aggression, we should be reminded of our own, often unreflecting use of speech patterns that indirectly promote degrad-ing behaviour. An art music critic from a prominent lo-cal weekly newspaper describes a musician as “taking all major musical awards on offer in South Africa” and appearing “unfazed by his latest competition triumph.” Similarly, we habitually refer to winners of music com-petitions and bursaries as the “cream” of our learner population and their institutions as “top” schools or uni-versity departments. Furthermore, we turn our award-giving ceremonies into public spectacles in which the winners share the stage and the defeated disappear into the audience.

From a biological perspective there certainly is a case to be made for competitive behaviour as innate and geared towards survival. However, the final form our competitive instinct takes is determined cultur-ally. There are numerous cultures in the world in which competitive behaviour is controlled. These typically are cooperative cultures in which material accumulation and individualism is not a central concern. Quarrels in Balinese culture rarely if ever end in open conflict, but instead are dealt with by formal acknowledgement of the position of both parties (Geertz, 1974). Similarly, the Balinese raise their children by neutralising social ten-sion, which has the effect of diminishing their instinct for competitive behaviour (Small, 1977). Certain Afri-can cultures also have a history of conflict avoidance by promoting egalitarianism and social cohesion, and restraining individualism. Blacking (1979) remarks that “traditional Venda society encourages individuality and the development of musical skills, but within the frame-work and in the service of the collective. It recognises the creative potential of all men and women but abhors the kind of system that has in Europe and America bred stars and superstars and suppresses the musicality of the masses.”

In pursuit of excellence:Philosophical musings on music education and competition

Jaco Kruger


This does not mean that these cultures do not pur-sue excellence. However, we should consider that there are other ideologies than our own about the ideal hu-man condition. Holm describes the failed effort during the 1960s to incorporate a San athlete into the South African Olympic team: He viewed competitive behav-iour as discourteous, and allowed slower athletes to run in front of him. So, while there is a tendency in capital-ist culture for excellence to serve personal status and financial gain, it is judged for its ability to create a sense of community in other, usually subsistence oral cultures. For example, excellence in tshikona, the Venda bamboo-pipe dance, takes the form of the perfect execution of interlocking musical parts, each produced by a different player (see Kirby 1968), and perfectly timed changes to team dance steps. In trance music the world over, excel-lence is made evident when dancers or spirit mediums enter a state of altered consciousness. This condition can only be achieved when a clearly defined set of aes-thetic and social parameters is made operational (see Rouget, 1985).

The essence of these objectives is part of our own, often forgotten history too. The Bible stresses the im-portance of community by means of the familiar body metaphor (1 Cor.12). And, although the task of Jewish religious music making was restricted to male Levites, all 288 of them participated, “whether they were young or old, experts or beginners” (1 Chron. 25:5-8). We con-sequently need to disabuse ourselves of the idea that excellence is exclusively or even mainly dependent on competition. After all, many people experience some in-explicable, deeply emotional need to produce art. Very often they explain their calling to music and dance in spiritual terms. It is difficult to imagine that the icons of artistic and scientific creativity produce outstanding results merely because they are forced to compete and not from some inner compulsion to experience, discover and express. Leonardo da Vinci had an insatiable thirst for knowledge, and became an expert in diverse fields. And like many achievers he shunned publicity.

Clearly therefore, we can benefit from educational strategies that prioritise enjoyment and cooperation. These strategies attempt to reduce or even eliminate fear, thus promoting creativity, concentration and per-severance. They do not treat learners as extensions of the aggressive egos of parents and teachers, but as unique individuals who pursue personal standards of excellence by an inner compulsion to experience and know. Furthermore, learners are required to work with rather than against each other. Cooperative strategies “build character” in the form of emotional intelligence — that skill which satisfies individual needs without alienating others. But they do more than this. While competitive behaviour in music undermines learning, achievement and creativity (Austin, 1990; Miller, 1994), cooperative behaviour produces an astonishing degree of communal wisdom and creativity.

Participatory teaching strategies show that, while not every learner is able to arrive at all the solutions to complex problems, the collective inevitably is able to

do so. And so the benign presence of others enables us to learn effectively as we bond with them.

The cooperative strategy also may be applied with success to musical performance. Our entire system of examination and recital is geared primarily towards solo performance. Perhaps we need a better balance between individual and ensemble performance. It is common knowledge that ensemble playing devel-ops individual skills as well as interactive social and musical expertise. Certain forms of musical ensemble (e.g. percussion and marimba bands) allow a policy of egalitarianism that permits each member the freedom to perform any musical part. This not only means that the burden of playing demanding parts is shared, but it also allows all members to experience both leading and supporting roles, and find their own niche in group settings.

Competition is part of the hidden curriculum of edu-cation whose divisive, demotivating character causes incalculable harm to our social health and humanity. When competition invokes music as a “noble art”, and, even worse, “the language of God”, perhaps we need to question the very foundation of our value system. Com-petition too often seems a socially condoned way of ex-periencing the thrill of the kill. But we are set apart from the natural world because we have the ability to reflect on our condition, and pursue moral values that make us ever more human.

BIBLIOGRAPHYI would like to acknowledge the inspiring work of the fol-lowing columnists in Beeld: André van Niekerk (‘n Woord onderweg), Wilhelm Jordaan (Van mens tot mens) and Eric Holm (Die wêreld om ons).

AUSTIN, James R. 1990. Competition: Is Music Educa-tion the loser? Music Educators Journal, 76(6).

BLACKING, John. 1979. Musicians in Venda. The world of music, 21(2).

GEERTz, Clifford. 1973. The Interpretation of Cultures. New York: Basic Books.

KIRBY, P.R. 1968. The Musical Instruments of the Native Races of South Africa. Johannesburg: Witwatersrand University Press.

MILLER, Rodney E. 1994. A Dysfunctional Culture: Com-petition in Music. Music Educators Journal, 81(3).

ROUGET, G. 1985. Music and Trance: A Theory of the Relations between Music and Possession. Chicago: University of Chicago Press.

SMALL, Christopher. 1984. Music, Society, Education. London: John Calder.

Jaco Kruger teaches social musicology and popular music in the School of Music at North-West University. He also takes special interest in developing the African music curriculum. He is currently preparing a collection of Venda song stories for publication.


Thank you to all who took the time to complete the questionnaire. Although the feedback was quite small (17 teachers and 54 learners) it was certainly very inter-esting and edifying to read the responses. These seven-teen music teachers teach 1307 learners!

Teachers’ responseIt was just amazing to see which instruments are taught: accordion, clarinet, drum kit, flute, fife, guitar, keyboard, piano, recorder, saxophone, steel pan, violin, viola, voice and theory. The instruments that the majority of learn-ers play are piano, recorder, guitar, voice, flute, violin/viola — the top-five. By far the majority of learners are beginners. A graph plotting the amount of learners in four categories are instructive. This survey focused on music examinations, but we still wondered about the considerable ‘drop-out’ of beginners. This can be inves-tigated further.

Eisteddfodau, festivals and competitions are more popular than music examinations — 295 (23%) learners were involved this year. The highly-motivated teachers play a pivotal role in entering their learners to partici-pate in these events. The reasons parents and learners gave for wanting to play in eisteddfodau differs from those related to examinations. Although for some learn-ers playing at an eisteddfod is a step in the preparation for examinations, the focus is more on enjoyment, self-growth, showing off, meeting an audience and receiv-ing awards. Some of the answers were: … to have fun… experiencing performance… want to impress people… self fulfilment… to overcome stage fright in a relaxed environment… starting point for public performance… point towards Arts and Culture… diplomas awarded

Only 52 of the 1064 beginners – grade 3 learners, played a music examination, eleven of the 96 grade 4 – 6 learn-ers, four of the 55 grade 7 – 8 learners and none of the fourteen advanced learners.

r e p o r t ~ v e r s l a g

The majority of learners played ABRSM examinations (59), followed by UNISA (41), Trinity-Guildhall (17), NSC (15), and ALMSA (4). However, this information was not always clearly indicated on the surveys. In most cases the teacher took the initiative to enter the learners for a music examination and from the feedback of the learn-ers it seems that there is consensus that learners also want to enrol for examinations. The reasons parents and learners gave for wanting to play examinations vary from developing the child as a person, and motivation to work harder and more disciplined, to prestige and achievement. Here are some of the answers.… challenging oneself… to feel achievement… encouraging practising… children will work harder if they play exams… showing progress… peers ask what grade you are… furthering of musical qualification… get merit, colours or honours at school

Parental involvement in lessons, performances and practise sessions is low. Teachers regard the participa-tion of parents in a positive light and consider it very im-portant: “Parental support is essential – where parents are involved children have more confidence and is well prepared“ and “involvement brings positive results”. Some have negative experiences of parents putting too much pressure on learners to achieve.

Attending concerts are not a priority for teachers, only nine teachers — roughly half of the respondents — in-dicated that they take their learners once a year to a concert. It is difficult to attend concerts especially for those not living in cities. Tickets for ‘good’ concerts are expensive. Learners, friends and parents attended con-certs together more often than with teachers.

Learners’ responses Although the majority of learners admitted that they were nervous or felt relieved that they had completed their examinations, many enjoyed playing a music examination and felt encouraged to play the next one. Comments were made about the kindness

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and friendliness of the examiners who made their experiences more positive. General remarks about what they did not like were, among others, playing scales and the duration of the examinations — they were too long. They enjoyed especially the examinations of ABRSM and Trinity College because they are shorter and do not include scales. Almost all the learners were keen to play more examinations.

The majority of learners prefer to play in public because “it is easier to play to people than to an examiner”. Op-portunities like playing for weddings, in church and accompanying the school choir gave them more confi-dence and made them feel good about their music and themselves. Some mentioned that they are shy and oth-ers that there is not really a difference between playing to people or for an examination.

Only 176 learners from the total of 1307 took part in ensemble playing — 13%. All learners agreed that en-semble playing is a most enjoyable activity. A full time-table and lack of free-time are two of the reasons why they cannot make music together more often. Some of

the learners are playing in youth orchestras or similar groups and feel that they have enough exposure to en-semble playing. They mention that it is difficult to get musicians together — everybody has a full schedule. Those who do not play in an orchestra or in church want to make music together more often.

What gives them the impression that they are progress-ing? Eisteddfodau, music concerts/evenings/functions, performing with the choir, advancing to the next music grade and better marks, as well as passing music exami-nations, receiving trophies and music awards, and be-ing selected to a prestige ensemble.

Hetta Potgieter is Associate Professor in Music Education at North-West University, Potchef-stroom. Her studies from BMus through BMus Hons and MMus (both cum laude) culminated in a DMus in 1997. She has delivered papers and workshops at various international con-

ferences. Since 2004 she has been co-editor of the Journal of the Musical Arts in Africa.

Orchestral repertoire by 32 composers are

found in the two volumes of the anthology of orchestral excerpts, The Orchestral Violinist published by Boosey & Hawkes (ISMN M-060-11595-0 & ISMN M-060-11596-7). Rodney Friend has expertly edited the music by adding bowings in red, fingerings in black and comments on style in green with the aim to teach — from his decades of experience in the best orchestras in the world and under famous conductors — the tricks of the trade to young violinists.

Bernard Haitink writes in the preface: “There is a real need for a practical working guide to standard orchestral excerpts to aid young musicians in preparing both for auditions and for the start of their orchestral careers. In this collection, Rodney Friend, whose career as an eminent concert master and teacher makes him ideally qualified to give appropriate technical, musical and practical advice, passes on to the young violinist the benefit of his years of experience.”

www.boosey.com


The SPECTRUM series was estab-lished in 1996 by ABRSM Publishing and Thalia Myers.

Born out of her frustra-tion with the lack of contemporary music (“equivalent to the Beethoven bagatelle”), the project has resulted in the commissioning of more than 150 pieces in less than ten years. The series consists of four albums for pi-ano and one for cello and piano. The aim of the series is to commission some of the finest composers to write pieces of modest length and difficulty, while preserving their characteristic style. Spectum 4 (ISBN 1-86096-376-5) is a collection of 66 miniatures ranging in standard from Grade 1 to Grade 5. Five pieces has accompany-ing soundtracks included on the CD. Spectrum for Cello (ISBN 1-86096-373-0) contains sixteen pieces ranging in difficulty from grade 1 tot grade 8. They can all be heard as performed by William Bruce and Thalia Myers on the professionally produced CD.

www.abrsmpublishing.co.uk


The Associated Board of the Royal Schools of Music (ABRSM) is the world’s leading provider of music exams. Each year over 630,000 candidates take our exams in more than 90 countries around the world. Since 1889 we have provided music educators, pupils and parents with exams and assessments that promote consistent standards and carry recognised international authority. A total commitment to music education lies at the heart of our work.

ABRSM enjoys a close relationship with four of the leading conservatoires in the UK: the Royal Academy of Music, London; the Royal College of Music, London; the Royal Northern College of Music, Manchester and the Royal Scottish Academy of Music & Drama, Glas-gow. The graded exams and assessments are open to all age groups and to all levels of ability. As well as be-ing accredited in England by the Qualifications and Cur-riculum Authority, they are also recognised formally in a number of countries internationally.

Prep TestThe Prep Test is designed for pupils who have been learning an instrument for about six to nine months and provides an ideal introduction to taking an exam. It is intended to be as relaxed and enjoyable as possible – no marks are awarded and there is no pass or fail. At the end of the assessments candidates are immediately rewarded with a certificate, which includes positive and helpful comments from the examiner.

Practical Exams Grades 1-8Each of the eight graded exams represents a logical step in the musical development process. Practical syl-labuses are available in over 35 subjects. A jazz syllabus for Grades 1-5 only is also available for clarinet, alto sax, tenor sax, trumpet, trombone, piano and ensembles, currently offered in the United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand, Malaysia and Singapore only.

Practical exams offer candidates the opportunity to demonstrate their skills through prepared works and musicianship tests: set pieces or songs; scales and ar-peggios/broken chords or, for singers, an unaccompa-nied folk song; sight-reading or quick study and aural tests.

Theory of Music and Practical Musicianship Exams Grades 1-8The Board believes that a thorough knowledge and understanding of the elements of music is essential in performance. For this reason, before moving on to a practical exam at Grade 6, 7 or 8, candidates must first

pass Grade 5 (or above) in Theory of Music, Practical Musicianship or a solo jazz subject. The Theory of Music syllabus is examined through written exams whilst the Practical Musicianship syllabus assesses formal theoreti-cal knowledge in a more practical way.

DiplomasThese highly respected International qualifications provide valuable opportunities for musicians to gain recognition for their abilities and achievements. There are three diploma subject-lines: Music Direction; Music Performance and Instrumental/Vocal Teaching. Each subject-line has three levels of award: Diploma of the Associated Board of the Royal Schools of Music (DipA-BRSM); Licentiate of the Royal Schools of Music (LRSM) and Fellowship of the Royal Schools of Music (FRSM).

For further information www.abrsm.org

ABRSM South Africa Representatives

Eastern Cape RegionMrs Ayleen Radley82 Lily AvenueSunridge ParkPort Elizabeth 6045Tel: 041 360 3218Fax: 041 360 5281Email: [email protected]

Western Cape RegionMrs Jill Eichler4 St Barnabas StTamboerskloof 8001Tel: 021 423 3010Fax: 021 426 0849Email: [email protected]

KwaZulu-Natal and Free State RegionMrs Ilse Van Der Walt33 Ntabamhlope RoadEstcourt 3310Tel/fax: 036 358 1341Email: [email protected]

Gauteng and surrounding regions, Botswana and SwazilandMs Meg TwyfordPO Box 1895Houghton 2041Tel/fax: 011 673 7389Email: [email protected]

a d v e r t o r i a lThe Associated Board of the Royal Schools of Music


Fifty Years of ITVISBN 0-571-52470-2Faber MusicThe Avengers, Black Beau-ty, Blockbusters, Bramwell, Catchphrase, Cider With Rosie, Cold Feet, Corona-tion Street, The Darling Buds of May, Emmerdale, Foyle’s War, Harry’s Game, Hornblower, Inspector Morse, Kavanagh QC, Midsomer Murders, The Professionals, Rebecca,

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Wiener Urtext EditionSchott/Universal Edition

Reubke: Orgelwerke (UT 50243)Der 94. Psalm (Sonate) / Trio / Adagio

Wiener Urtext Album (UT 50251)Easy Piano Pieces from Bach to Shoenberg

Mozart: Klavierstücke (UT 50229)Band 1: Frühere Werke (KV1-6, 8, 15, 32, 33, 42, 61, 72, 94, 103, 111, 135, 176, 206, 236, 269, 315)

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Mozart: Werke für Klavier 4 Händen (UT 50219)Sonatas (KV 19d, 381, 358, 497, 521), Andante mit Vari-ationen, Allegro und Andante, Fantasien (KV 594, 608)

Chopin: Sämtliche Etüden (UT50205)(Badura-Skoda)

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Mozart Klaviersonate A-Dur KV 331 (UT 50249) Leisinger/ Scholz

Dvořák: Werke für Violoncello & Klavier (UT 50244)Polonaise, Rondo, Slawischer Tanz, Waldesruhe (Klid)

JS Bach: 6 Partiten (Klavier) (UT 50192)Engler/Picht-Axenfeld


p u b l i c a t i o n s r e c e i v e d

h o n o r a r y m e m b e r s

Ivan Killian was born in Cape Town. He studied piano with Fransiska Scott and Sona Whiteman and organ with Leslie Arnold. After being appointed as organist and choirmaster of St Michael’s Anglican Church in Ob-servatory, he studied in London at the Royal School of Church Music when he was organist and choirmaster of the famous Anglo-Catholic Church of St Alban’s in Holborn, London.

When he returned to South Africa he was appointed the first director of music at St Andrew’s School (Bloemfontein), where he was also a member of the local SASMT committee. In 1961 Ivan Killian relocated to Grahamstown to work for ten years at St Andrew’s College where he established a choral society and a music society. In Grahamstown he also served on the SASMT committee.

In 1971 he returned to Cape Town as head of music at two schools and the assistant organist at the Groote Kerk until Japie Malan’s retirement, when Ivan became the organist and choirmaster. These Cape Town years were also dedicated to service to the society: he was business manager of this magazine from 1971 to 1984, a member of the Cape Town SASMT committee, chairman for many years, and vice president of the Western Cape. In 1976 he was president of the society. For the past twenty years he has been on UNISA’s panel of music ex-aminers, and a presence at numerous eisteddfodau and festivals. He also served on two SASMT excos. He still ad-judicates and teaches part-time at the Rustenburg High School for girls in Rondebosch. Ivan Kilian was awarded honoray membership of the SASMT in 2004.

Hubert van der Spuy was born in George and studied music at the University of Stellenbosch with Betsy Clu-ver and Chris Swanepoel. He studied harpsichord under Isolde Ahlgrimm at the Akademie für Muisk and Dars-tellende Kunste (Vienna), and started his career at the Denneoord Training College in Stellenbosch. From 1970 to 1984 he taught at the University of Durban-Westville after which he was head of the music department of the University of the Western Cape until 1990. His interest in musicology produced two doctorates: A D.Phil on the music history of Pietermaritzburg (1850-1902) and a D.Mus on the compositions of Priaulx Rainier. After her death he was appointed literary trustee for her legacy. He also wrote articles on the one of the earlier South African Composers, William Henry Bell.

His relation with UNISA started in 1973 as examiner, and was solidified in 1991 when he was appointed di-rector (professional). In 1993 Dr Van der Spuy was ap-pointed professor in the department of musicology at UNISA. Since 1993 he has been the chairman of the yearly UNISA South African and UNISA Overseas Schol-arship Competitions. He has been a member of the jury of the UNISA Transnet International Piano Competition and the Concours Panafricain de Musique et des Arts.

His membership of the SASMT has been active: he was president of the society in 1982, 1986 and in 1993/4, and is currently president elect. Prof Van der Spuy be-came an honorary member of the SASMT in 2003. He has published a number of articles in Musicus, the Jag-ger Journal and the South African Music Teacher.

In the next issue of the SAMT we will report on another honorary member, Prof Rupert Mayr.

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Haydn: String Trios (HN 9425)

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‘ n S u i d - A f r i k a n e r a a n d i e R o y a l A c a d e m y o f M u s i c ( L o n d o n )

Mariné Rooi

in

Die RAM is gestig in 1822 en word beskou as die mees senior konservatorium in die Verenigde Koninkryk. Die statige geboue is geleë in sentraal London, reg langs Regent’s Park. Dit is naby die Wigmore Hall, die Barbican, die South Bank Centre, Covent Garden, die London Coliseum, St John’s Smith Square, en verskeie ander plekke waar die beste kunstenaars in die wêreld gereeld optree. Studente wat aan die RAM studeer kry hulle kwalifikasies deur die University of London waarmee die konservatorium geaffilieer is. Meer as 90% van die RAM studente volg suksesvolle loopbane na afloop van hulle studies. Die RAM huisves ook een van die grootste versamelings van strykinstrumente wat in Cremona vervaardig is deur bekende makers soos Stradivari, Guarneri, Guadagnini en Amati. Verskeie van die instrumente word deur leningskemas aan studente beskikbaar gestel. Die York Gate Collections is ‘n ander boeiende versameling van instrumente, manuskripte en ander voorwerpe.

Die uitdaging van ń internasionale studie-omgewing kan vir ń Suid-Afrikaner wat nie voorheen oorsee gestudeer het nie, ń geweldige aanpassing maar ook ‘n waardevolle lewenservaring wees. Ongeveer 570 studente van meer as 50 verskillende nasionaliteite studeer tans aan die RAM. Die klavierdepartement alleen het ongeveer 90 studente. Pieter Rooi was een van hierdie studente wat, na die voltooiing van sy meestergraad in klavier aan die Universiteit van Kaapstad, ‘n keuse gemaak het om die internasionale arena te betree en op die ouderdom van 29 die RAM se Postgraduate Diploma in Performance aan te durf. Wat vir Pieter en soveel ander pianiste na hierdie kursus aangetrek

het, is die reputasie van die inrigting en die beskrywing van die diploma in die jaarboek: “The course serves as a ‘bridge’ to a performance career …”. Dit is spesifiek daarop gemik om studente die geleentheid te bied om hulself te meet aan internasionale vereistes wat ń konsertloopbaan aan ́ n pianis stel en verdere opleiding by van die wêreld se grootste meesters te kry.

Om toelating tot die RAM te kry word vereis dat ń student ń oudisie in London doen of ń video opname van ń uitvoering voorlê. Keuring vir die spesifieke kursus is baie streng en die aantal toelatings baie beperk. Dit is dus uiters


noodsaaklik om ń oudisie van hoë gehalte te lewer om sodoende ń gesogte plek in hierdie welbekende instelling te verseker. Studente wat hierdie kursus in nagraadse uitvoering volg, het ń keuse om dit oor een of twee jaar te voltooi. Vir Pieter was die werkslading en die hoë standaard ń groot uitdaging en sy eie werkstempo en vermoë om aan te pas het baie ontwikkel. Daar word byvoorbeeld van studente verwag om voortdurend nuwe repertorium aan te leer — werke wat tydens konserte en ‘performance platforms’ gespeel word, mag nie weer in die eksamenprogram verskyn nie. ́ n ́ Performance platform’ is ’n uitvoeringsgeleentheid wat aan elke student gebied word in die vorm van ́ n oudisie. Die doel van hierdie uitvoering is om die student se vordering as pianis te monitor. Verder is daar ń weeklikse voorspeelklas wat die vorm aanneem van ń meesterklas wat deur professore van die akademie of ander musici waargeneem word. Daar is gereeld gespesialiseerde meesterklasse wat aangebied word deur wêreldbekende besoekende musici soos Alexander Satz, Barry Douglas, Pierre-Laurent Aimard, Christina Ortiz, Bryce Morrison en vele ander. Een van die hoogtepunte vir Pieter was ń werkswinkel oor Chopin se ballades deur Sir Peter Maxwell Davies, hoof van komposisie by die RAM. Van Pieter se dosente was befaamde pianiste soos Aaron Shorr en Joseph Seiger.

Een van die verpligte modules is ’Presentation in Performance’ wat fokus op praktiese aspekte van konsertaanbieding en loopbaanontwikkeling. Tydens elke

optrede is daar ten minste een personeellid wat ń verslag skryf oor die uitvoering waarvan studente ń kopie kry. Eksamenprosedure is dieselfde as in Suid-Afrika: publieke uitvoerings wat deur ten minste een eksterne eksaminator beoordeel word.

Saam met Pieter was daar nog 4 ander Suid-Afrikaners wat die RAM hul nuwe leerskool gemaak het. Twee ander SA pianiste, De Wet Bruwer en James Baillieu is tans besig met hul tweede jaar in hierdie kursus aan die RAM. Niel Joubert, ń sanger van Suid-Afrika wat verlede jaar sy voorgraadse studies aan die RAM voltooi en, het nou begin het met ń meestersgraad.

Van sy ervaring by die RAM sê Pieter : “Ek het hier nuwe selfvertroue en ‘n toekomsvisie as pianis ontwikkel omdat die gedagte ‘the sky’s the limit’ so sterk hier ingeboesem word. Ek sou waarskynlik nie maklik ń uitvoering van Andras Schiff of Alfred Brendel kon bywoon in Suid-Afrika nie. Wat onderrig betref het SA natuurlik wêreldklas leermeesters maar die hoeveelheid en verskeidenheid is net soveel groter hier.”

Pieter en sy vrou Mariné, ‘n maatskaplike werker, het besluit om in London aan te bly terwyl hy by ń privaatskool klavier onderrig gee en sy loopbaan as uitvoerende musikus bevorder.

http://www.ram.ac.uk/welcome/index.html


In his 1996 presidential address Prof. Henk Temmingh drew our society’s attention to some of the successes and the potential of the Kimberley Academy of Music, saying: “I predict that private music tuition will flourish. It already does.” Now, ten years later, music tuition in Kimberley is still flourishing, but not so private anymore. The Academy has indeed fulfilled our great expectations; even exceed-ed them more than once over the past thirteen years. Its successes are also part of the society’s history, since KAM (now the NIHE Academy of Music) is an institutional member of the SASMT and its 14 music educators are all professional members.

Kim and Faan Malan founded KAM in 1994 when a few students started with music lessons in their house. Al-ready in 1995 KAM had to move into a renovated Vic-torian house, owned by the Malans, close to the centre of Kimberley and easily accessible to a number of schools. In the same year the first band was formed. Interest and motivation continued to grow and since 1999 14 Dalham Road, Kimberley has been home to five bands and ensem-bles: the Junior, Intermediate and Concert band, as well as the Jazz Band and the String Ensemble — involving a total of 600 learners in regular public performances and many hours of happy musicing. The very young ones are also included: the Kindermusik program is currently offered to over 200 eager youngsters.

In 2004 the Academy entered into lengthy negotiations with the National Institute for Higher Education in Kim-berley with the aim to establish a Music Faculty able to of-

fer tertiary education, the only of its kind in the Northern Cape. The NIHE Academy of Music was founded in Janu-ary 2005 and offers tuition in music theory and in various instruments: piano, flute, violin, trumpet, saxophone, clar-inet, cello, percussion, horn, voice, tuba, organ, trombone, and baritone horn. Currently more than 40% of learners comes from previously disadvantaged communities.

The involvement of the NIHE Academy of Music in the community has been remarkable. It has been instrumental in Kimberley’s hosting of the “Songs of Praise” concerts for four consecutive years. Learners and staff perform at the Gariep Festival, its own Christmas concert (a charity event for the Community Chest), old age homes, churches and the hospice, as well as its home base and at the Wil-liam Humphrey’s Art Gallery. Since 2004 staff has been running a community project in Galeshwe, which has distributed more than 150 instruments that belonged to the SANDF to various projects in the province. Learners have taken part in the SANLAM and the ABSA competi-tions, and in the South African National Youth Orches-tra Courses. SANYO is of course a SASMT hatchling that found its own wings, strongly and proudly, and is now un-der the very able administration of Faan and Kim, and co-SANYO administrators, Lyn Klemp, Darryl Preece, and Kopano Taole – ALL KIMBERLITES!

Since music teachers are so often bombarded with (often ill-founded and sensationalist) messages of doom and gloom, the editor thought it well-advised to investigate this phenomenon in the Northern Cape to establish what

T h e M u s i c F a c u l t y o f t h e N a t i o n a l I n s t i t u t e f o r H i g h e r E d u c a t i o n i n t h e N o r t h e r n C a p e

I n t e r v i e w w i t h F a a n M a l a n


we can learn from these highly successful music educa-tors. And thus for our edification Faan Malan was asked a battery of questions.

Did you think long and hard before starting KAM? Was any research (like feasibility studies) done? Did you speak to many other people, or did you quickly do an MBA? Business plan?We were forced to make a quick decision. We were all em-ployed in Taung, when the political uprising made it im-possible to do our work. Kimberley was simply the nearest big centre and we did some planning and market research. In March 1994 we called all the Kimberley music teachers to a meeting in the Teachers’ Centre and told them what we had in mind and we asked their blessing. The rest is history. No one did an MBA — maybe later.

Did KAM have trouble with finding and retaining learn-ers? Did you advertise? How?We had the blessing of the music teachers in town. They gave us all the support we needed. The people of Kimber-ley also accepted us with open arms. All we had to do was to make sure we offer quality tuition. Word-of-mouth was (and still is) the main method of advertising.

Which relationships did you build with other stakehold-ers such as schools and local government? Did you have suitable contacts, or a network of supporters in impor-tant places? Can you provide advice to others who will attempt something similar?Government was in turmoil at this time (1994). We had to rely on basics such as good service, honesty and co-opera-tion with schools. The network of supporters and contacts followed.

Did you find that the institution had to adapt to a changing environment? What are some of the external pressures that you have (had) to contend with?Today, almost 13 years later, the Kimberley Academy of Music is a completely different institution. From a private music school with only a small number of staff and stu-dents, we are now the Music Faculty of the National Insti-tute for Higher Education in the Northern Cape, with 700 students and 14 staff members.There are numerous external pressures. Classical music has to compete with sport and all sorts of instant enter-tainment. Due to our efforts, several schools in Kimber-ley now have their own music programmes, orchestras, choirs, shows, etc. We have to compete for a slice of the ‘time cake’. Then there is money. Tuition fees had to be high to make it worthwhile for our teachers.

How did you (and the rest of your staff) deal with the uncertainties that accompany the start of a new ven-ture? What were some of the risks that you had to take?Initially we were only three teachers. It is important not to spend too much initially on setting up. We hired class-rooms at a junior school in the afternoons for a few months before investing in property for our venture. We initially invested much time and enthusiasm (rather than money)

and quickly built up a clientele. The quicker our student numbers grew, the more secure we felt. We felt very confi-dent that we could make a success of starting and running such a music school — there were no uncertainties that I can remember.

Where there any unsuspected opportunities that helped KAM along the way?The establishment of the National Institute for Higher Education (NIHE) in the Northern Cape had a major in-fluence on the development of KAM. This changed our direction and scope by introducing an exciting era of ter-tiary studies.

Do you have strategies to find out what learners and parents think? To what extent are they partners in plan-ning and executing activities such as rehearsals and concerts? Or are they simply executing orders?The only strategy we follow is one of personal contact. We often talk to our clients and establish what their needs are in an informal way. Very often it becomes necessary to tell them what to do.

How important is it for your staff members to be good role models? What specific things do they do? Are they involved in continued professional development?Very important. We have staff concerts and play in ensem-bles and bands together with students. Most of the staff members are busy studying something and attend related workshops regularly. Skills development is a pre-requisite for employment at the Academy of Music.

Are their certain processes in place to ensure shared ownership of the institution?The Kimberley Academy of Music is a Section 21 (non-profit making) Company. Five of the seven board mem-bers are staff members.

How do you find and keep the continued support of your community? We offer services to schools such as help and support for choirs, orchestras, school concerts and musical produc-tions. Our staff and students perform at various commu-nity based events. We try to stay in the public eye.

How did you ensure that your institution created profit? How did you establish the lesson fees? Creating a profit was never the goal of this project. Making enough money to pay salaries and necessary expenses was the aim. Income (lesson fees) was worked out by deciding how much a teacher should earn. An average is 25 hours teaching (50 X 30min lessons)Teachers were paid 90% of this income as salary and were responsible for their own tax and the other 10% was used for Academy expenses. This budget did not allow for any-thing but the absolute necessities – luxuries were OUT as we put the emphasis on the standard of education and our relationships with clients. This scenario is based on the Academy when it was totally private — before the merger with NIHE.


Where there any constraints that eventually became op-portunities?In the few months before we moved to Kimberley we ap-proached a few big businesses for funding. They all refused us. We had to structure our business so that we could gen-erate all the funding ourselves to pay teachers and running expenses. This forced us to think creatively about ways in which musicians can make money and it became an op-portunity for us to develop skills in areas of music that we previously had not needed to investigate. For instance, we wrote music books which we sold to our students, pro-moted ourselves as musicians for corporate functions and weddings and presented demos at schools.

Which values and dreams does your staff share? We all strive for quality tuition and the survival of our product in a very competitive market.

For which aspects of you current career did your music education fail to prepare you?Business, management, accounting, bookkeeping and entrepreneurial skills are subjects that we needed to have qualified in, in order to be sufficiently equipped for man-aging a music school.

Faan Malan het in 1978 gematrikuleer aan die Pretoriase Hoër-skool vir Kuns, Ballet en Musiek. Na ‘n B.Mus. Ed. (US) en M.Mus (UCT) in Franse Horing, het hy in verskeie orkeste opgetree as professionele horingspeler. Koperblaasonderrig, dirigeer en die afrigting van blaasorkeste maak ‘n groot deel uit van sy lewe. Hy het ook al in Kaapstad en Bloemfontein gewerk.

Improvisation for Drummers

It has been my experience that drummers in improvi-sation classes are often at loose ends when the class is taught by a non-drummer. While I’m certainly no expert on the instrument, I have recommendations for jazz im-provisation teachers with drummers in their classes.

Drummers should be able to solo over the form of the assigned pieces and play the correct ‘feel’ of the assigned pieces. It is optional but highly recommended that all drummers should be able to play on the piano or sing assigned material: the songs, scales and patterns. Fur-thermore, drummers should be able to perform simple 3-note to 5-note piano voicings to the assigned pieces.

Jazz Improvisation Level 1 drummers should be able to solo and play contrasting tunes, feels, forms and tempos before advancing to Jazz Improvisation 2. Contrasting exam pieces could be selected from the following list:Impressions/So What — John Coltrane’s and Miles Davis’ recordingsBlue Bossa — Joe Henderson’s recordingSummertime — John Coltrane’s recordingWatermelon Man — Herbie Hancock’s recordingSong for my Father — Horace Silver’s recordingSatin Doll — McCoy Tyner’s recordingCantaloupe Island — Herbie Hancock’s recordingFootprints — Miles Davis’ recording

Doxy — Sonny Rollins’ or Miles Davis’ recordingAutumn Leaves — Cannonball Adderly’s recordingJazz Improvisation Level 2 drummers should be able to solo and play contrasting tunes, feels, forms and tem-pos before advancing to Jazz Improvisation 3. Contrast-ing exam pieces should be selected from the class tune list. The following material is highly recommended for developing different feels, tempos, styles and forms. Drummers should be able to perform in the correct style and solo over: All Blues, All the Things You Are, A Night in Tunisia, Body and Soul, Confirmation, Four, I’ll Remember April, Oleo, On Green Dolphin Street and Star Eyes.

Mike Rossi, a woodwind specialist and profes-sor at the South African College of Music (UCT) received the Doctor of Musical Arts degree in Jazz Studies from the prestigious New England Conservatory in Boston, USA. He regularly per-forms at jazz festivals and conducts workshops

in South African, Europe and the USA.

��


r e v i e w s ~ r e s e n s i e sStarting and Running a Music Studio

Hannes Taljaard

Starting one’s own music studio, or a similar venture, is a daunting and complex undertaking, one for which we as music educators only seldom receive adequate for-mal training. I asked eight of our students —final years and two postgraduates — how they felt about the pros-pect of being ‘out there on their own’ next year. Here are some of the remarks I heard.

”I have to admit, I’m a bit clueless and a bit scared, but I have a vision and that’s what motivates me. The ex-citement and the sense of purpose outweighs the fear at this stage.”“I am looking forward to this and see it as a great chal-lenge. I know that I have to learn more business skills, but I think that it will be fun.”“I feel excited and capable. I am a bit worried, but since I do not need to apply for a post, I think I will have the freedom to do what I want. We have learnt amazing things during our studies.”“I am excited and will love to run my own studio. But the excitement is somewhat dampened by questions like: Where will I get start-up capital? Which will be the ideal venue? How will I do the marketing? It will be a new experience for me to work on my own, and I am wondering who will support me.”“I will get a fright. I have never done something like this and do not know how. I am wondering about the legal aspects, and how to find start-up capital. I am not sure how to go about implementing a plan. I am sure that I will first have to do some thorough research.”“I do not know much about financial matters and how to organise that. My current experience of this makes me worry. Then, how do I find a good venue? The di-dactics I know and can look up, but the seemingly sim-ple things bring me most worries. There are so many piano teachers in our city — this makes me wonder about supply and demand.”“The big questions for me will be: Where will I teach? And where will I find start-up capital? How can I be sure that I will make enough money to pay for every-thing? How do I advertise and find pupils who are re-ally interested, not merely parents who force the kids to take lessons?”

Luckily for these bright-eyed young educators some of their predecessors felt similar feelings, managed to make a success of their studios and careers, helped others to do the same, and also decided to generously share their ideas. Nowadays, starting your own studio can be less daunting for those who are willing to read, think and apply existing knowledge. Who knows, maybe

some of them will one day contribute their own insights to our communal fountain of wisdom, and so help other generations of educators.

Eleven authors pro-duced The Music Teacher’s Handbook: the Complete Resource for all Instrumen-tal and Singing Teachers apparently without an ed-itor! Who needs editors? The 96 page book, A4 in paperback, is published by Faber Music in asso-ciation with Trinity Guild-hall (ISBN 0-571-52330-7). Fourteen short articles are presented in six parts:

Preparing to teach (three authors)In the lesson (four authors)Supporting skills (Nicholas Keyworth, a senior ex-aminer at TG)Motivation and practice (three authors)Ensembles and concerts (Nigel Stubbs, Assistant Head of Staffordshire Performing Arts)Your teaching career (Isobel Leibman, Principle of Havering Music School)

As pointed out by Mark Stringer — Director of Per-forming Arts Examinations, Trinity Guildhall — in the foreword, each author is a specialist in a specific field of education. Even without reading the foreword, this fact will become very clear to any reader already on the first page. The authors write as only experts can: with depth and inclusiveness, not shunning the old but still pre-senting the new, voicing clear opinions without being dogmatic, presenting stimulating ideas together with practical observations — even ready made lesson plans. Potential readers might think that these feats can only be achieved in heavy tomes, and wonder: “Where will I ever find the time?” (The unofficial anthem of music educators, it seems). Thus I rush to add that the shortest article is two pages and the longest thirteen pages by Nicholas Keyworth on supporting skills: aural training, sight reading, music theory, improvisation, composi-tions and vocal skills. And even those thirteen pages are presented as small chomps. Really. Each section of this article is only two pages of which one page can be photocopied and used by students. Permission to pho-tocopy? The world is changing! Keyworth also presents

1.2.3.

4.5.

6.


Music Giveaway #144All the publications reviewed in this issue of the maga-zine can be won by some lucky readers. Remember, we have more than one copy of most of these publications. Write down you contact details on the entry form, an-swer the easy question correctly and list (in order of preference) the titles of the publication that you would like to receive. You also have to fill out the form printed on the back of this one (page 48). Send both the com-pleted forms before 27 February 2007 to Music Givea-way #144, PO Box 20573, Noordbrug 2522

The publications will be distributed to the first correct entries drawn and the winners will receive their books by the end of March 2007.

Name:

Which instrument(s) do you teach?

Mailing address:

Telephone:

E-mail:

Question: Where is the National Institute of Higher Education Situated?

Titles (in order of preference)

1.

2.

3.

4.

valuable guidelines on examination preparation and calming the nerves.

Lucinda Mackworth-Young (a consultant in psycho-logy for musicians, also a concert pianist, teacher, lecturer and writer) guides us towards an understanding of the psychology of teaching: pupils, teachers, parents and the ways they interact. This article is an enticing invitation to read her book Tuning in: Practical Psychology for Musicians who are Teaching, Learning and Performing (ISBN 0-953-94850-1).

Nick Beach (Deputy Director, TG examinations) contributed articles on planning for success, health and safety and group teaching, while Philippa Bunting (Assistant Director (Academic) at the Royal Northern College of Music in Manchester) wrote on how to get started with beginners and also on how to integrate the development of various skills into the instrumental les-son. Especially the latter would make compelling read-ing for all music teachers in South Africa.

Rosie Cross will inspire many readers when she dis-cusses the teaching of pupils with a learning disability —mainly those with Down syndrome, autistic spectrum disorders and dyslexia. Cross is a piano teacher with ex-tensive experience and provides a must-read list of fur-ther information. Mark Stringer gives tips for practising, while an Emeritus Fellow of the Trinity College of Music, Simon Young, argues that coaching advanced pupils re-quires the implementation of specialised strategies by the teacher.

I feel inspired to memorize verbatim the article on motivational teaching and optimal learning by two senior consultants of the Optimal Learning Group, Sara Shaw and Trevor Hawes. Rush to buy their book Effective Teaching and Learning in the Primary Classroom (ISBN 0-9533531-0-9).

The authors show the way as real mentors do: clearly pointing to signposts and magnificent views, but never prescribing the itinerary. One gets the impression that they can be trusted to give practical information that will be sorely needed in the field, without demanding that novices read academic arguments and complex research reports. It is as if they asked many young edu-cators: “What do you want and need to know?” before they wrote their contributions. Each of the very relevant articles can be read and meditated upon in less than an hour. Young educators will do well to spend time on one article each day for one week. After fourteen weeks, they will know what would have taken them many years to learn by trails, tribulations and errors. Also sprach Zarathustra! Our young educators might just find that starting and running a music studio can be an exciting and fulfilling journey.

www.fabermusic.comwww.trinitycollege.com

Well-known and well-loved South African music teacher Estelle Stauffer has condensed fifty years of teaching experience into 52 pages. Her A4 spi-ral-bound book How to Learn or Teach Music with a Smile: a Practical Guide-book for Parents, Pupils and Young Teachers can be purchased from the author and will be a won-derful and affordable gift for any enthusiastic and


New Subscribers #144Help us to boost our list of subscribers, and to enlarge the membership of the society. We can all contribute to inform many of those who are involved in music education. Please fill out this form. You do not have to enter four names, and if you want to nominate more than four people, please photocopy this form and post all your copies to us. (See address on page 47.) The new subscribers may be determined by way of a lucky draw. Deadline: 27 Febuary 2007.

your name:parents

name:

postal address:

name:

postal address:

teachers

name:

postal address:

name:

postal address:

aspiring music teacher. The aims of the book is stated clearly and achieved smoothly: to share experience with new teachers who works with ‘ordinary’ children and turn them into extraordinary adults, and to give guid-ance to parents and pupils to achieve the best they can. She writes with humour and a no-nonsense attitude on getting organized, how pupils differ, which tutors to use, ‘good’ and ‘bad’ music, practising, scales, stage fright and festivals. Her ideas are presented in short chapters, and will stimulate reflection. Her valuable advice, tailored to our South African environment, may prevent young educators from taking a few unnecessary detours and ending up in unexpected culs-de sac.

[email protected] (018) 468 6806

Philip Johnston’s books have become classics in the field. Whenever one sees something written about prac-tising, his The Practice Revolution and Not Until You’ve Done Your Practice are bound to be mentioned. His web-site — www.practicespot.com — is used by millions around the world, and his studio is considered to be one of the fastest growing studios ever. When Mr Johnston writes, people notice and learn. His chatty writing style is entertaining and fresh, and the way his books are pre-sented makes them a pleasure to read. He certainly is a master of persuasion. In these attractive shells one will find loads of very valuable information.

Two of the students I quote in this review had ques-tions about advertising. If they read The PracticeSpot Guide to Promoting Your Teaching Studio (ISBN: 0-958-19051-8) they will have few questions left. In the intro-duction eleven compelling reasons why teachers need full studios sets the tone for what follows: a cornucopia of important ideas and strategies to realise these ideas. After a careful study of the text and some experimenta-tion with ideas, almost everyone will have a clear grasp of the basics of marketing as it applies to music studios

and even other small businesses. This clear grasp will be very practical, thanks to the writer’s attention to detail and instructions on how to do promotion. There are so many useful ideas in the book, and the relations be-tween ideas are so well presented that I am not brave enough to attempt a synopsis. The best I can do is to encourage all educators who are in any way depend-ent upon the marketing of their ventures to digest this book, and pass it on to others.

In the January 2002 issue of SAMT two publications on music studios were reviewed by Bertha Spies:

The Music Teacher’s Companion: A Practical Guide by Paul Harris and Richard Crozier (ISBN186096219X)

The Complete Guide to Running a Private Music Studio by Mimi Butler (ASIN B0006RHU50)

These books are still as relevant and useful as when they first appeared. During a search on the internet, I discovered another eight relevant publications:

My Many Hats: Juggling the Diverse Demands of a Mu-sic Teacher by Richard Weymuth (ISBN 0893281972)

Making Each Minute Count: Time-Savers, Tips and Kid-Tested Strategies for the Music Class by Cheryl Lavender (ISBN 0793503485)

Transforming Music Education by Estelle Jorgensen (ISBN 0253215609)

The Private Music Instruction Manual: A Guide for the Independent Music Educator by Rebecca Osborn (ISBN 1412025311)

How to Make Money Teaching Music: The Music Teacher’s Manual by Steve Stockmal (ISBN 0970534213)

Making Money Teaching Music by David & Barbara Newsam (ISBN 1582971560)

How to Make a Living Teaching Guitar (And Other Mu-sical Instruments) by Guy Lee (ISBN 0974779512)

Making a Living in Your Local Music Market by Dick Weissman (ISBN 0793595622)


New Subscribers #144Help us to boost our list of subscribers, and to enlarge the membership of the society. We can all contribute to inform many of those who are involved in music education. Please fill out this form. You do not have to enter four names, and if you want to nominate more than four people, please photocopy this form and post all your copies to us. (See address on page 47.) The new subscribers may be determined by way of a lucky draw. Deadline: 27 Febuary 2007.

your name:parents

name:

postal address:

name:

postal address:

teachers

name:

postal address:

name:

postal address:

It was a great joy for me to play through some of the pieces in BlueBaroque: Contemporary Arrange-ments of Baroque Keyboard Classics by Mike Cornick (ISBN 3-7024-3006-7; UE 21 325). Published by Universal Edition these

pieces might be exactly what piano pupils need over the holidays to stay interested and keep practising. These pieces are tempting me to teach piano again! Just imagine how stimulating lessons can be if a pupil first learns either the original or the arrangement. Then the teacher can very easily integrate different aspects of music into subsequent lessons.

aural training: listening to the other version and noting differencestheory: trying to understand rhythmic and har-monic idioms by studying real music

•

•

history: the pupil can do research on the internet and try to note and understand some of the stylistic differencesimprovisation and composition: the pupil can try to improvise and then make own arrangements

Their pedagogical value aside, a teacher will definitely score ‘supercool points’ by playing and teaching the up-dated version of The Harmonious Blacksmith!


•

•


PWM Edition (Polskie Wydawnictwo Muzyczne SA) is not well-known in South Africa, but deserves to be. In addition to The Most Beautiful Beethoven — for piano (ISMN M-2740-0004-2)— they also publish piano music by Chopin, Lutoslawski, Paderewski and Szymanowksi, as well as violin, piano and organ music by JS Bach. Compositions for piano and violin by Wienawski are also included in their catalogue.

www.pwm.com.pl


‘Why do people go to recitals?

Partly to be amazed by

the pole vaulting,

but also because they

hope the performer will break their heart.’ (A concert pi-anist, London: December 2001)

‘But if my children were encouraged to use their imagi-nation and intellect, surely it would take them longer to get through their music grades?’ (A parent, Oxford: December 2001)

A problemPerformance can be wonderful. But it is also much misunderstood. The pianist reminds us of the impact – magic even – of live music performance. He speaks of western classical music that is played at recitals, but what he says could apply to almost any music. He is talk-ing about aspects of performance that come partly from what a composer has written, and partly from what a performer has done to bring the writing alive, but his message could apply also where the performer is the composer as well, where the music has never been writ-ten down, or where music is improvised by one or more musicians. A performance can amaze us and move us. How better to give this to children than by teaching them to be performers? And students who opt to take instrumental lessons are saying that they want a taste of this, a chance to do more performing of a particular type than they would do otherwise.The parent reminds us of what can go wrong when the matter of ‘teaching children to be performers’ is misun-derstood. He sees examination certificates, rather than performances, as the goal of performance training, and limits his view of the process that his offspring should go through accordingly. He sees the instrumental lesson as something that should help his children assemble what they need to the standard required by examiners, and the use of their imagination or intellect as fripperies that would slow this down. I think that it would also be safe to say that he sees performance as something that relates only to western classical music.

My conversation with this parent followed the broad drift of many conversations with other parents over the years. On learning that I work in music, the parent had told me that one of his children was not hurling through

An emphasis on performanceCombining a parent’s ignorance and a teacher’s misconceptions can result in

some bizarre ideas about a specific child’s musical development.

Janet Mills

her grades at quite the dizzying speed of the others be-cause she spends some of her practice time on improvi-sation. What could he, as a parent who is interested in music but, in his view, not musical, do about this? The piano teacher had suggested that his daughter was not as musical as his, more focused, other children — and had hinted that she should give up lessons — but the parent would like her to carry on, at least for a while, even if she was not going to reach the high standards of her brothers.As usual in such conversations, I observed that it is healthy and musical to want to apply one’s new musical skills imaginatively and intelligently, and that perhaps the piano teacher could be urged to capitalize on these strengths of his daughter’s approach. Perhaps the par-ent raised this thought with the piano teacher and she took some action; perhaps he didn’t or she didn’t. What-ever the outcome, at the time of our conversation, the parent – and possibly also the piano teacher – shared some misconceptions about performance and how it is made. Even within the realm of western classical music, the re-creation that is performance requires much more than the ability to play the right notes in the right order. Performances that are not quite note-perfect may occa-sionally be preferred to ones that are, if the trade-off is a higher degree of expression and communication. Per-formers find ways of playing pieces that make sense, and which communicate much more than a string of notes to their audience. To do this, they draw on resources that are not found on the printed score, and which they develop through intellectual and imaginative engage-ment with music, and through experience.It is never too early to start to develop and build upon a student’s intellectual and imaginative engagement with music. When we watch a young child at play with musical — or sound-making — materials, we can see that this engagement comes naturally. Children fre-quently focus intently as they experiment with different ways of making sounds, different ways of making dif-ferent sounds, different ways of assembling sounds into patterns of motifs, and as they try to repeat or re-create sounds, patterns, or motifs that they made earlier. This natural engagement can be drawn into education, and developed through composing, listening, and musical approaches to performing. Instrumental teaching that is no more than repetitive drill or that consists, in effect, of a list of instructions to follow, switches it off.

Reproduced from Music in the School by permis-sion of Oxford University Press (www.oup.com). ISBN 0-19-322300-7


r e s o u r c e s ~ b r o n n e

ABRSM Publishing

The publishing company of The Associated Board of the Royal Schools of Music publishes mate-rial to be used in all its graded exams. New editions of the Selected Piano Exam Pieces and Selected Violin Exam Pieces are produced every 2-3 years in line with the relevant syllabus. Other titles produced in support of the exams include books of scales and sight-reading

practice tests for all instruments and examplar CD recordings of exam set pieces, as well as theory workbooks (the Music Theory in Practice series). Jazz books and CDs are available for Piano, Flute, Clarinet, Saxophone, Trumpet and Trombone, and includes books with jazz tunes and Real Books, and a selection of scales, au-ral tests and quick studies books. Repertoire albums are also available — major works of J S Bach, the piano sonatas of Mozart and Beethoven, and much of the most popular repertoire of Chopin, Schubert, Brahms and Schumann are avail-able in first-rate practical editions.

They have a wide range of educational books for use in private study, personal music development and to help students prepare for exams, such as textbooks,

books on music theory, harmony and form of music, guides and handbooks on subjects as di-verse as jazz, performance practice and teaching, and a series for children on the lives of the great composers. The catalogue also contains books specifically for teachers.

ABRSM Publishing titles are widely available from music retailers in South Africa. In case of difficulty contact:

[email protected]


Universal Edition offers a series called Children on Stage — Bühne frei für Kinder. With these at-tractive and fun-filled

arrangements a teacher can turn the ordinary school concert into a musical delight. All the parts — also the piano part — are easy, and the instrumentation can be varied: two melody lines, piano, cello (or double bass or bassoon) and percussion. Composers included are Saint-Saëns, Grieg, Mozart, Humperdinck. Janáček, Tchaikovsky, Mendelssohn Bartholdy and Debussy.


Another interesting series for children by Universal Edi-tion: World Music Junior. Richard Graf has selected some of the most beauti-ful Christmas songs from around the world and present-ed them in player-friendly, easy ar-rangements. The lyrics for the

familiar and less familiar songs are included, and the in-formation on the origins of the songs and the customs of the of the countries makes this a useful resource for school teachers. The series includes piano and guitar solos (in staff notation and tablature), play-along scores and CDs for flute, violin and saxophone (the pieces in full as well as backing tracks), and an ensemble anthol-ogy with flexible arrangements and a CD with full ver-sions and play-along tracks.



WESTERN CAPECLAASEN, Clinton J (Univ of Cape Town) PianoISAACS, Azra (Univ of Cape Town) ViolaVAN DER MERWE, Charl (Univ of Cape Town) BassoonVAN WILLINGH, Monique (Univ of Cape Town) FluteCOOPER, Shane L (Univ of Cape Town) Bass GuitarDEVY, Shannon K (Univ of Cape Town) PercussionENGEL, Christopher R (Univ of Cape Town) SaxophoneGOGWANA, Lwanda (Univ of Cape Town) TrumpetGONTSANA, Sandile L (Univ of Cape Town) VoiceGUILE, Sebastian (Univ of Cape Town) Drum KitCUPIDO, Nigel-George (Univ of Cape Town) Music EducationMONTSHIWE, Ofentse V (Univ of Cape Town) Music Education HOLTZMAN, Glenn G (Univ of Cape Town) CompositionVAN DER LINDE, Byron-Mathieu (Univ of Stellenbosch) Voice

EASTERN CAPEBOONZAAIER, Devandré (Nelson Mandela Metropoli-tan Univ) PianoKARFOR, Deidré D (Nelson Mandela Metropolitan Univ) PianoMURPHY, Liesel (Nelson Mandela Metropolitan Univ) Music Education OLIVIER, Madelie C (Nelson Mandela Metropolitan Univ) Music EducationREYNOLDS, Jo-Mari (Nelson Mandela Metropolitan Univ) Music EducationVAPI, Pumelele (Nelson Mandela Metropolitan Univ) Music EducationWESSELS, Justine J (Nelson Mandela Metropolitan Univ) Music EducationACKER, Shaun A (Rhodes University) Composition

FREE STATECALITZ, Jean-Pierre (Univ of the Free State) PianoVAN DORSTEN, Ruan C (Univ of the Free State) ViolaFILMALTER, Magdel (Univ of the Free State) PianoSTASSEN, Louis W (Univ of the Free State) PianoTHOABALA, Serame J (Univ of the Free State) VoiceVAN TONDER, Abraham (Univ of the Free State) Trumpet

KWAZULU NATALBEDFORD, Gregory M (Univ of KwaZulu Natal) GuitarBULO, Prince S (Univ of KwaZulu Natal) Bass GuitarMADLALA, Nomthandazo (Univ of KwaZulu Natal) VoiceSOOBIAH, Renae C (Univ of KwaZulu Natal) VoiceUSAGO, Siphesihle L M (Univ of KwaZulu Natal) Bass GuitarMADALANI, Mduduzi (Univ of KwaZulu Natal) PianoBUTHELEZI, Mhalbuhlangene (Univ of KwaZulu Natal) Music EducationGOLDSTEIN, Martin (Univ of KwaZulu Natal) Music EducationNGCOBO, Mkhululi (Univ of KwaZulu Natal)

TETO, Nozuko S (Univ of KwaZulu Natal) Music EducationWILKEN, Mandy L (Univ of KwaZulu Natal) Music Education

GAUTENGBUSHAKEVITZ, Ammiel I (Univ of Pretoria) PianoVAN NIEKERK, Laetitia (Univ of Pretoria) Piano ROSS, Gareth E (Univ of Pretoria) PianoMAKHOBOZI, Keharotseng M (Univ of Pretoria) Music EducationDAVHULA, Mudzunga J (Univ of Pretoria) IAMAPRIL, S G Michael (Tshwane Univ of Tech) VoiceMAKHANYA, Bongani P (Tshwane Univ of Tech) VoiceMASHEGO, Thabo W (Tshwane Univ of Tech) VoiceSEJAKE, Lethibela (Tshwane Univ of Tech) VoiceVERSTER, Jean-Pierre (Tshwane Univ of Tech) VoiceBOOYSEN, Danielle (Tshwane Univ of Tech) PianoDELPORT, Wynand (Tshwane Univ of Tech) GuitarLOWMAN, Michael A (Tshwane Univ of Tech) GuitarNETSHILATA, Rudzani (Tshwane Univ of Tech) VoiceMATHABA, Moleti T (Tshwane Univ of Tech) Music EducationBUSHAKEVITZ, Avigail Y (Univ of South Africa) PianoDU TOIT, Stefan N (Univ of South Africa) PianoHLATSHWAYO, Bhekinkosi (Univ of Witwatersrand) TrumpetMONTSITSI, Tlaleng (Univ of Witwatersrand) VoiceLOURENCO, Liroy (Univ of Witwatersrand) PercussionMAVIMBELA, Thembinkosi J (Univ of Witwatersrand) GuitarTRACEY, Kerryn A (Univ of Witwatersrand) CompositionMOELWYN-HUGHES, Ceridwen J (Univ of Witwa-tersrand) IAMNWAMBA, Richard (Univ of Witwatersrand) IAMTWANI, Zoliswa (Univ of Witwatersrand) IAM

NORTH WESTBOTHA, Beatrice E (North West Univ) PianoLONDON, Cornelius (North West Univ) PianoMOKUKE, Thabo (North West Univ) VoiceSWART, Salomie (North West Univ) PianoBREYTENBACH, Martha M (North West Univ) Music EducationHANGULA, Patrick M (North West Univ) Music EducationMAKAULA, Phiwe N (North West Univ) Music EducationDU PREEZ, Carika (North West Univ) Music EducationVERWEY, Elizabeth (North West Univ) Music Education

LIMPOPOBALOYI, Lourell L (Univ of Venda for Science & Tech) Piano

WINNERS OF SAMRO SOUTHERN AFRICAN MUSIC STUDY BURSARIES 2006


As music educators we often think: “How the youngsters of today have changed!” They have so many demands on their time; are exposed to such a variety of activities and technology that music — and learning an instrument in particular — have become just one of the vast assortment of things they can do. Haven’t we all found that, except for a select few, most pu-pils we teach practise less and less? It seems as if in our modern society everything must be fun. So I decided that we simply have to find another way for young musicians to have fun together, and the Orchestra and Ensemble Fes-tival was born. Even though there are already several orchestra camps and youth orchestra groups, all young musicians are not necessarily in a position to make use of these opportunities. This festi-val was designed for senior schools to bring their own groups to make music for each other.

In 2005 Kingsmead College collaborated with Love-more and Yamaha to start an annual festival where young musicians can focus on music making in groups and discover what other young people are doing to en-joy music in ensembles — whether it is an orchestra in the more traditional sense of the word or a rock band,

marimba band, djembe drumming group; whatever brings them joy!

It was with absolute delight that I discovered that even though this was not a competition, the festival ig-nited learners with anticipation and gave them the goal to work harder together to showcase themselves in the best possible way among their peers. The first festival was such a success that we organised it again this year. In 2006 schools from Johannesburg and Pretoria, the Jo-hannesburg Orchestra Company Wind Band and Youth Orchestra participated as well as a group which toured from Pietermaritzburg to be a part of the festival.

Next year, we will definitely do it again. Finding suit-able dates will always be a challenge, because of the different school terms of the independent and state schools. However, every effort will be made to ensure that we find dates that allow musicians from all schools to participate. If you wish to be a part of this wonder-ful event and give your music groups an opportunity to have their moment on stage with other musicians of their age, please send me your details to ensure that you are on the mailing list for the 2007 Festival. Please contact Elsabé Fourie on [email protected] or leave a voice message on 011-731 7338.

Elsabé Fourie

n e w s ~ n u u s More OEmF! at Kingsmead College

Orchestra & Ensemble Festivals 2005 & 2006

SASMT on the InternetWith the addition of find-a-teacher on the SASMT website, it is now more important than ever for members to ensure that their contact details and specifications of instruments and subjects taught are indicated cor-rectly and completely in the directory list. Visitors to the website can now search for teachers according to instrument/subject and region. The search results include the relevant teachers’ names, primary phone numbers and email-addresses.The society is steadily moving towards increased electronic communica-tion methods. Members who do have e-mail facilities are requested to send their e-mail addresses to <[email protected]> for inclu-sion in the directory list and the electronic mailing list. http://www.samusicteacher.org.za


SAMRO MUSIC STUDY AWARDS 2007

Each year the SAMRO Endowment for the National Arts offers five different types of awards to encour-age the study of music among citizens of South Africa, Botswana, Lesotho and Swaziland.

OVERSEAS SCHOLARSHIPS 2007 FOR SINGERSThese two Scholarships (one for Western Art/Choral Music, one for Jazz/Popular Music), with a cur-rent value of R160 000 each, plus travel allowance of up to R10 000 each, will be awarded in the third Quarter of 2007, and are for post-graduate study abroad.

Only applicants who have already obtained a degree or equivalent diploma in music, or who are in their final year of such degree or equivalent diploma, and who were born after 30 April 1974 can be considered. Application forms will be available in FEBRUARY 2007.

POST-GRADUATE BURSARIES FOR INDIGENOUS AFRICAN MUSIC STUDY IN SOUTHERN AFRICA 2007These Bursaries (available in either the Traditional/Western Art/Choral or Jazz/Popular Music ) will be awarded in the first quarter of 2007, and are for students who are majoring in the musicological/ ethno-musicological study of African music indigenous to South Africa, Botswana, Lesotho or Swazi-land at post-graduate level (Master’s or Doctor’s degrees) at a recognised statutory institute of terti-ary education in Southern Africa.

Only applicants born after 15 February 1965 who have been officially accepted for any study-year of such post-graduate courses can be considered. Prospective applicants born before the specified date may also apply, if they can satisfactorily show that their circumstances warrant special consideration. Application forms are available.

INTERMEDIATE BURSARIES FOR MUSIC COMPOSITION STUDY IN SOUTHERN AFRICA 2007These Bursaries (available in both the Western Art/Choral and Jazz/Popular Music) will be awarded in the first quarter of 2007, and are for students majoring in composition at advanced undergraduate or post-graduate level, at a recognised statutory institute of tertiary education in Southern Africa. The Bursaries are for composition study at 3rd, 4th or Honours year level of an undergraduate degree or equivalent diploma; and for composition study at Master’s or Doctor’s degree level.

Only applicants born after 15 February 1973 who have been officially accepted for such degree or equivalent diploma courses can be considered. Prospective applicants born before the specified date may also apply, if they can satisfactorily show that their circumstances warrant special consideration. Application forms are available.

UNDERGRADUATE BURSARIES FOR MUSIC EDUCATION STUDY IN SOUTHERN AFRICA 2007These Bursaries (available in both the Western Art/Choral and Jazz/Popular Music) will be awarded in the first quarter of 2007, and are for students majoring in Music Education or Class Music Teaching at a recognised statutory institute of tertiary education in Southern Africa. The Bursaries may be held in any year of study, provided that Music Education or Class Music Teaching is being studied in that year as a major for degree or equivalent diploma purposes.

Only applicants born after 15 February 1967 who have been officially accepted for the appropriate year of a suitable degree or equivalent diploma can be considered. Prospective applicants born before the specified date may also apply, if they can satisfactorily show that their circumstances warrant special consideration. Application forms are available.

UNDERGRADUATE BURSARIES FOR GENERAL MUSIC STUDY IN SOUTHERN AFRICA 2007These Bursaries (available in both the Western Art/Choral and Jazz/Popular Music) will be awarded in the first quarter of 2007, and are for undergraduate study at a recognized statutory institute of terti-ary education in Southern Africa. They are awarded only to students who are beginning their first or second year of study for a degree or equivalent diploma course in Music in 2007.

Only applicants born after 15 February 1981 who have been officially accepted for such courses can be considered. Prospective applicants born before the specified date may also apply, if they can satis-factorily show that their circumstances warrant special consideration. Application forms are available.


r e v i e w s ~ r e s e n s i e sThe six volumes of Jazz Sessions by Faber Music are the result of a collabo-ration between Alexander L’Estrange (composer, ar-ranger, jazz double bass player and jazz exam-iner for the ABRSM) and Tom Pilling (composer, jazz pianist and teacher). Each book spans a host of jazz idioms including blues, swing, Latin and

gospel. Included in the series are publications for pi-ano, violin, flute, clarinet, alto saxophone and trumpet — all with CD backing. The arrangements and compo-sitions have second, extended versions that are ideal for improvisation, and are suitable for the intermediate level (grades 4-5). The pieces are ideal preparation for the ABRSM jazz exams. Faber also has more jazz music available for piano (grade 3-6), as well as Progressive Jazz Studies for flute, clarinet, saxophone, trumpet and trombone — all for the intermediate level. The Groove Lab series of pieces with CD for keyboard, flute, clari-net, alto saxophone and trumpet are for grades 3-4. www.fabermusic.com

The Universal Edition series of “Easy Blue …” for clarinet, flute, trumpet and other instruments contains the first step to the blues for aspiring young jazz soloist and forms the ideal stepping

stone to the more advanced “Blue …” series. James Rae’s original solo pieces with piano accompaniment serve as an introduction to this popular genre to players of an elementary level. Chord symbols are introduced in the accompaniment to enable the pianist to improvise.



SubscriptionsThe annual subscription price for two issues includes postage and packaging. To subscribe please complete this form and mail it with your payment to:

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E-mail: Music. The Listener’s Art?In 1992 Kate Covington wrote in the Journal of Music Theory Pedagogy (vol. 6) about the problems faced by those who attempt to teach aural training.

Today, those who direct ensembles or teach private lessons, or who intentionally or accidentally incur the occupational hazard of teaching aural skills, have discovered the problems with much current aural training. First, most students who do not have a perfect or near-perfect sense of pitch find ear training at best a dreaded, necessary evil. For a musician, developing aural acuity should be a positive experience, and anticipated class, but how many students view it that way? Instead, they find it distasteful and teachers are often forced to incorporate required attendance policies to make sure that students are even there. Students may approach these courses with fear that certain musical weaknesses of ineptitudes will be exposed.

More troubling is that students find aural training to be irrelevant to their musical needs when they should be seeing the connections with everything they do

SAMT on the WWW

The covers and the tables of contents of the last fourteen issues of the magazine (since 1998) can be accessed on the new website. We hope to add summaries of articles, and the full texts of the editorial contributions soon, as well as links to the websites of our advertisers and other publishers.

http://www.samusicteacher.org.za/magazine/

as musicians. [...] Aural training should indeed be directed toward practical, needed skills. Most troubling to me has been the dilemma that good musicians sometimes demonstrate a rather low level of aural ability, as taught and tested with traditional materials. That seems to imply that either we are teaching the wrong things or we are not teaching well, certainly not in a way that is compatible with how students already perceive and relate to music.

An additional problem is that our approaches to au-ral training have been strongly influenced by tradition as well as by the necessity for grading. The same ap-proaches and activities are perpetuated from student to student-who-becomes-a-teacher to student, etc.

The troubles loom larger when we realise that they are not new. Already in the eleventh century Guido d’Arezzo designed his kinaesthetic representation of pitches and his system of solmization in order to improve the inad-equate abilities of his choristers. Ever since, problems have been mentioned, but not always solved. We hope that the next two issues of SAMT will inspire readers to reflect on the aural aspects of our art.

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