Klarinet Archive - Posting 000625.txt from 1995/06

From: Lisa Clayton <clayton@-----.EDU>
Subj: Conservatories vs. Universities
Date: Tue, 27 Jun 1995 12:03:05 -0400

A while back, someone posted a message wanting opinions about
university education versus conservatory education for music students,
and that perhaps conservatories should be the only forums for music
education. I wish I'd kept that original message; and I'm truly surprised
no one has taken this up yet.

As an older person finishing an undergraduate degree in computer science,
my opinion about this tends to be more selfish. In the early '80s I
went to UCLA; now I'm at SFSU. Both universities had music departments
with good and not-so-good aspects, and both campuses are truly much better
off with music departments available-- not only to music majors, but
to music minors and the rest of us who are neither but enjoy participating
in some of the training offered to nonmajors.

If such departments were phased out in favor of conservatories, that would
eliminate a huge resource for us avocational players. You could argue
with leaving departments in community colleges for folks like us, but
there's something to be said about being able to access PhD level professors
and graduate students for quick questions, solid lessons, or even to
quietly challenge you when you sit behind them in a wind ensemble.

The point of music education is to create musicians, composers, music
educators, and so forth, but it also an integral part of a good
liberal arts education. I deeply and wholly appreciate the fact that
as a computer scientist I can also appreciate everything from Chinese opera
to twelve-tone to post-bop, thanks to a liberal arts education.
Moving music departments away from campuses would rob us non-music
majors of that opportunity.

Hopefully this'll spark some comments from people at the other ends
of the spectrum.

____ Lisa K. Canjura-Clayton The obligatory homepage:
/ clayton@-----.edu/~clayton
/ Band=Life COMING SOON: Virtual Barstow!
"There is nothing more onanistic than playing the bass clarinet by yourself"
-Steve Trier