Klarinet Archive - Posting 000068.txt from 1995/12

From: Martin Pergler <pergler@-----.EDU>
Subj: Age limits was Re: The "real" question on competitions
Date: Mon, 4 Dec 1995 21:39:24 -0500

On Mon, 4 Dec 1995, Daniel A. Paprocki wrote:

> My "real" question on competitions is not why have them, that music should
> or shouldn't be competitive. If you are trying to become a full time
> professional musician competitions or auditions are a fact of life, whether
> you like it or not. My question is should there be an age limit (other
> than competitions for high school or college age students). Why are there
> random age limits of 28, 30, 33 1/3, etc. for some of the competitions,
> including the Buffet competition. I could understand an exclusion of
> professional players (people who make a majority of their income from music
> as based on their tax forms). Please don't mis-read this. Idealy music
> should not be a competition but since competitions exist shouldn't they be
> open to all.
>
> Dan

Since no one else seems to have answered, I'll take a stab. This is
partially speculation and partially what I have heard informally about
certain non-clarinet musical competitions.

The aim might be to identify and provide exposure to promising
up-and-coming talent. These would typically be people who are
"professionals" in terms of income and nature of work but are not
"established" in a solid position or career path commensurate with what
will be their "ultimate" musical ability. The idea is that these people
tend to be younger. Several quesionable assumptions are involved in this:

1) the younger people tend to not yet be established.
2) the older people are as "established" as they're going to get.
3) if we allowed the established to compete, we couldn't identify the
up and coming (because they aren't as "good" yet and wouldn't win).
4) we can't think of a better way to make the distinction in a way which
won't cause arguments about who can participate.

I don't feel qualified to voice an opinion as to how valid these
assumptions are as generalizations. Certainly not one of them is
universally true and people fall through the cracks.

Comments? Other speculations, or even (gasp) informed commentary?

Martin

-------------------------------------------------------
Martin Pergler pergler@-----.edu
Grad student, Mathematics http://www.math.uchicago.edu/~pergler
Univ. of Chicago

   
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