Klarinet Archive - Posting 000508.txt from 1999/12

From: "Benjamin Maas" <benmaas@-----.com>
Subj: RE: [kl] Re: God things
Date: Fri, 17 Dec 1999 11:15:25 -0500

>
> God this, god that. 'Reminds me of Freshman theory placement exams
> at Eastman. A couple of days after exams were finished, everybody
> crowded around the bulletin board to see where they were placed. If
> you just did average or fair, you were placed in regular ol' music
> theory. Those with exceptional music theory skills (no necessary
> correlation to their playing abilities) were placed in "God theory."
> I still remember chuckling to myself that morning as everybody walk-
> ed around asking, "Did you get into God theory? Did YOU? Greg over
> there, HE got into God theory!"

When I went to Eastman, I was placed into the God Theory class... You may
worship me now :-) Really, it just was a class where you could get your 3
years of theory out of the way in 2...

Those who had were silently revered
> and admired -- and regarded with some contempt, as they were already
> somehow more special at a school of people who thought they were pretty
> special just to be there. I didn't really care. Ear training was the
> class for me, although I never did like the absurd number system they
> used (as opposed to genuine solfege). I'm given to understand they
> adopted sofege shortly after I left.

Nope... solfege was still outlawed. The reasoning behind the number system
was that you would learn the intervals in relation to the tonic of the key.
A couple teachers would allow solfege, but only movable do... At Eastman,
the theory department seemed to be out to "cure" students of perfect
pitch... In ear training, you'd get a dictation played in C major, but
you'd have to write it out in e-flat... Even if you don't have pitch, it is
still really unnerving to do that.

The truly amazing thing about
> that class was a particular member, a male singer (bass) who literal-
> ly could not read a note of music! Somebody had told him to apply at
> Eastman, he sang a little for the audition panel, and they were so im-
> pressed that they let him in -- rightfully so. To hear this guy sing
> a simple major scale really WAS like hearing God himself -- just in-
> credible. And then he would go up to the board, and everybody would
> help him memorize the notes on the staff -- e, f, g, a, b...
>

Much of the vocal department did not know how to read music. Many of the
singers I knew learned music off of recordings. Heck, supposedly Pavarotti
doesn't know how to read music. Great voice, but always had coaches teach
him his parts.

--Ben

Benjamin Maas
Freelance Clarinetist and Recording Engineer
Los Angeles, CA
benmaas@-----.com
http://www.fifthcircle.com

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