Klarinet Archive - Posting 001241.txt from 2004/03

From: "James Hobby" <jhobby@-----.net>
Subj: Re: [kl] not just the music department
Date: Sun, 21 Mar 2004 18:25:03 -0500


>Bill Hausmann or Rupert Kahn wrote:

>It's clear from
>the original post that we are not talking about someone who is blind but
>someone who is partially sighted. I mentioned Stevie Wonder only to make
>the (blindingly) obvious point that perfect eyesight and musical ability
>are not correlated. But you persist with a combination of the worst
>case/toughest call for a blind person situation. Talented musicians with
>very limited sight or who are blind may never get a job in a symphony
>orchestra, but that's not to say that they won't be able to contribute to a
>school music program or benefit from it and [snip]

I don't know about other states. Tennessee has (or had, the last time
I took note of such things) a school specifically tracked to the blind
and partially sighted. Aptly named Tennessee School for the Blind.
(It was a publicly-funded school, just like the ones my grandchildren
attend.) Many of the faculty were partially sighted, as well, including
the band director.

I first saw their band at the State concert & sight reading festival.
The band came onto the stage, some children lead others. Once
everyone sat down, I noticed there were no music stands or music.
When the announcer said who it was, it was clear why. They played
quite well. They played by memory. They always scored well.
They opted out of the sight-reading part of the festival.
Their entrants in the solo & ensemble festival were also well
prepared.

This is obviously not an example of inclusion, but it wasn't
something that was required. Parents could opt out and
send their children to the neighborhood school -- provided
they didn't have to be bussed halfway across the state.

Jim Hobby

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