 The Clarinet BBoard
|
Author: CharmOne
Date: 2003-09-13 06:20
I have missed my middle school band teacher after she left my school this year. She was my first teacher for clarinet lessons and I was her first High School pupil. She didn't cared about the money when I told her if I was gonna pay her just like any other clarinet teacher, but only to have pride in helping me with my lessons. I have worked with her for several months, but looking back of what she did, I could never have gotten this far today. Anyone with a story about your teachers to tell.
Thanks all,
CharmOne
|
|
Reply To Message
|
|
Author: William
Date: 2003-09-13 16:10
The best teachers that I remember are the ones that simply inspired me to "do what I do" better. One (my old high school band director) didn't really know a lot about the clarinet (or music, in general), but was a great motivator and gave me the confidence to get involved with public performance. He was very much like a Harold Hill from "The Music Man". He made band fun for us and we practiced--some of us studied privately--to be better (and have more fun).
The other is the current Professor of Clarinet at Northwestern University, who was my teacher (sadly, only for one year) during my graduate university studies. Russell Dagon not only knew how to play and teach his students, but inspired all of us clarinet majors to always want to do better in next's weeks lesson. One of his frequent comments was something like, "that was good, but maybe if you did it this way....." and then he would sometimes play "what he was tryng to say" for us. He never employed the dictatorial "My way or no way" approach. Russell was simply an inspirational clarinetist role model for us and made learning--and performing--a fun thing.
(In addition to being Principal Clarinetist for the Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra--now retired--and current Clarinet Professor at Northwestern U, Russell was also a good jazz sax player while an undergraduate student at Northwestern--I have an old Hi-Fi record with his pic on the jacket to prove that)
|
|
Reply To Message
|
|
Author: CharmOne
Date: 2003-09-13 16:41
I now have a new teacher, Ryan who I have been working with this summer and he doesn't forcefully tells me to do better but to guide me through. Sort of like riding a bicycle except with training wheels.
Sigh, I still miss my old teacher, Carla Becker...
CharmOne
|
|
Reply To Message
|
|
Author: Rachel
Date: 2003-09-14 05:59
The best teacher I have ever worked with is Floyd Williams, the Senior Lecturer in Clarinet at the QLD Con. He is a genius.
|
|
Reply To Message
|
|
Author: D Dow
Date: 2003-09-14 16:12
Dangain in Paris. Incredible player with unreal insight into how a player should approach playing .....
David Dow
|
|
Reply To Message
|
|
Author: R13A
Date: 2003-09-14 18:09
Each for a variety of reasons :
Leon Russianoff, Peter Hadcock, Eugene Zoro, Kalman Opperman, John Denman.
IMHO....Leon was in a league of his own.
How he approached teaching and his 'method' was an educational experience in itself.
regards
dennis
|
|
Reply To Message
|
|
Author: clarinetgiggirl
Date: 2003-09-15 09:02
A local jazz musician is specifically teaching me to improvise. When we started out the difference he made was incredible. I am learning less now, but his guidance is invaluable. We have also become very close friends, which in lessons, is both a blessing and a curse!
|
|
Reply To Message
|
|
Author: Ralph Katz
Date: 2003-09-15 12:00
My 10th Grade History teacher, Mary Finn, walked in the first day of class with a syllabus. All the reading assignments were listed, when papers were due, when all the quizzes were, when all the tests were, paper subjects and lengths. It looked daunting, but she said, if you do all these things on time you will get a good grade.
Part way through the term I realized that what had she said was true. There were not tricks, no "gotcha's". This was the first time any teacher had organized material for me in a clear, cogent, up-front and professional manner. I did all those things, got a good grade, and have been eternally grateful.
|
|
Reply To Message
|
|
Author: wjk
Date: 2003-09-15 14:30
The incomparable.....GBK. A true master in every sense of the word.
|
|
Reply To Message
|
|
Author: Meri
Date: 2003-09-16 19:45
Strictly music, or outside of music as well?
Strictly music, I could name three teachers, two of them are school music teachers, one in grade 8, the other in high school; the last was my former private teacher. The last two I am still in touch with.
The first did so much for me to help me catch up (and forge ahead) of the rest of the class, because I was transferred from another school and was quite behind the other students. My best friend at the time and I (she was a flautist) used to often go by her office after school. She was there for only half the year, but, I think she changed my musical direction for the rest of my life.
The second was one of my high school music teachers, who I had in grade 9, but stayed to teach other classes for the rest of my high school career, and for a few years beyond that. (she just transferred to teach at another school). We got to really know each other as people, I was involved as a participant and proofreader of her Ph.D thesis, and her kids (now 6 and 7) think of me like their aunt! I I remember could talk to her about anything.We still communicate regularly by email.
The last is my former private teacher. I remember that at first we seemed to be afraid of each other, but for me that's probably mostly due to the fact that he is 6'4. Once I got over that, and he got to know me, we really connected. He would tell me about his nieces and nephews, I would try to help him with his Mac-related problems (both of us were big Mac users),we would talk about what I wanted to to with my life, among other things.
The best non-music teacher I had was a philosophy professor which I took 3 courses with until he retired after my second year. I would pop by his office to discuss an upcoming paper. Those 10-minute meetings sometimes turned into 1/2 h or longer. We often talked about classical music, I remember one moment when he had the radio in his office on to a classical music station, and what was playing was a Beethoven piano concerto. However, he was not sure whether it was the third or fourth concerto, and we made a little bet, which was that whoever loses buys the other a cup of tea at the coffee shop before next class. (I won the bet--I knew it was the 3rd concerto) I learned of his love for Brahms, so I introduced him to the Brahms Clarinet Quintet. He once said that he wanted to learn the clarinet, he absolutely loves the instrument.
What do they all have in common? They taught a lot more than the subject they were supposed to be teaching--they taught about life.
Meri
|
|
Reply To Message
|
|
Author: ron b
Date: 2003-09-16 22:06
Love the comments and narratives. I feel, too, that there is so much more to music than just learning to make nice sounds.
As a junior in high school, many (about 30) students who were not doing well in English classes, meaning we were flunking, were offered Public Speaking as an alternative. I'm happy to say that while the majority of us were at first scared silly to get up and say something 'in public', not one of us died from the ordeal and, in fact, by the end of the semester were actually enjoying giving talks and presentations. Sadly, I can't remember the teacher's name now but, bless him, he did more for his classes of shy, self-conscious, low self-esteem kids than dozens of others - as much as they may have tried to. He had a way of bringing out the best in people through supportive informal discussions (about "life") and getting the focus of our lives off ourselves.
The principles learned from that experience, at least for me, carried over into music performance more than all the musicians I've met before or since. Learning the mechanics of your instrument is just the beginning 
- r![[cool]](http://test.woodwind.org/clarinet/BBoard/smileys/cool.gif) n b -
|
|
Reply To Message
|
|
Author: Katfish
Date: 2003-09-17 18:52
Pasquale Crescenti- I took lessons from him from age 10 till his death when I was 14. He was a no frills teacher,and I had a heavy dose of the Langey tutor, Baermann 2 and 3, Cavellini 30 Caprices and lots of duets. He only complimented me once. After playing an exercise in Baermann 2, he asked me how much I practiced. I said , "An hour to an hour and a half a day". He said, "you play pretty good for no more than you practice".
John Kahrl
|
|
Reply To Message
|
|
The Clarinet Pages
|
 |
.jpg){kind=small}
.jpg){kind=small}
.jpg){kind=small}
.jpg){kind=small}
.jpg){kind=small}
.jpg){kind=small}
