 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: LeWhite
Date: 2005-03-08 05:10
Hi again everyone
I've been with my teacher for six years now - two years in high school and four during college. This is my final year at college, and also my final year with him as I am likely moving interstate next year.
Anyway, he's been great - he's taken me from a snotty little kid to someone who can actually play the clarinet properly with decent technique.
But now I'm having some problems with him. This being my final year, we talked at my first lesson of this year about what we'd be doing for the year. We made some grand plans and even decided that I was going to look even MORE thoroughly at the Baermann book.
This is all fine and good.
Until the second lesson. I walk in, sit down, get my clarinets out and he says "So, what are we doing today?" and I just look blankly at him. "Did you say last week we were going to begin looking through Baermann in more detail and you had a new piece for me as well as a new book of studies?"
"Did I? Must have forgotten."
This has happened on a smaller scale before, but this is a little ridiculous now. How am I supposed to DO these studies if he can't remember to bring them in for me? Also, my lessons used to be more like following on from the previous lesson, but now he doesn't even hear something I played previously or look over what we did last week. Lessons are very singular and I don't know what to expect, as opposed to being very successive (and successful) in the past.
So, what can I say to him? SHOULD I say something, or should I kinda take charge of our lessons? I've got less than 9 months left with him and I know he's still got a LOT to teach me, if he can remember to!
What do I do?!
Thanks for listening to my rant...
__________________
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Author: jo.clarinet
Date: 2005-03-08 10:32
Could it be that he's trying (albeit in rather a clumsy way) to get you to be less dependent on him and to take the initiative in your lessons yourself? Perhaps he wants to see what you will do and how you handle the situation.
With my older students I gradually 'loosen the reins' to get them ready to work independently of me when the time comes, so that while still being guided by me they are choosing their own direction of study, and this seems to work well for us.
Joanna Brown
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Author: music_is_life
Date: 2005-03-08 11:40
sounds kind of like my teacher...in a way. she will bring me music when she tells me she's going to, but she has become much less structured and sort of has me run my own lessons. She doesn't really make out a plan unless I have some kind of audition coming up. However, I have improved greatly, so I know her style is working for me, even though sometimes it doesn't seem like it.
One thing is that I wanted to work on my embrochure and mentioned this to her and each week she has "forgotten". when I mentioned it to her she told me she doesn't much like that aspect of teaching very much. However, since I need to work on it, I am going to be more persistent and actually mention it during the lesson. I'll ask her questions about it, instead of waiting until later to mention it to her.
Are you in contact with your teacher at all? because you could always call/e-mail him to remind him to bring music for you if he is prone to forgetting. You never know- he might just be absent-minded.
-Lindsie
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Author: msloss
Date: 2005-03-08 14:15
I say this as a teacher myself -- you aren't his only student. As deeply personal as the artistic mentor/student relationship gets, we can't keep track of it all in our heads or even in a journal. Frankly, I count on the students to keep track of their assignments and objectives. Unlike teaching from a uniform lesson plan in a classroom setting, private instruction moves at a different pace and with different hurdles and goals for every single student. After the first 10 students in a week, everything does run together a little.
So in answer to your question, you are one of many, so yes -- take charge of your situation. Give him a call or shoot him an email a day or two before the lesson if you need him to bring something in from his library. Don't be afraid to quickly review at the beginning of the lesson what your assignment was. It will help to structure a productive hour.
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Author: allencole
Date: 2005-03-08 16:08
It's hard to keep everything straight. Each of my students has an assignment book in which I also record all of the competencies they pass off. I generally check it every lesson because I can't imagine remembering all this stuff.
I also (though NOT at collegiate level, remember) often ask students to turn to assignments or generically ask "what have you got today" in order to see if they themselves remember. (i.e., if they've practised at all)
Allen Cole
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Author: Brandon
Date: 2005-03-08 16:45
This sounds like my current teacher. He doesn't know what you are doing until you make something up. Then he automatically corrects you.
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Author: DavidBlumberg
Date: 2005-03-08 17:07
I write the assignment right on their page. The students provide their own music which I of course tell them what to get, and then page by page has the date right on the top of it.
Also, I use a sticky tab for each books page that is assigned. There is a very specific format to the lessons - scale studies, technique book, etude book, solo book or pieces, and then some kind of jazz study for rhythm work typically. If a student wants to bring in something special or that they need to work on for band, etc than that is fine and I give it priority to fit in.
I wonder if your teacher is dealing with a medical issue this year and is unable to keep stuff straight????
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Author: CPW
Date: 2005-03-09 00:31
Is there a faint aroma of old barley or corn on his breath?
ditto for Sen Sen or Clorets.
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Author: Bnatural
Date: 2005-03-09 01:10
I had a teacher that started to loose it to old age... amazing player but, he just couldn't handle the scheduele anymore.
Sounds like that is what could be happening to your lesson.
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Author: diz
Date: 2005-03-09 04:26
LeWhite ... you're in your final year now ... maybe he's expecting you to show more initiative .... ? Afterall, he's probably having to focus more of his attention to snotty nosed kids when he realises that you're just brilliant.
Without music, the world would be grey, very grey.
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Author: allencole
Date: 2005-03-09 06:46
If you want to know why your teacher is doing--or not doing--any particular thing, I see no harm in simply asking him. After all, this is supposed to be training you for the same thing.
One thing you might find out is that sometimes you are simply given various things to do, and that they don't necesssarily have a sequential connection, or need to be heard by your teacher. There may be a number of things that he simply wants you to experience.
Based on your original post, I'm not sure that we can really say that the guy is slipping.
Allen Cole
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Author: rc_clarinetlady
Date: 2005-03-09 12:19
My professor made it easy. He wrote down the name of the books I was to have in my posession by next lesson. The visual appearance of the new book alone may jog your teacher's memory if you do this. You will also be becomming more responsible for your own library of works and studies. Try not to borrow too many things. You'll wish you owned them later. I borrowed a technic book in college and for the life of me I can't remember what it is but my favorite warm up is in that book. It would just be so much easier if I had the book.
I have my students now keep a seperate spiral notebook for" lessons only" that I write the date, book, pg. # and piece # they are to work on. I do this for each assignment. Scales, exercises, etudes, solos, duets, and any additional info needed. Sometimes I am working with correcting a bad habit and the student is just banking on the fact that I'll forget to talk about it that week. Not if I write it down and circle it really big. This notebook comes to every lesson. I'll even write down where I want to start the next weeks lesson. It works for us. I had a piano teacher show me this.
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Author: hans
Date: 2005-03-09 13:29
I wonder if there might be a health/medical problem causing your teacher's unusual behaviour?
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