Sunday, May 08, 2005

Bands

Let pinpoint a cause of the standards of school bands in Singapore.

The conductor.

Pardon me - it should more correctly - instructor.

Just look at the number of unqualified instructors around in Singapore. Some think just because they had been playing in bands for a number of years make them qualified to be one.

In the blog of one, he confidently boasts that his teaching methods "work". He attributes the failure of his method in his previous school to the students. They were "unreceptive" of his methods.

Now that he's helping out in a school which obtained a Silver for the SYF, he's happily claiming that his methods are indeed "helpful" and is just "a matter of who he's teaching".

What the hell!

If you ask me, he's just riding on the success of the main instructor.

If your methods are proven with a good track record, they will work anywhere. For goodness sake, both the schools in question are neighbourhood schools! Why should the students be different in School A and School B?

I might be wrong but I think he's really dumb and unlearned. That's my judgment from his comments in his blog. It's precisely with people like him in Singapore that's why the band scene is going nowhere. People like him are jeopardizing the system! They are compromising the standards of music.

Well, blame it on the way of life.

They came out with the Honours award to reduce the number of "top" bands. Soon, all instructors would be expected to clinch gold with honours no less. And what will we have next? Gold with first class upper honours? Band summa cum laude?

Oh wait! That might not be enough. How about a platinum level? Platinum with honours?

In the same said blog, he still can "haha" when the attendance of a band is one of only brasses?

What kind of message is he sending to the students who read his blog? Oh, it's ok to skip practices. Mr ABC would just laugh it off.

And you want to know what's scary? His students love him! Oh man, where's the band scene heading?

Please, if you're a self respecting instructor, do not shot yourself in the foot by writing like a bimbo.

Speaking of which, I wonder if any of my students happen to be reading this. Mathematically speaking, they might be. After all, the weirdest people whom you totally don't expect to be reading this had tumbled upon my blog. What's new?

This leads me to another factor - the tutors.

I admit that my students are not the best, considering that I only had less than 5 sessions with them. If I can successfully change their playing postures, embouchures and breathing in 5 sessions, I think I should be charging $500 per session as a miracle worker!

Some tutors I know really raised doubts in my minds when they discuss teaching methods with me. I may not be the best in the land but some things they said are just plain disturbing. Why do instructors pay them $50 an hour only to have them teaching rhythms?

We are specializing in the instrument, not rhythm.

Honestly, I'm quite sick of band music!

I just read an article in the Instrumentalist which amused me a lot. The writer was complaining about modern pieces for bands which are very abstract.

Half the time, the composer spends 10 minutes explaining the piece. "...at this point in the Farm Symphony, you will hear so and so instruments creating a sound which is suppose to represent the little goat eating grass and meh-ing..."

"...and in the third movement, you will hear a little cow walking along happily, poking her companion with her hooves..."

That reminds me of a piece I played a year ago, the title was something vivacity, I can't remember the name. It was horrendously abstract; I'm no fan of abstract stuffs. Give me good old boring Beethoven!
fjozn at 3:48 PM