Music Monday - More Covid Curiosities

Earlier this year I wrote about a soprano in a Perth fringe show asking the audience, “Twenty years ago, who would have thought that in 2021 there would be more work for a singer in Perth, Western Australia than in London?”

Although the UK and USA are now opening up to live music performance again, here in Australia (where our state borders are still subject to closure as we try to curb the Delta variant of Covid-19) the phenomenon continues. Over the past few weeks here in Perth, there have been more performances and shows involving students and friends than I have had spare evenings to attend. 

Local commercial theatres, without bookings from the national touring companies, are more open to taking local bookings. Several WA based companies have sprung up, particularly in music theatre. These companies mostly operate on a ‘pro/am’ basis; they pay some or all the performers in principal roles, but the ensemble often do it for little / no monetary reward. 

There are also smaller companies who do shows on a profit-share basis.

Some graduating actors and music theatre students from WAAPA are planning to stay in Perth for the time being, seeing it as a place where there is some possibility of work. Until the pandemic that was unheard of – graduating performers always headed to the larger, more performance active cities of Melbourne and Sydney.

On a side, but connected, note – yesterday I adjudicated some vocal sections at a local, well-established eisteddfod. In chatting to the organizer at the start, he commented that the number of piano competitors was at a record-breaking high, but that they had never had so few singers. Later, as I drove home, I pondered that situation. Are all the singers in Perth now in rehearsal or performance for our plethora of shows? 

There is no doubt that it is good to see a much more active local performance scene here. (That must be one of the few positives of the pandemic.) There is a much stronger sense of a local arts community.

 And if we also keep our ears tuned to what is happening nationally and internationally, the future of music performance in Perth could be a healthier and more abundant one.

Music Monday - Musings on a choral festival

I volunteered at a choral festival yesterday. The festival is an annual event for government schools here in Western Australia and yesterday took place on a beautiful cold, sunny Sunday after weeks of rain.

Over the course of the day, we heard 20+ choirs, all a high standard, and several which were memorable for the best of reasons. Stylistically, the repertoire ranged from Gregorian Chant through to beat-boxing, with lots between.

 How wonderful for students to hear excellence in performance from a choir in quite another style to their own! 

There was a real sense of ‘family’ and inclusivity within each choir.

The day was not without its challenges though. As always, choir directors received last minute emails and text messages from parents who decided spontaneously to do something else on that sunny Sunday. (Would they tell the sporting team coach that their kid was not going to play that day, I wondered?) And of course, sickness precluded some students from attending – and presented stress for the directors when those students were on key parts in the ensemble. One of my colleagues and friends had to stand in for 2 missing parts in a beautiful 11 part unaccompanied ‘Magnificat’.

The festival is non-competitive. Choirs receive comments from an adjudicator and receive a ‘grading’ – good, excellent, outstanding. But there are no winners – a healthy thing, since the point of the festival is the opportunity to perform and hear choral singing in many genres. 

However, the grading system creates an unofficial sense of competitiveness which is not always in the spirit of the festival. A grading of ‘excellent’ is interpreted as ‘average’ (since it is the middle grade in a scale of good, excellent, outstanding). If an adjudicator’s comments included something like “this was excellent singing” there would be a sense of achievement – but as a grade it can bring disappointment. 

Are we so geared to grading in arts education that we can’t accept just a critique from an adjudicator?

In conclusion, another colleague remarked that the football derby playing that day (a game between the two state teams) had attracted much news coverage and thousands in attendance at the stadium. But here we were running a government run music festival with zero news cover. Yet another indication of arts v sports in Australia? Wouldn’t it be fantastic to have arts + sports!

Music Monday - Mentoring in music

A few weeks ago, I wrote about our 4-year-old grandson’s reactions to seeing a production of ‘Mary Poppins’ at John Curtin College of the Arts. What I didn’t talk about in that post was the orchestra.

John Curtin College of the Arts (JCCA) has a long history of putting on large scale musicals. Over the years the makeup of the orchestra has included all-student orchestras, small completely professional bands, and a mix of both. There is a strong argument for each of these, but from an educational point of view, maximum student participation is obviously preferred. A former head of music at the school achieved wonderful success with large, entirely student player orchestras; though it must be said that the audience got better sound towards the end of the run than on opening night - as the players gradually found more of the notes. Still, no one in the audience was ever in doubt that they were at a genuine school production.

Which brings me to the ‘Mary Poppins’ orchestra. This was made up of around 2/3 student players and the remaining 1/3 teachers. The driving force behind the decision was the fact that the ‘Poppins’ score is particularly difficult to play. But the benefits went far beyond that. I observed that the students’ playing went from strength to strength as they sat in among the professional teacher players. The sound from the pit was excellent right through the season. And everyone in the pit seemed to be having fun as well as learning.

Mentoring is such an important aspect of teaching and learning in music. Attempts are often made to formalise the process, and this has merit, however some of the best mentoring comes from informal interactions.

Much of what I have learned as a teacher of music and singing voice has been through formal study. Just as important, however, has been the interactions with more experienced mentors through the years – those wonderful practitioners you meet informally at conferences, as colleagues and in some unexpected settings – for me one such meeting occurred on an airline flight after a conference.

During the pandemic, our access to informal mentoring has been limited. In Australia we are not flying internationally to conferences yet - and the zoom chat box comes as a poor second best to live interactions. But we still have our work colleagues and social media.

As music teachers, we all have a part to play in the mentoring process – young teachers can benefit from chats with more experienced teachers, and older, more experienced teachers can give back by taking younger and less experienced teachers under their wing. It can be a wonderful, fun and valuable cycle.

Music Monday - What will a post-Covid world look and sound like?

Back in February I attended a Perth fringe show featuring an opera singing friend and his soprano performance partner. While waiting in line to go in, our friends chatted about how lucky we were to live in such a remote capital city as Perth, where our annual fringe festival went ahead as usual. We laughed that the aspect of Perth that has always been perceived as its greatest disadvantage; namely its distance from other cities (it’s about as far as you can get from New York, for example), was in these strange new times, flipped to be perceived now as an advantage.

During the show, the soprano, who had migrated to Australia 20 years ago, commented that she would never have dreamed at the time she left a career in London, that 20 years later there would be more work for a singer in Perth, Western Australia, than in the UK or USA.

And this week, a player in WASO (Western Australian Symphony Orchestra) – not a large outfit by world standards – reported that, based on the statistics for the past 12 months, WASO was the busiest orchestra in the world. 

Strange times indeed.

I know of a music theatre performer, last engaged in a Broadway show which shut down at the start of the pandemic in 2020, who has retrained as a visual artist.

And only yesterday, at an ANATS (Australian National Association of Teachers of Singing) meeting, a colleague spoke of her friend and colleague in Scotland, a school music teacher, who has not been permitted to sing with her students, nor allow them to sing in class, for a year.

As the world now moves into the vaccination phase of the pandemic, and people become safer to start resuming a new normal, how will that look and sound for you?

For me, I have become much more tech-savvy over the past year – definitely through necessity rather than natural inclination. I think I have also learnt gratitude.

As I so often write on this blog, we are beyond lucky in Australia.  Our total number of lives (sadly) lost has been 900 rather than millions and our lockdowns (even taking into account the 100-day lockdown in Melbourne) have been minimal by world standards. I think we have all learned to be a bit more grateful.

Right now, Perth is in a week of additional restrictions. (We had 3 cases last weekend.) Until 8th May we have to wear a mask outside our home. Because we have been so spoilt, it feels uncomfortable and annoying. At the start of a singing lesson on Friday I asked a student how she was feeling about her mask. She said, “Every time I put it on, I think that it is a reminder to be grateful.” Wise words. 

There is no doubt that the music industry across the world, and even in Australia, has been hit hard by Covid. Where sporting events with thousands of spectators have often been allowed to go ahead, music venues have always been shut down. It was encouraging that our state government made a snap decision to close a football game to spectators yesterday (45,000 had been estimated to attend). If the risk is one of aerosol transmission, then 45,000 cheering supporters must be more risk than hundreds of seated patrons listening to music?

How do you see your world of music in the months and years ahead?

Music Monday - ANZAC Day

On the eve of the Anzac Day long weekend last Friday, Perth, and one regional area, Peel, in Western Australia, were plunged into a snap lockdown for the weekend, after a case of community transfer of the more contagious Covid variant. It came as complete surprise to us all, as we have been covid-free for months now. 

As many music teaching friends went about cancelling their bands’ and choirs’ attendance at Anzac Day ceremonies on Sunday (all public events were cancelled) I couldn’t help but reflect on my post from last Anzac Day. As the rest of Australia held ‘normal’ Anzac ceremonies on Sunday many Perth households revisited the tradition started in 2020.

Here’s the post from last year – I refrained from calling it the Last Post!

Anzac Day 2020 was like no other before it in the many years since 1915.

In Australia, with gatherings banned due to covid-19, the usual services and parades were cancelled  - except for one at the Australian War Memorial in Canberra attended by only the few dignitaries who conducted it, telecast to the nation..

Instead, at the tops of suburban driveways across the country, Australians gathered just before dawn, holding lighted candles, and sometimes waving to acknowledge their neighbours without approaching or speaking to them.

 In quiet reflection Australians remembered their Anzacs  - and all who have suffered and perished in war – and as the skies softly lightened with the dawn, the morning chorus of magpies and crows was augmented by players of music – student brass players, music teachers, amateur and professional musicians and singers – each contributing to an extraordinarily moving tribute.

On my own driveway I could hear from the next street the hesitant sounds of a student trumpeter playing “Lest We Forget”. Further away there was the faint sound of the Last Post with its tricky high notes for beginner players. 

In the couple of days since Saturday the papers have carried letters from Australians suggesting that the dawn driveway tradition be kept and commenting on how moving it was to have their own silent contemplation accompanied by the sound of live music. My music teacher friends as well as non-muso neighbours have all said much the same.

Music is SO important in our many life rituals. When we work on the tedium of music theory, or teaching the singing and playing of scales, it is worth remembering how important our job is. We are contributing in our way to the rich tapestry of our country’s unique culture.

The power of music and song in children’s theatre

Last week I took our 4 -year- old grandson and his Mum to our state theatre to see a school holiday offering for young kids – “Room On The Broom”, based on the award winning children’s picture book by Julia Donaldson and Alex Scheffler, published by Macmillan Children’s books.

The show was in the main theatre, the Heath Ledger Theatre, and because ours was an impromptu decision to attend, we were seated in the last available seats, right up at the back of the circle and some distance from the stage. This did not bother young William in the least; he was intrigued by the size of the theatre and the height from which he was watching the stage. It was the largest theatre he has been in, to date, and I’d imagine it was the same for many in the young audience. Around us were children ranging in age from babies to around the 8 years mark. Lots of grandparents.

I wondered how we would all fare up there, so far from the action on stage, when the show started.

As it turns out, the physical distance did not prove a problem for William, nor for kids of similar age. Younger children were more easily distracted, but that age were distracted downstairs in the stalls as well.

The show was just the right length – about 55 minutes – and delivered with an energy of around 150%. This would be exhausting for an audience if sustained for much longer,  but seemed an important component in holding their attention in this short show.

There were puppets – big, realistic, glove style puppets. And the actors operating them provided their voices. (At one stage the actor managing the dog and the frog mixed up his accents but no one much minded). Suspension of disbelief was abundant, which was wonderful to see in this audience. (Side note – last holidays we went to a puppet show where the puppets were made of fruit and veges. This was a step too far for our 4- year- old – “You can’t really make a puppet out of vegetables, can you?”)

The main actor characters were the witch and her cat – a costumed actor -  and the audience loved them.

But by far the component of the show which held it all together and brought kids’ attention back to the stage was the music. Backing -tracks and live singing – in parts, and of a high standard.  Fun songs with catchy but easy tunes. Towards the end we were all invited to join in the refrain of the final song – and we did it lustily. Audiences love to join in.

As the performance ended, William declared, “That was a really good show”.  And it was. But without the music it would have been so much less. 

As we walked to lunch in the city, I was thinking about how enriching music and song is to so many of young children’s learning. It is of course learning in its own right, but music also enables so much more in us.

Music Monday - Holiday time

The Easter weekend is ending, and in most Australian states, schools are in the holiday break between terms. After a short term of only 9 weeks here in Western Australia – which was then shortened further by a one -week Covid lockdown at the start – I am surprised by how tired I am at the end of this term. My teacher colleagues and friends (in all age groups) have echoed this sentiment. Perhaps we all over-compensated for the short teaching term by trying to reach targets meant for a normal term length?

Anyway, this post has no discussion of teaching approaches or anything at all serious.

Instead, I have been thinking of a birthday card I received from a friend a couple of years ago. The front read “Things Musicals Taught Me” and then there were a bunch of song references, including:

It’s a hard knock life

Give ‘em the old razzle dazzle

There’s a place for us

There are 525,600 minutes in a year

All you’ve got to do is dream

You can’t stop the beat

You can love the life you’re living; you can live the life you’d like

You’re never fully dressed without a smile

Can you add to the list? Post in the comments below.

And enjoy your holidays!

Music Monday - More about Practice

Last week’s post about music practice generated some interesting discussion. Thank you to those who contacted me with anecdotal stories about students young and older.

I’ve been thinking and reflecting further on this essential component of successful music performance.

Our daughter, Hannah had an outstanding piano teacher. Sue’s students were typical suburban kids, but consistently achieved above - average results in their AMEB piano exams. Her own daughters all went on to become professional string players. The family are clearly extremely talented in music, but I have often wondered if a significant part of their professional success was their mother’s guidance about practice routines from an early age.

I have been searching (without success) for one of Hannah’s old practice books, but my recollections of a typical page would read something like this:

D major scale. Practise hands separately 3 times then together, slowly, 3 times

Gavotte. New. Try page one slowly, separate hands. 3 times each practice.

Revise List A and D pieces once each practice.

List C. Check bars 43-49 (wrong today) and practice slowly 3 times each practice

And so on.

Very specific.

This week with my Year 8 boys’ singing group, I quizzed them about their practice since the last lesson. Interestingly - but unsurprisingly - the boy who scored highest in a technical work assessment had the most specific practice routine. Here is what he reported as being his practice routine:

“I sang each of our (5) scales 5 times to warm up.

Then I sang the vocalise, checking the breathing and the dynamics.

I practised the song, checking the rhythms at the bars you told us to.

I recorded myself singing to make sure that I wasn’t scooping or sliding.

Then I went through my parts in Matilda (their current school musical).”

Again, very specific and ordered.

We are living in an age where technology provides so many tools for practice – warm up apps, recording devices on our phones, backing tracks with or without voice / piano / orchestra. The list goes on.

But as music educators we still need to train effective practice habits.

Music Monday: Oklahoma

I’m sitting in the foyer of the State Theatre Centre, excited to see a preview of Oklahoma at Black Swan State Theatre Co.

There is a feeling of excitement and celebration all around me, as friends and strangers alike greet each other, all happy to be back in the theatre after what seems like the longest year. And everyone seems very mindful that most of the world is still unable to go to the theatre, so many theatres worldwide are still dark and desolate at this time.

Interval. There is energy, vibrancy and some fabulous singing in this reimagining of Oklahoma. The production seems to have taken inspiration from the now famous Circle in the Square production in New York. Except that this reimagining has Curly and Laurie as two girls and Aunt Eller played quite gender neutral. But no lines have been changed, so Curly is still referred to as ‘he’. It is slightly confusing- or perhaps deliberately unsettling. Or maybe they simply couldn’t get the rights to alter the words.

The star of the show for me is the music arranging. The songs are the same but the orchestration is in bluegrass style. It’s very appealing and appropriate. Jud Fry’s “Lonely Room” which always feels completely different from any other song in the show, is wonderful in this arrangement. The tension is heightened by the orchestration, and further by the actor singing from offstage with video projections into the smokehouse.

End of show. As we left the theatre, the famous mock courtroom scene carried extra resonance in the current American political climate.

This show is really worth seeing. Nine actors cover all the roles and ensemble with some backup vocals from the band. You will love it - or perhaps, long for the original version- but you won’t be unaffected by it.

Music Monday - Music teachers and musicians – keep playing those ‘Covid Concerti’

A week ago, I experienced a sudden and unexpected attack of gastro. It started as I got my backpack out of the car to start a new term of teaching – not great timing at all. After a hasty retreat to the staff facilities, I returned to my car and headed home to spend several hours in bed and the bathroom. Luckily for me it was a 24-hour thing and I was pretty much back to normal the next day. But I was perplexed. How had I caught it? Over the 7 months since the pandemic struck, I have followed strict routines of hand sanitising and cleaning the touchable surfaces in my home and teaching spaces. Here in Western Australia we are fortunate to have gone 6 months without community transmission of Covid so I – like many – have hugged the occasional friend. Could the gastro have come to me that way? And if so, had I passed it on to my husband? I kissed him goodbye that fateful morning. I was still pondering all this when I ran into a friend and work colleague. She shared with me that she, too, had had identical symptoms, and so had a student in one of her classes. Because the student fell ill during class, my friend had taken care to avoid direct contact with her (it was an acting class). However, at the end of class my friend had packed away ( and therefore touched) various shared props and equipment. This was possibly the source of transmission to her. That sparked a memory for me. A few days earlier I had been running late for a singing lesson. The student was waiting outside the room and there was also a student inside the room whom we had to ‘evict’. Usually I would sanitise the surfaces, including the piano keyboard, before starting on the lesson, but on this occasion, I recall thinking, “What harm can it do to skip that? After all we have no Covid in WA” I suspect (and I realise that this is anecdotal and speculative) that I could have picked up the virus that way and later, inadvertently touched my face. Now this was not Covid – it was a short-lived bout of gastro. But it serves as a reminder to us all – especially those of us living in the relative safety of Australia, where governments, both federal and state, have based their advice on medical science rather that politics – that the basics of hygiene are still our best protection against this awful virus. Observe social distancing, keep surfaces sanitised, wash your hands frequently, don’t touch your face – and when necessary, wear a mask! Some of my colleagues joke about the sound we all make when wiping down the piano keys with disinfectant as being the ‘Covid Concerto’. Musicians and teachers – please keep playing these Covid Concerti, whatever your instrument, until this damn pandemic ends.