2006 Edition 2 (Issue 144) - Sasmt-savmo.org.za

More documents

Recommendations

Info

we can learn from these highly successful music educators. And thus for our edification Faan Malan was asked a battery of questions. Did you think long and hard before starting KAM? Was any research (like feasibility studies) done? Did you speak to many other people, or did you quickly do an MBA? Business plan? We were forced to make a quick decision. We were all employed in Taung, when the political uprising made it impossible to do our work. Kimberley was simply the nearest big centre and we did some planning and market research. In March 1994 we called all the Kimberley music teachers to a meeting in the Teachers’ Centre and told them what we had in mind and we asked their blessing. The rest is history. No one did an MBA — maybe later. Did KAM have trouble with finding and retaining learners? Did you advertise? How? We had the blessing of the music teachers in town. They gave us all the support we needed. The people of Kimberley also accepted us with open arms. All we had to do was to make sure we offer quality tuition. Word-of-mouth was (and still is) the main method of advertising. Which relationships did you build with other stakeholders such as schools and local government? Did you have suitable contacts, or a network of supporters in important places? Can you provide advice to others who will attempt something similar? Government was in turmoil at this time (1994). We had to rely on basics such as good service, honesty and co-operation with schools. The network of supporters and contacts followed. Did you find that the institution had to adapt to a changing environment? What are some of the external pressures that you have (had) to contend with? Today, almost 13 years later, the Kimberley Academy of Music is a completely different institution. From a private music school with only a small number of staff and students, we are now the Music Faculty of the National Institute for Higher Education in the Northern Cape, with 700 students and 14 staff members. There are numerous external pressures. Classical music has to compete with sport and all sorts of instant entertainment. Due to our efforts, several schools in Kimberley now have their own music programmes, orchestras, choirs, shows, etc. We have to compete for a slice of the ‘time cake’. Then there is money. Tuition fees had to be high to make it worthwhile for our teachers. How did you (and the rest of your staff) deal with the uncertainties that accompany the start of a new venture? What were some of the risks that you had to take? Initially we were only three teachers. It is important not to spend too much initially on setting up. We hired classrooms at a junior school in the afternoons for a few months before investing in property for our venture. We initially invested much time and enthusiasm (rather than money) and quickly built up a clientele. The quicker our student numbers grew, the more secure we felt. We felt very confident that we could make a success of starting and running such a music school — there were no uncertainties that I can remember. Where there any unsuspected opportunities that helped KAM along the way? The establishment of the National Institute for Higher Education (NIHE) in the Northern Cape had a major influence on the development of KAM. This changed our direction and scope by introducing an exciting era of tertiary studies. Do you have strategies to find out what learners and parents think? To what extent are they partners in planning and executing activities such as rehearsals and concerts? Or are they simply executing orders? The only strategy we follow is one of personal contact. We often talk to our clients and establish what their needs are in an informal way. Very often it becomes necessary to tell them what to do. How important is it for your staff members to be good role models? What specific things do they do? Are they involved in continued professional development? Very important. We have staff concerts and play in ensembles and bands together with students. Most of the staff members are busy studying something and attend related workshops regularly. Skills development is a pre-requisite for employment at the Academy of Music. Are their certain processes in place to ensure shared ownership of the institution? The Kimberley Academy of Music is a Section 21 (nonprofit making) Company. Five of the seven board members are staff members. How do you find and keep the continued support of your community? We offer services to schools such as help and support for choirs, orchestras, school concerts and musical productions. Our staff and students perform at various community based events. We try to stay in the public eye. How did you ensure that your institution created profit? How did you establish the lesson fees? Creating a profit was never the goal of this project. Making enough money to pay salaries and necessary expenses was the aim. Income (lesson fees) was worked out by deciding how much a teacher should earn. An average is 25 hours teaching (50 X 30min lessons) Teachers were paid 90% of this income as salary and were responsible for their own tax and the other 10% was used for Academy expenses. This budget did not allow for anything but the absolute necessities – luxuries were OUT as we put the emphasis on the standard of education and our relationships with clients. This scenario is based on the Academy when it was totally private — before the merger with NIHE. Suid-Afrikaanse Musiek Onderwyser |144 | November 2006
Where there any constraints that eventually became opportunities? In the few months before we moved to Kimberley we approached a few big businesses for funding. They all refused us. We had to structure our business so that we could generate all the funding ourselves to pay teachers and running expenses. This forced us to think creatively about ways in which musicians can make money and it became an opportunity for us to develop skills in areas of music that we previously had not needed to investigate. For instance, we wrote music books which we sold to our students, promoted ourselves as musicians for corporate functions and weddings and presented demos at schools. Which values and dreams does your staff share? We all strive for quality tuition and the survival of our product in a very competitive market. For which aspects of you current career did your music education fail to prepare you? Business, management, accounting, bookkeeping and entrepreneurial skills are subjects that we needed to have qualified in, in order to be sufficiently equipped for managing a music school. Improvisation for Drummers It has been my experience that drummers in improvisation classes are often at loose ends when the class is taught by a non-drummer. While I’m certainly no expert on the instrument, I have recommendations for jazz improvisation teachers with drummers in their classes. Drummers should be able to solo over the form of the assigned pieces and play the correct ‘feel’ of the assigned pieces. It is optional but highly recommended that all drummers should be able to play on the piano or sing assigned material: the songs, scales and patterns. Furthermore, drummers should be able to perform simple 3-note to 5-note piano voicings to the assigned pieces. Jazz Improvisation Level 1 drummers should be able to solo and play contrasting tunes, feels, forms and tempos before advancing to Jazz Improvisation 2. Contrasting exam pieces could be selected from the following list: Impressions/So What — John Coltrane’s and Miles Davis’ recordings Blue Bossa — Joe Henderson’s recording Summertime — John Coltrane’s recording Watermelon Man — Herbie Hancock’s recording Song for my Father — Horace Silver’s recording Satin Doll — McCoy Tyner’s recording Cantaloupe Island — Herbie Hancock’s recording Footprints — Miles Davis’ recording South African Music Teacher |144 | November 2006 Faan Malan het in 1978 gematrikuleer aan die Pretoriase Hoërskool vir Kuns, Ballet en Musiek. Na ‘n B.Mus. Ed. (US) en M.Mus (UCT) in Franse Horing, het hy in verskeie orkeste opgetree as professionele horingspeler. Koperblaasonderrig, dirigeer en die afrigting van blaasorkeste maak ‘n groot deel uit van sy lewe. Hy het ook al in Kaapstad en Bloemfontein gewerk. Doxy — Sonny Rollins’ or Miles Davis’ recording Autumn Leaves — Cannonball Adderly’s recording Jazz Improvisation Level 2 drummers should be able to solo and play contrasting tunes, feels, forms and tempos before advancing to Jazz Improvisation 3. Contrasting exam pieces should be selected from the class tune list. The following material is highly recommended for developing different feels, tempos, styles and forms. Drummers should be able to perform in the correct style and solo over: All Blues, All the Things You Are, A Night in Tunisia, Body and Soul, Confirmation, Four, I’ll Remember April, Oleo, On Green Dolphin Street and Star Eyes. Mike Rossi, a woodwind specialist and professor at the South African College of Music (UCT) received the Doctor of Musical Arts degree in Jazz Studies from the prestigious New England Conservatory in Boston, USA. He regularly performs at jazz festivals and conducts workshops in South African, Europe and the USA.
Page 3 and 4: South African Music Teacher |144 |
Page 7 and 8: 4 preamble 8 editorial 9 letters fe
Page 9 and 10: Universal Edition produced Soundsne
Page 11 and 12: Thank you for my copy of issue 143
Page 13 and 14: From 18 to 22 September this year t
Page 15 and 16: College in Rondebosch. In 1939 he j
Page 17 and 18: different assessors than students w
Page 19 and 20: D i s t e v e r o m t e r y . . . I
Page 21 and 22: In the meantime I had received the
Page 23 and 24: e-evaluate almost all our current a
Page 25 and 26: oral assessments Music theory teach
Page 27 and 28: Dit is juis hier waar die probleem
Page 29 and 30: R e f l e c t i o n o n t h e a s s
Page 31 and 32: This is a beginners’ tutor, and I
Page 33 and 34: contains along with comments intend
Page 35 and 36: With all the aspects regarding prep
Page 37 and 38: This does not mean that these cultu
Page 39 and 40: and friendliness of the examiners w
Page 41 and 42: e s o u r c e s ~ b r o n n e Fifty
Page 43 and 44: in ‘ n S u i d - A f r i k a n e
Page 45: In his 1996 presidential address Pr
Page 49 and 50: valuable guidelines on examination
Page 51 and 52: It was a great joy for me to play t
Page 53 and 54: e s o u r c e s ~ b r o n n e South
Page 55 and 56: n e w s ~ n u u s More OEmF! at Kin
Page 57 and 58: The six volumes of Jazz Sessions by

2006 Edition 2 (Issue 144) - Sasmt-savmo.org.za

Create successful ePaper yourself

Delete template?

Save as template?