Collegiate Writing Contest

 
Runner-up Essays
November/December 2009, Vol. 1 #6

In the Spring of 2009, Clavier Companion sponsored its second annual Collegiate Writing Contest. College students at any level from any country in the world were invited to submit 1,500 word essays on a pedagogical topic of their choice. The grand prize was publication of the winning essay in Clavier Companion. The esteemed panel of judges was comprised of Louise Goss, James Lyke, and Marienne Uszler. We extend our heartfelt congratulations to Scott Dirkse, author of the winning essay printed on page 64 of the current issue. We also want to congratulate four runner-up essays which appear below. These essays appear unedited, as they were submitted. We hope you enjoy reading the perspectives of these young teachers.

These students are the teachers of tomorrow and the future leaders of our profession. Clavier Companion is proud to provide them with an outlet for their ideas, and we will again sponsor this contest in 2010. The entry deadline for the 2010 contest will be June 1st, 2010 and complete rules and regulations can be downloaded here:
2010 Collegiate Writing Contest Rules and Regulations

The Career Challenge

by Carlos Gardels

A native of Los Angeles, Carlos Gardels began his piano studies at age seven, and presented his concerto debut at age fifteen as soloist in the Rachmaninoff third piano concerto under the direction of Robert Allen Gross with the Pasadena Youth Symphony. He is a recent graduate of the Manhattan School of Music where he was a scholarship student of Jeffrey Cohen, and is currently pursuing graduate studies at the Indiana University Jacbos School of Music under Evelyne Brancart.

As a student pursuing a degree in piano performance, one of the most frequent, necessary, honest, well-meaning, and occasionally annoying inquiries coming from my non-musical adult friends and colleagues is a resounding: “This is lovely, but what are you going to DO?!?!....  After years of doubt, reflection, and research, I have finally concluded that I will do just fine.

This is not to say that their question is not a valid one. It is in fact, extraordinarily valid–a question that every young person about to dedicate themselves to a life in music should have given ample thought to. Generally, the arts, along with an English degree, have always been looked upon as the riskiest of college majors. A large number of students who would have gone into music majors have gone elsewhere at the (arguably wise)  insistence of their parents and guidance counselor for one reason: A music degree provides no financial security. I was fortunate enough myself to have a supportive family who approved of me going to a conservatory. Of course, at the naïve age of 17, one doesn’t think of such things as student loan payments and health insurance. However, as time went on, it gradually sunk in that there would come a time when there would be  something to perfect other than the thirds in the coda of the fourth ballade–and that was securing a stable future. I then began to look closer than ever at those who had been in my shoes and shared my concerns in previous generations, and examined the paths they have since taken.  

Occasionally when I find myself bored, I visit websites of piano competitions and view the archives of all the past winners. I pick a random year, say, 1981–the third place winner. I run a Google search for this person’s name. At the very least, several results come up. Most include a biography, and a link to an institution or university. By most standards, these biographies indicate surprisingly impressive achievements for musicians not remotely famous. Even though they are naturally written to highlight and exaggerate one’s accomplishments, the hard facts in them remain true. I urge you, when given the time, to browse the websites of the following pianists:

The above listing is only a fraction of a world of pianists largely unknown, with no management, recordings contracts, or even major faculty positions. Simultaneously they are also a group of pianists who have carved out a perfect niche for themselves–all are obviously artists of the highest order in their own right who are managing to survive this business by creative combinations of teaching, self-promotion, administrative work, collaboration, and performance. While still a far cry from earning the type of salary a lawyer or physician could boast, it cannot be denied that here are musicians who are successfully supporting themselves and are, unlike many lawyers or physicians, doing so by doing something they have always wanted to do more than anything.

This is not to say that running a Google search for past competition winners is any sort of  effective reality check, but what it does do, for me, is re-affirm that even those musicians whom are NOT known to the world on a large scale still manage to keep themselves occupied with the inspirational concert lives they dreamed of.

An even clearer example, and idol of mine, is my high school piano teacher. Here is a woman who graduated from modest institutions, won a small competition in her twenties, and had no particular advantages going into her career. Currently, she has an adjunct position at a small private college, has a large studio of dedicated private students at considerable fees, composes occasionally, hosts a weekly classical music radio show, and recently became the artistic director of her own concert creation: a chamber and solo series showcasing her students and herself to a small but adoring and dedicated group of music lovers. On occasion, she even dabbles in music-related real estate. She married a pianist who performs for movie studios in Los Angeles. Through creativity, work, and patience the two of them have created a happy lifestyle that defies the typical “starving artist” stereotype that so plagues music majors. She teaches the music she loves and performs on a regular basis, albeit not for extraordinary fees or capacity crowds. It is quite possible that someone else who went into their career at the same time with equal talent is now in a completely different field because of an inflexible or unwilling attitude to adjust.  

What I have learned from her, and what I believe to be the problem with the typical view of a musician’s career, is that this is not something black or white. A pianist’s career is not fated between either having a ninety concert season and an EMI record contract or spending one’s entire life regrettably teaching beginners from dawn to dusk–as is so often thought. It is not between “making it” or not.  There are numerous shades of opportunity in between, as countless have demonstrated. In order to have access to this glorious middle-ground area, one has to be open minded and flexible, with willingness to take time out for self-promotion and execution of unconventional plans, as well as be technology-savvy and have excellent communication skills. Being aware of this has given me an incredible peace of mind in my own musical studies, and insures confidence in that my thousands of hours spent practicing were hours spent working towards something that will be beneficial pragmatically as well as spiritually.  

At this writing I have yet to even earn a masters degree. I have had several private students and have garnered small earnings from recitals, organizational events, and accompanying jobs. It is indeed possible that all of my above speculation will one day prove false and appear to have been nothing more than youthful ignorance. After all, this was an essay contest for the young, and when one is young all one can do is speculate. But I am optimistic enough to base the ideas in this paper on what I have perceived in those elder musician-idols around me - and how by means of a passion tempered with realistic goals, entrepreneurial skills, flexibility, technological knowledge, and imagination–they have been able to turn a degree in something seemingly limited and outdated into something financially and spiritually fulfilling, just as a sorcerer turns fire from water.

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