COMPREHENSIVE MUSICIANSHIP THROUGH PERFORMANCE: A Paradigm for Restructuring

A Paradigm for Restructuring

By Mel Pontious

Over the past several years a spate of educational initiatives have been suggested which have a common theme--a restructuring of the way we teach students. They have generally focused on differentiated instruction, able learner programs, teaching to individual learning styles, and "authentic" learning activities and assessment. Of course, many of these approaches have been used for years by innovative teachers, and a project begun a few years ago by some Wisconsin music educators actually anticipated aspects of many of the current school restructuring models. Entitled the Comprehensive Musicianship through Performance Project (CMP), it was begun as a reaction to the narrow, performance skills-based programs that over the years have produced outstanding performing groups but often failed to help students develop a depth of musical understanding or a life-long attachment to music of subtlety and artistry. This is a description of CMP, a process of instruction which can help students develop not only the knowledge about music's structure, history, and aesthetics, but also the ability to make informed judgments about it.

It was initiated in Wisconsin in 1977 as a means of promoting "performance with understanding" in middle and high school band, choir, and orchestra programs. The project began with a pilot group of highly respected ensemble teachers selected from a diverse group of school districts. This group developed and tested a process for planning rehearsal instruction which has since been shared through workshops with band, choir, and orchestra directors throughout the state of Wisconsin and the nation.

This model for planning and delivering instruction is not a curriculum but rather a means to change the rehearsal period into a learning workshop for developing not only performance skills but also knowledge about music. It can be applied to any set of course objectives. A crucial question for many districts is whether this change of focus would mean sacrificing the fine performances which the community, administrators, students, and conductors have come to value and expect. Happily, one of the outcomes of this project is the discovery that time spent teaching comprehensive musicianship actually improves the quality of performance!

In CMP the teacher acts as a learning facilitator, posing tasks and lines of inquiry for the students that are based on the music being performed. Possible student outcomes are practically limitless, ranging from knowledge of styles, composers, and contemporary history; to elements of form, such as phrase, rondo, or ternary structure; to theoretical concepts such as key, modes, harmony, or counterpoint. It is a very practical approach, since the music the group is preparing for performance is the instructional vehicle.

This implies a careful selection and preparation of the music to be performed. There are basically five areas with which the conductor must deal in this process--music selection, objectives, analysis, strategies, and assessment. Depending on the perceived need, the conductor may begin with any of these areas and proceed to the others in any sequence. For instance, after selecting a composition and dealing with its salient points as an educational medium, the conductor may next analyze its central focus, style, and historical and technical points. From that will come the development of objectives, teaching strategies, and assessment procedures. Alternatively, the teacher may wish to use certain strategies (e.g., composing, arranging, improvising) and establish those before assessing student needs and selecting music suitable to the strategies.

From this preparation the teacher can facilitate student learning in any number of ways. More holistic learning through integration of instruction is a goal of school restructuring, and the study of a composition could have obvious implications for reinforcement in the areas of history, foreign language, science, math, art, and language arts.

Involving students in active decision-making regarding their own progress is another desired outcome of school restructuring, In this connection some conductors involve students in self- and peer-assessment through recordings of their performances. Many also have their students keep portfolios of all they do, from taped practice sessions to compositions. These and other such activities help students become independent learners through making decisions about their own work, how best to improve it, and possible future directions for study. Cooperative learning and differentiated instruction, two more goals of school restructuring, are also strategies with direct application in the CMP process.

CMP also stresses teaching through the various student learning modalities--verbal/abstract, kinesthetic, visual, and aural. Although favored learning styles will vary among any grouping of students, CMP requires students to use and develop all modalities. This is a direct result of the wide-ranging, hands-on involvement by the student. Instead of confining their activities to developing performance skills and adhering without question to the conductor's interpretation, students exercise all modalities through listening, analyzing, arranging, composing, discussing, evaluating, and other musicianly roles. An important aspect of the CMP process is the students' recognition of these activities as "real-life," as opposed to "school-life" activities. From the beginning students are involved as practicing musicians, a point stressed in such recent initiatives as the Arts PROPEL project directed by Howard Gardner of Harvard Project Zero.

As an example, consider the wealth of possibilities which lie in students writing their own instrumental warm-ups based on their own particular technical challenges. Among many other things, it can be an introduction to the act of composing; can bring an awareness of the harmonic implications of an arpeggio and melodic line; and can help develop technique and pitch acuity. Similar activities for beginners might be improvising question and answer melodies or variations on a familiar theme. These are substantive learning activities that students find challenging, engaging, and fun.

Student involvement also extends to concert performances. Students research and write program notes; arrange motivic demonstrations which clarify a composition's form and structure for the audience; describe important historical or stylistic features; and/or detail the various activities and learning experiences in which the group was involved. Such performances are often called "Informances."

It should be noted that general music classes can also be structured on the CMP model. Here again, the use of Arts PROPEL strategies in conjunction with CMP is an excellent way to involve students in developing deep understandings.

Finally, we should acknowledge one pesky fly in this ointment: TIME. Yes, CMP does take extra time, but less than one would think. At the CMP workshops it is suggested that during the first year teachers should try the CMP approach on only one or two compositions. Usually by the end of that year teachers are using it exclusively. For one thing, when students become self-directed, they learn more quickly and transfer such learning more readily. AND, if time is exceedingly tight, what would it mean if . . . there were one less performance each year? or one less selection per concert? Would the student learning and engagement be worth it?

Restructuring the way teachers, students, and schools interact is an important challenge for educators. Music educators who have adopted the CMP model have discovered an invigorating answer to this challenge. CMP workshops are held each school year, with a longer workshop for college credit held during the summer.

Contact: Jan Tweed, phone 608/249-4566 or
Melvin Pontious, phone: 608/ 267-5042 -- FAX: (608) 266-1965

For questions about this information, contact Melvin F. Pontious (608) 267-5042

Last updated on 2/25/2008 1:42:47 PM