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ity leads our students to believe that tokens are more important than experiences. A wonderful mentor of mine once said,“ the problem with any token system is when the token becomes the‘ it.” Positive reinforcement via trophies, certificates, and the like may serve as motivational and recruitment tools for students to participate in musical ensembles. However, if such“ tokens” become the“ it” or end goal, then we have misled our students into believing they have failed by not earning the cherished“ Superior” or“ 1 st place” award.
The Benefits Of Balance
A balanced approach to performing in a less stressful environment, receiving constructive feedback with an open mind, and accepting“ collaborative competition” within the ensemble might help students to focus on personal growth as musicians. Options to receive ratings versus rankings provide directors with opportunities to select performance experiences that align with their personal philosophies or cater to the learning needs of their ensembles. For example, a first-year teacher attempting to rebuild a fledgling program might consider a“ participation only” option with feedback, while a seasoned conductor with a secure and musically advanced ensemble might wish to receive a ranking or rating for self-improvement. The latter choice would challenge conductors and students to reflect on their own performances from an objective point of view in comparing most recent feedback to earlier rankings or ratings of the same repertoire. Self-reflection and evaluation should preclude competition against other ensembles to nurture an intrinsic desire to improve and grow as young musicians. In summary, scaffolding experiences are most effective when music educators select the best performance options for their ensembles at the appropriate time.
Critical Thought Beyond The Performance
Perhaps it might be our responsibility to empower students to evaluate the merits and pitfalls of competing in a performance environment after participating in said“ festivals” or“ adjudications.” While a few researchers have investigated interrater reliability within the context of actual large-group festivals, music evaluation in relation to adjudicator bias and experience, contest procedures, repertoire selection, ensemble size, and grade inflation 6, such efforts within the classroom encourage critical and reflective thinking beyond mere participation and acceptance or rejection of the feedback.
It may be worth the sacrifice of rehearsal time to listen to prerecorded feedback from judges / adjudicators( always prescreen recorded comments before listening to them with the students!) and to share written scores among members of the ensemble as an opportunity for them to discuss various opinions of aesthetic interpretations and musicianship skills. Facilitating group discussions of feedback within the class could include all of the National Core Arts Anchor Standards( Creating, Performing, Responding, & Connecting) as well as components of the New Jersey Core Curriculum Content Standards( 1.4 Aesthetic Responses & Critique Methodologies).
Filtering The Feedback
Feedback from adjudicators and audience responses can be overwhelming, constructive, positive, negative, or all of the above. Much of this feedback is based upon the conductor’ s artistic decisions or interpretation of the repertoire manifested via the performance. Adjudicators who value authentic, high quality, and aesthetically rewarding performances usually provide comprehensive and constructive feedback designed to enhance overall musicianship. Specific strategies for improvement are often suggested and positive aspects of the performance are acknowledged in addition to the areas that need to be addressed. Unfortunately, not all feedback is useful, and it is important to keep in mind that“ Rome wasn’ t built in a day.” A fifteen-minute workshop with a clinician constantly questioning the director’ s selection of a piece, or recorded feedback from an adjudicator obsessed with the mispronunciation of a French vowel will not immediately transform a mediocre performance into a“ superior” encore. It is critical to focus on the overall performance and broad categories of intonation, phrasing, musicianship, rhythmic precision, etc., rather than perseverate over a minor mistake or isolated comment. Generally, if all adjudicators seem to agree on the same specific errors or musical weaknesses of the ensemble’ s performance, then this feedback merits your attention.
Finally, students should be provided with the opportunity to sift through festival feedback and employ suggested strategies for improvement in order to formulate informed opinions regarding the integrity of their own performances. Reimer emphasizes the need for performance teachers to help students realize that artistic actions must eventually become independent of their teachers’ internalized models.“ When they are helped to gain and appropriate within themselves the musical models they need to call upon, they are enabled to become independent musicians / artists.” 7 The ultimate goal for many music educators is to inspire and empower students to become lifelong musicians. Appropriate festival performance experiences catered to the needs and stages of development within each ensemble serve as milestones for the overall personal, musical, and social growth of our students.
( Endnotes) 1 https:// worldstrides. com / on-stage / 2 https:// www. musicforall. org / what-we-do / mfa-national-festival / msnmf 3 Stamer, R. A.( 2004). Choral student perceptions of the music contest experience. Update: Applications of Research in Music Education, 22( 2), 5-12. doi: 10.1177 / 87551233040220020102
4 Holsbert, P. W.( 2007). Motivating musicians in the winter doldroms, part II. TEMPO!, 61( 4), 25.
5 West, C.( 2013). Motivating music students: A review of the literature. Update: Applications of Research in Music Education, 31( 2), 11-19. doi: 10.1177 / 8755123312473611
6 Hash, P. M.( 2012). An analysis of the ratings and interrater reliability of high school band contests. Journal of Research in Music Education, 60( 1), 81-100. doi: 10.1177 / 0022429411434932
7 Reimer, B.( 2009). Seeking the Significance of Music Education: Essays and Reflections. Lanham, MD: Rowman & Littlefield Education.
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