Music Skill in Higher Education: Re-thinking Pedagogy and Practice
Members of staff from various institutions across the UK met to discuss the nature of music skills in Higher Education in what turned out to be a highly engaging and thought provoking symposium. Guest speakers Rosemary Golding, Joe Bennett, Paul Fleet, Jennifer Daniel, and Freya Jarman-Ivens gave papers which led into question and answer sessions across all members of the symposia.
The day began with Rosemary grounding the symposium in her discussion of historical perspectives on the status and identity of teaching music. Joe followed by presenting various alternatives to clef-based systems and bringing the discussion back to modern modes of thought (which turned out to be not so far removed from those introduced by Rosemary).
After lunch and a chance to view and discuss the posters submitted by Alexander Street Press and the School of Music at the University of Leeds, Paul gave a presentation on his most recent research field which considers embodied learning strategies in music theory. Jennifer walked us through the learning experience and expectations of a school leaver from the moment they enter music education until the time they reach university. Freya concluded the papers by asking us to reconsider what starting from ‘scratch’ actually entails when designing a first year module on music analysis.
The day finished with a plenary session where the various topics of the day were brought to the fore and lines of common practice could be considered alongside ideas which would be considered in a further symposium. Details of this symposium will be posted on this website in due course.
