I am a 25-year-old musicianship teacher and classical singer from Northern Ireland, and have recently accepted a place on the MMus Vocal Performance and Kodály Musicianship course at the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland in Glasgow. I have also recently taken on the role of musicianship lecturer at the Junior Conservatoire of Scotland. My plan for the future is to go back to Northern Ireland and teach musicianship in areas of deprivation, especially in the rural parts of Northern Ireland, as well as develop creative hubs and spaces for people living with dementia and special educational needs to come together and experience the life-changing power of music.
I don't really know where to begin! The BKA Summer School 2017 was one of the highlights of my professional training to date. It is almost surreal now to think that I was fortunate enough to not only experience the highest level of musicianship training from the world's most incredible Kodály experts, but also to be selected as one of the recipients of the Cecilia Vajda Memorial Scholarship award, which, in all honesty, made this experience possible for me.
Bringing theory alive
During the course I attended a range of different musicianship classes during the day, and every evening I took part in the extra activities which included Morris dancing, Elgar part songs and of course, the Irish ceilidh. As invaluable and worthwhile as every single class was for my personal development on the 10-day course, I want to give a particular mention to a few of my own personal highlights. Firstly, to my amazing musicianship tutor, Esther Hargittai. Somehow, she managed to turn all the mathematical information that lay dead in my brain from those previous, scary ABRSM ‘theory’ exams about figured bass, chordal progression and modal harmony, into solfa magic! Already, I have started embedding these new ways of thinking with my new class of 10- to 16-year-old musicianship students, who, after just one month of teaching, have already told me how much easier, and fun, their musicianship class is. Magic!
Information, knowledge and inspiration
Another inspirational and exciting class during the course for me was ‘musicianship in choir’ with Árpád Tóth. His witty and eccentric personality enabled me to focus and absorb everything for the duration of each class. His approach to teaching kept the learning process fresh and exhilarating. I learnt the basic art of choral conducting, new, fun ways to teach musicianship (including solfa, phrasing, harmony, and ensemble skills) with community or secondary-aged choirs, as well as receiving a vast range of age-appropriate repertoire which will aid me in my new work with teenagers.
And finally, I couldn't write this report without mentioning the incredible teaching experience I had with László Nemes. I have never experienced anything as innovative, exciting and mind-blowingly unique as I did during my time in László's ‘musicianship in choir’ class. His ways of breaking down complex renaissance and baroque choral pieces, into simplified rhythmic, harmonic and melodic chunks have been such a positive influence on my own personal teaching ethos. Although these are my three personal highlights, I have to say that the information, knowledge and inspiration I received from every single tutor (and students on the course alike), was like nothing I have ever experienced before. The repertoire, the unique teaching ideas, the musicianship, the methodology, the friendships and even the new dance moves I learnt from the Morris dancing evening will ensure that the BKA Summer School 2017 stays in my heart forever.
“The BKA Summer School 2017 was one of the highlights of my professional training to date”
The 36th International Kodály Summer School
4-10 August À University of Nottingham À Fees TBC
Eight guest tutors will join the six-strong UK team to deliver this year's summer school, including sessions on choral singing and musicianship, with optional individual singing, piano lessons or chamber-music coaching. www.kodaly.org.uk/courses
