Why a Music School?

by Nancy England

The "why" can be explained to a large degree by talking about the "how." Music Arts grew from modest beginnings over 15 years ago. French horn instructor Marcay Dickens had two sons studying cello with me, and conversation often fell to the value of getting the kids to play in recitals.

Back then only teachers who had dozens of students could gather enough recitalists to justify the time, effort and expense of putting on a recital. Getting together for a French horn and cello recital seemed a good solution. After one or two recitals, violin instructor Jacinta Howard asked to have her students included, and other instructors soon joined. By the end of 1984 we had 14 faculty members. Since then, we've consistently had between 28 and 32 faculty members, covering the full range of instruments.

How did this affect the music student's chances of getting well-rounded, high quality instruction? One obvious benefit was offering teaching space to out-of-town instructors, including Knoxville Symphony members. In addition we could offer a choice of instructors, which would allow students to be placed with teachers who best matched their seriousness of purpose, or personality, or playing style; or location, or cost . . . just a few of the attributes which still determine which instructor a student might feel comfortable with.

The instructors agreed that they'd pool a percentage of their earnings to fund the music school expenses, such as advertising, phone, postage, printing, recitals and rent. It seemed that the more teachers and students we had, the more services we could offer. And there was no shortage of good ideas! One of the earliest was a scholarship fund for students who couldn't otherwise afford lessons. Every fall we work hard to build up our scholarship fund, and the results pay off for an average of 10 or 12 students each year.

Within months of forming the music school, we added the annual Performance Competition to our Spring Quarter. After a few years of awarding certificates, the faculty decided to reward the music school's best players with cash prizes. To this we added the Composition Contest, held in the Winter Quarter, giving students the chance to enrich their creativity and learn more about the process of putting notes on paper (or, as is now possible, computer).

The Theory Olympics, held every Fall Quarter, was added three years ago. Its advantages are obvious. We've discovered that the only thing that seems to hold back any student from signing up is a fear of looking uninformed. If it's any help, this club has many members. Most students who "risk" joining the Olympics realize that almost everyone else is at their level. There's no need for embarrassment. Students are divided into teams and work together. Even the shyest student is rewarded with increased skills.

Best placed in the "advertising' category, a popular feature appeared several years ago: the "Bonus Lesson" discount for our students who refer new students to any of our instructors. Some really enthusiastic students have earned themselves essentially free lessons over a period of several years.

We're in a continual process of developing our music library. We have over 2000 titles for piano. Music for all other instruments is available, but isn't fully cataloged. We accept donated music of all kinds.

None of this could have been undertaken by a single instructor. Our strength in numbers means wonderful opportunities for students. Your job is to take advantage of them!! You can learn more about these and other no-cost benefits by reading through the Music Arts Student Guide.

Nancy England is director of Music Arts and continues to teach cello. She plays with the Oak Ridge Community Orchestra and the Oak Ridge Symphony, and has played with the Knoxville Symphony. A past member of the Oak Ridge Board of Education, she is on the Executive Board of the Civic Music Association.