After almost two years of pandemic craziness, the 2021-2022 school year was thought to be a “Great Awakening” for the George School music program. The performances of the GS musicians in various assemblies, Holiday Meeting For Worship, and the Spring Concert was outstanding. Just as everyone thought that nothing could get better for the music program, the new 7-term schedule was announced, which was bound to bring tremendous changes to not only the music program, but the school as a whole.
The music program, with its director and only teacher, David Nolan, consists of five main classes: String Ensemble, Wind Ensemble, Vocal Ensemble, IB Music, and Audio Recording and Production. All of the String Ensemble players, along with some Wind Ensemble players, and the Principal Piano are required to attend weekly orchestra rehearsals.
Many members who are deeply involved in the music program and the music department, including myself, have rather mixed feelings for the new schedule. This is largely because music classes are generally something that should be continuous, rather than separated into three five week mods, because music needs constant and continuous practice in order to be improved. This article will mainly focus on a compilation of opinions and attitudes towards the new schedule and how it is affecting and going to further impact the musicians and the music program as a whole.
First off, I interviewed David Nolan, Director of Music, and also the teacher of the five classes mentioned above (String Ensemble, Wind Ensemble, Vocal Ensemble, IB Music, and Audio Recording and Production). Dave shared that he is somewhat nervous and hesitant about the new schedule stating,“For the development of music, consistency is key,” Dave also shared that, “To have a class for 5 weeks, and not to see them for 5, possibly 10, or 15 weeks, is concerning. Generally progress starts to go backwards a little bit. There is no way we could work on a piece of music, take a ten week break, come back to it, and expect it to be where we were when we started the break.” Dave also expressed his concerns for the development of individual musicians that “aren’t enrolled in private lessons or don’t have any passion and motivation to practice their instruments”. Despite his concerns regarding the new schedule and the music program, Dave also discussed the advantages of the new schedule. To begin, the new schedule provides more opportunities for smaller ensembles, such as a string quartet, a piano trio, etc., to perform and be highlighted in concerts. In addition, students who couldn’t take a full year of music now have the chance to join one mod of an ensemble or different ensembles, in which they could get to perform with different musicians. However, Dave is still rather unsure and worried about the long-term impacts and changes being brought upon to the music program.
Next, I talked to Kentaro Bauer, a sophomore boarder who currently holds the Principal Cello position, who also shared his opinion on the new schedule and how he thinks the new schedule is going to affect his future experience in the music program. “I think overall it definitely affects the consistency for String Ensemble, Wind Ensemble, and Vocal Ensemble. There needs to be consistency in terms of practicing an instrument, especially for performance and concerts throughout the year.”
Sam Gorby, Principal Trumpet and a four-year Wind Ensemble member, expressed their opinions on the new schedule as a senior who has undergone a lot of changes (apparently, four different schedules!). They had similar views with Kentaro and Dave, sharing, “I think it’s harder to build experience and get better when the terms are separated like this.” The first two mods of Wind Ensemble are consecutive, however, the third mod will be in term 5. Sam felt they improved a lot during the first two terms, however, they fear that with a four-month break, their skills might decline without practicing everyday. As a musician, Sam felt it’s really imperative for them to find time to practice, especially because there isn’t a year-long music class anymore.
Lastly, Edith Malungu, a soprano singer in Vocal Ensemble and also a student of the Audio Production course, commented on the new schedule and how she thinks it will affect her experience as a music student. Edith felt that the new schedule has both advantages and disadvantages. The advantages of the new schedule, according to Edith, is that she is able to take multiple arts courses, including Audio Production and Vocal Ensemble, while also taking IB HL Music, because of her deep passion for music and her future pursuit in the music industry, “I definitely want music to be in my future somewhere,” she said. However, she finds the new schedule somewhat upsetting at the same time, because she doesn’t have a music course every term and everyday.
To conclude, Dave and all the students I’ve talked with, have rather mixed feelings about the new schedule. The pros and cons are both very obvious, nevertheless, the real long-term impacts the new schedule brings upon us are still unknown.
