I just arrived in Miami, and I know that the OConnor Method teacher training seminar is wrapping up tonight as I write this. It was led by the wonderful Melissa Tong. We had 11 teachers there, wonderful people. As I spoke and demonstrated in front of those teachers Friday, two right in front of me by just about 3 feet, were both Suzuki trained from age four, and are professional freelance players in New York City. But they were there for me and for the future of string playing in our country. Suzuki had his chance with his all-technical-ear-memorizing baroque music approach for kids and in 50 years we have seen the strength of the violin drastically diminish in both academic and popular culture during that time. All of the other traditional instruments have fared much better in the same time period like brass, winds, guitar, percussion and keyboards. There are five days before the next teacher training begins on my Method here in Miami at the University with Pamela Wiley leading that one. Last report, there are 20 teachers signed up. Folks, just think of the thousands of students impacted over the next 10 years by just this week of trainings. It is wrong to think that a thousand more concerts of Mozart will turn it around. Play Mozart because you like it, not because you think it will make the kind of difference we need for strings. We need to create new Mozarts and from the violin. We need more people with my set of abilities... I composed Vistas for Yo-Yo Ma, he loved it, recorded it with me. And the album sold a half-million copies - the best selling chamber music recording in history. What if there were a bunch of these type of groups that were writing music and could improvise and could move people emotionally with new music and ideas at the top level - I am saying at the top levels of the profession like we did? The way we do it is to both create the students with this training, and the millions that we teach who dont become a Mozart will go to create the culture that supports this that they love. Just like in Bluegrass, not everyone can pick like Earl can they? Thank you everyone that has come on board! I just wrote the foreword today for Book IV - visionary language and terms that have been floating around all year - like diversity. Sounds good doesnt it - the violin should be right in the middle of that in America, and it has been a crime to keep it out! We can change that now. twitpic/dxbnle
Posted on: Mon, 24 Mar 2014 00:54:38 +0000
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