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Vol. XXI No. 8 May 2006 |
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Examining Tradition From the Inside Out
This column normally focuses on one faculty and one staff member each month, but here's a different twist for our last issue celebrating Juilliard's centennial. Instead of focusing on two individuals, we asked faculty members—11 current and 2 emeriti—who've been at Juilliard 20 years or more to comment on how the School, and their own perspectives, have changed since they began teaching. The resulting collage of answers presents an enlightening portrait of an ever-evolving institution … and the inspirational faculty who are behind it.
Michael Kahn It used to be that the dancers were in one place and the musicians were in another, and occasionally they got together. This may sound a bit odd, but then it was an atmosphere that seemed less wholesome and more neurotic. There is now a tremendous focus on programs to help the students—the Mentoring program, Colloquium, psychological services, the dorm, the Horizons programs, the parties, the active student life. There was never so much focus on making it possible for the students to exist in a more conscious and social and political way. Jane Kosminsky
Roger Oliver The level of emphasis on thinking is miles higher. When I first started in the early '70s, Juilliard was a good deal like the myth: for stars, not for brains. Now it is really a school, in which broad learning is possible for those who choose to pursue it. The residence hall, as well as all the student services, have made a vast difference in the attitudes of students and our ability to cope with failures, discouragement, and all of the normal problems facing young artists. Joel Sachs
Greta Berman What are the biggest changes/improvements at Juilliard since you began teaching at the School?
Lewis Kaplan The first real shock I had at Juilliard was in my second or third year, when one of my students came up to me after class and wanted to talk to me about something that clearly upset him. His teacher had seen him talking to a student who studied with another teacher of the same instrument and had said, "I forbid you to talk to any students of this teacher." I thought this was absolutely appalling, and I had never experienced anything like it in any educational institution. That kind of thing would not happen nowadays, nor would it be tolerated by the administration. Roger Oliver Would you like to be a student at Juilliard now? Why or why not? Of course! Juilliard is in New York City at Lincoln Center, with an enlightened administration, the best facilities, and a premium faculty. Around the world, it is a magic name. Joseph Bloch Well, I think once is enough! I've been grateful to Juilliard for getting a wonderful education, and I've had a great life teaching here, and I have no regrets. Martin Canin
Gerre Hancock Yes, because we couldn't do an academic exchange with Columbia and Barnard back when I was a student, and that would have interested me. Also, the dance program is much more eclectic. These days, dancers have to work in many styles to make a living, and the program supports that. The demands are huge, and what is offered in terms of the program is phenomenal. It's very rigorous, and because I was the kind of kid who would have danced 26 hours out of 24, if it were possible, Juilliard as it is now would be the ideal place. Jane Kosminsky What would you say to a prospective Juilliard student who wasn't sure if this was the place for him/her? Do not go after a career in the arts unless you absolutely can't live without it. Play your instrument, act, dance—enjoy it, love it. You don't have to be a professional to do so. Never mind that some will consider you an amateur. An amateur is one who loves his/her art (amateur=lover). There is a difference between amateur and amateurish. Baruch Arnon They should come and watch classes and watch the teaching. Watch the dancers in performance, and in class. Find out. Don't let it be an accident. Jane Kosminsky
Robert Neff Williams If students are not sure, they should go to a liberal arts college while they pursue their artistic study. Juilliard may not be the place for them right away. I had one student in a humanities class who decided Juilliard wasn't exactly what he wanted. He left and went to one of the top small liberal arts colleges, and then came back to Juilliard for his master's. This may be heresy, but I think he got the best of both possible worlds. Roger Oliver Visit, talk with students, meet your teacher, try it out—you have to want to be a serious performer and want to come to Juilliard, not just come because you got in. Rebecca Scott If you could clear up one Juilliard myth, what would it be? We are not the West Point of conservatories! People are amazed, when they come to audition in the Dance Division, that our students are warm and caring and responsive to their needs. The faculty is supportive to an extreme extent—sometimes, of course, the students don't realize that until 10 years after the fact! Jane Kosminsky
Joel Sachs That Juilliard teaches only technique and Juilliard students are not musical, only technical. Our students are thoughtful, sensitive, serious musicians, and concerned with finding ways to let the music speak to the listeners. Rebecca Scott For me, there are two myths. As a graduate of the Institute of Musical Art, founded in 1905 by Frank Damrosch, I am well aware of how different that school was from Juilliard; the 100-year birth date is manufactured. Also, it is one of the best music schools in the world, but there are others. Robert Mann What about Juilliard in the "old days" would current students find quaint or surprising?
Joseph Bloch In the Claremont Avenue building, before the days of self-service elevators, we had elevator men: Joe and Louie. And the coat check room was where people left things—messages, packages—and met, and chatted with Annie, who was very Irish, with a wonderful brogue, and always kind of funny, and very nice. Martin Canin That many teachers called their students by their last name, using Mr., Ms., Miss, and Mrs. Rebecca Scott Has your teaching changed over the years? How?
Jane Kosminsky I have a deeper understanding of the problems students have with the material, a greater variety of ways to approach the material, and more flexibility in handling it. Rebecca Scott
Robert Mann When I began, I gave traditional "lights out" art-history lecture courses (like those I myself had, as a student). Students promptly tuned out, fell asleep, or (the best ones) provoked and interrupted—in essence, forcing me to change. My classes are far more oriented now towards asking questions, eliciting students' thoughts, analyses, and opinions. We always have lively conversations. And if we don't "cover" the syllabus, that is O.K. Students are not here to become art historians, but to learn something they can apply to their own fields. Greta Berman Have Juilliard students changed over the years?
Baruch Arnon With a few shining exceptions, students are more and more lacking in cultural background and knowledge of art, music, and history—especially theatrical history. The American educational system seems to be failing them, and so I now try to present such background material as often as possible. My other observation is that, having had in my classes every student who has studied in the Drama Division, I have long been aware that, although the names change and the faces change somewhat, the same general types—with surprisingly similar voices, appearances, and acting styles—reappear every few years. Robert Neff Williams In recent years—slowly and quietly, but surely—a transformation has begun to take place, for the students are becoming more involved in promoting the work of our profession to a wider public than before. In learning to communicate with audiences, in far-ranging ways, our Juilliard community is making larger audiences—and not a moment too soon! Gerre Hancock
Rebecca Scott Students through necessity have become more realistic, practical, and goal-oriented. Robert Mann The biggest change, with respect to students, was the requirement that Juilliard students reaudition for the master's program. That immediately opened up the doors to quality on the postgraduate level and brought an influx of many graduates of top-flight undergraduate institutions such as Harvard and Stanford, thereby dramatically improving the intellectual climate and proving that being bright and curious is actually good for performing. Joel Sachs | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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