Philadelphia Conservatory of Music - Variations Yearbook (Philadelphia, PA)

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all W All educalion is sell educalion bul' some environmenls are more 'favorable 'ro ihe process lhan olhers. In my classes I hope lo provide climalic condilions helpful lo an educalional process conceived fo co- ordinaie lhe abilily and personalily of lhe individual sludenl. In class discussion lhe sludenl is exposed lo a variely ol opinions and experi- ences. He learns lo work wilh people of diuclerenl' background and lemperamenl. Everyone is engaged in lhe same process ol search and discovery. I+ mighl be poinled oul, however, lhal lhis search can be more successlully carried on il, from lime 'ro lime, music in form of lhe prinled page is laid upon a llal surface and scrulinized carefully-al home. VINCENT PERSICHETTI iiilfrudile sludenls will recognize I'I. W. as lhe abbrevialion lor Home Work . !Q8I1'l Gill LU! .7 One day you fold me of your approach fo a 'Famous sculpfor, when you were a mere boy. You said he fold you where fhe fools were and gave you lhe clay, fhen he Iel you work. Bul, inslead of using his fools you used your fingers, and when he quesfioned you concerning lhis, you said: Masl'er, lhese are my fools-len of +hem. Well, I 'leel lhal your melhod of leaching us is very like lhis incidenl. You give us suggeslions, noi' as a means lor imifalion, bul as lhe fools wi+h which we may work-all fhe while hoping lhe good Lord will place al our disposal lhe nalural characlerizalions which are inwardly fell, and which are resources ol our being, much as your lingers were wilh lhe cla . ' Y Your suggeslions lo us are as lhe pain+er's brushes and colors, and from 'lhem we painl our inlerpreialions as we feel lhem. Then wilh 'rhe Masler' hand you correcl our errors: and we grow wilh each correclion and suageslion, as a piece of clay in your lingers grows info lhal which you wish il lo be. Remember 'lhal lillle example, Mr. Serafini? Remember? JANE CROWTHER '20

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d v tv A fs A f - -L 1 I L ,L3g,'.a,J?- fffiii a if wif' 1 I-rr fr?+ P?Lli V I . . I l f ' ,il ' 7 f dtfft. rl fb WVBFC ' om Jojifion Il .1 'inf I l ' J hltis il perl'ec't tlax for getting things fltblll'-i. I saifl. as l watvllefl the rise of thf- sun. 'I'lierv's a hreath of Spring in the air to inspirv At lvnsf a Sonata. three niorements entire-. As soon as I 4-her-k for a Crocus or two l'lI start to vornpose. anfl shall work right straight through Till clinnerg or niayhe far into the night, As soon as I see if the kittens all right. IHC is very young and hens wohhly Still And yesterday fell from a low wimlowsillsl Uh clear, I forgot I should watch ,lohnis horse, I promised. but just for a minute, of course. You see, thereis composing I must begin soon Q Sc I'll walk up the meadow, it is only just noon Anti get to the house in time for my lunch. Then start for the clavichordg I have a hunch My Sonata will come along fine and Iill say, 'Oh j'f'S. I u'0rlff'f1 Ihr' Jin?-long Jay.: That is. l'Il work soon's I stop to play With ther new pup antl see if the men plouml a way For the garden. Uh my! 'lihereis too muvh to flol lim sorry. lion- I'.. my Sonatais not through. HJIZAISI-I'l'H 0l'tlIrITOY 19

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i AN 'OPERA CLASS REHEARSAL FOR' THE MARRIAGE OF FIGARO VA I :Q . ,.lX4l9l9l'Q6lCA,7, I, 1 4 2 u -' A quesfion was puf 'ro mesrecenrly onhow l had approached' my sfudenfs' on such 'aflarge 'and complicafed work as Mozar+'s Marriage lofi Figaro , rand- how I look fhem fo l'he proof1of ihe fire , as we say in lhe' fheaier, wiihoui burning fhem. lf is noi an easy quesrion fo'a'nswe'r.' lcon only say 'rhai' I began by explaini'ng'1'o fhem every characfer, dramafical- ly, hisforically and pfsychologicallyg Then by following a successful experi- menf offfhe Salzburg Opera, we usedfhe spoken recifafive, and began wifh speaking The lines according fo +he 'rype of characrer porfrdyed. From +ha+ sfep we followed 'wiih +he acfing, and fhen combined i+ wifh lhe music. l do no'r believe in 'rhe chalk mark melhod-2-fhaf is, marking fhe spols on fhe srage where fhe sfudenf musf be ar given momenis. To my mind, a sludenl' musf unders+and when he musl sfand slill and when he musl move-and why! Only in 'rhal way can a sfudenl' become a professional on fhe slage, A young professimral if you wish, bufnol' a liille studerzt. ENZO SERAFINI LUPO 21