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Elton Joel RW2 2'25
With apologies to them both. A rock piano solo without lyrics.
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Elegy RW2 2'25
Many, many parts to weave and balance - needs ensemble skills, even though it's for solo piano.
Recording (mp3, 1.6MB)
Recording (mp3, 1.2MB)
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Snowflakes RW2 2'25Recording (mp3, 0.9MB)
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The Art of the Interview back to magazine homepage
Introduction | Testing Creativity | Verbal Instructions | Swapping chairs
The Practice Snapshot | Concert in 10 minutes | Turnaround Time
The right travel companions
Music teaching is only as good as the people you work with each week— like a trans-continental car trip, your choice of travel companions can make the difference between an adventure and an ordeal.
That's what a studio interview should be for. A quest for great travel companions.
The problem is that the traditional model for interviews is designed to identify students with ability, not necessarily people who'll brighten your day..
That's great for filling your studio with students who have excellent relative pitch, and can clap in time. But I don't need my studio traveling companions to have impeccable rhythm, or have a cupboard full of competition trophies. I need to know that the time I spend with them will be quality time, because I'm choosing someone that I'll be spending 20+ hours with every year—the car trip equivalent of driving from Sydney to Perth..
That doesn't stop me from helping them develop impeccable rhythm or win competition trophies. It just means that I'll have a lot more fun along the way.
So if your interview is not about running aptitude tests, what is it about? How can you turn that initial meeting into a powerful detector of Students You'll Love To Work With?