BY STEPHANIE ESLAKE
Music education matters.
Whether you first picked up an instrument at school, you’re working full-time in an orchestra, or you’re just entering your industry training, it’s likely you share the sentiment.
The airing of music education program Don’t Stop the Music on ABC resonated so strongly with Australian audiences that they donated more than $60,000 and 4,000 instruments to the benefit of schoolchildren. The legacy of music education advocates and activists such as the late Richard Gill have inspired generations of musicians to teach, and share their knowledge of music with students young and old. Australia can no longer turn away from the knowledge that children who sustain music education throughout their school years will experience permanent benefits to their brain, advancing their language and problem-solving skills.
In this new series Music education matters, we team up with a leading Australian educational institution to find out how music education can help shape lives.
Speaking with talent from the Australian National Academy of Music, we introduce you to practising industry figures – emerging and established, performing and teaching – so we can discover the true stories behind the power of music education.
Music education matters, says Harry Ward, violin
Harry Ward has performed violin across America, Australia, Asia, and Europe and, for his skill on the instrument, he has won the Australian National Youth Concerto Competition and was an ABC Young Performers Awards finalist.
Harry is training with Dr Robin Wilson at ANAM, and in the past he has attended the Sydney Conservatorium of Music and Meadowmount Summer School. When he’s not playing in masterclasses with the likes of Anne-Sophie Mutter, Alina Ibragimova, and Howard Penny, Harry is performing classical music on his 1780 Pietro Antonio Landolfini violin…and jazz, bluegrass, folk…
Harry, tell us about your upbringing with music education. What do you feel are some of the defining moments during your music education as a child?
My family love music, so I was fortunate enough to grow up surrounded by music from all genres and have wonderful memories of moments shared together, both in the playing and listening. At the same time, I also had educators that supported me and helped me navigate the world of violin and classical music, which was a little foreign to us all.
I spent a wonderful few years working with Professor Peter Zhang, and getting the chance to travel and meet musicians from various countries was inspirational. At the same time, I attended a local public school that had a wonderful string ensemble. In fact, most of those kids (then in years 5 and 6) are still playing, which is a real testament to that program. It gave us a great sense of working together early on.
From there, I attended the Open Academy program at the Sydney Conservatorium of Music. It was a great place to hone performance, learn music history and theory; not to mention make friends and be inspired by other kids who had similar passions. I also played in Sydney Youth Orchestra and the Arts Unit Orchestra for a time, which was also very important to me.
I got a lot of support from an organisation called the Talent Development Project. It wasn’t classically based, and they really pushed me to think outside of my comfort zone and play and write with others across genres. I feel very fortunate to have had that support and experience.
In 2014, I was lucky enough to spend a few years overseas studying with some great teachers throughout Europe and the United States before returning to Australia to work with Dr. Robin Wilson at ANAM.
How do you feel a music educator is responsible for a young person’s passion for music? In what ways can a teacher make or break a young student’s interest?
I think a music educator can make or break a young student’s interest in music, and therefore should be highly valued in the community. The music educators I have met have been incredibly inspirational people, and I am a firm believer that truly great music educators change lives. Here, a student can be nurtured, learn to work hard, and subsequently feel a strong sense of self and a place to feel valued. This is aside from the musical and intellectual gifts as a result of the relationship.
I think the most important thing for a teacher is timing (not just in a musical sense!): knowing when to introduce things, when to push harder, when to back off. Knowing when a student has given all they can and when they haven’t. It takes a special person who is genuinely interested, but also knows how and when to give the student the tools that support and inspire without taking away the student’s own voice.
I guess what I am saying is: nurturing a passion for music is about the whole person, and not just the tools of the trade.
At what point did you realise you wanted to take what you’d learnt about music and form it into a career path?
I don’t think I have thought about it too much; music has always been such an integral part of my life. However, there are points, whether that be listening or playing, where the music touches you so deeply that you know it is something that you can’t live without.
Why did you decide to pursue higher music education, and how important is it for musicians to continue further study in order to achieve success in their careers beyond the ‘piece of paper’?
I think I saw a higher education in music as a great opportunity to make music in different environments with many different types of people. Learning to be adaptable and open to other (sometimes challenging) perspectives is so important not just as an artist, but in all facets of life.
On the contrary, learning to think and to question the status quo is an integral tool of any musician. As such, working to be well read is as essential as honing one’s craft. From there, we can explore, challenge, and hopefully add to the broader dialogue of the music industry.
What have been some of your strongest needs as a musician?
Navigating life while putting in all the hours required (not just on the instrument) would be impossible without a strong sense of psychological support from teachers, friends, and family. This is because expressing yourself genuinely through music can be an incredibly vulnerable thing to do. Therefore, it is important that whatever you are expressing is supported, and through that you feel it is worthy of being communicated.
How can teachers best support adult students?
I think this must be difficult because, as a function of being an adult, we have a lot more responsibility to things outside of our discipline. This can be distracting and emotionally challenging, as life has a lot more highs and lows. At times, this can be quite arduous and draining, particularly given the intense nature of string playing. However, I think the best teachers capitalise on these life experiences to help the student draw from them to add to their musical palette.
Finally, learning how to make the most of one’s time with efficient practice is a really useful tool when life gets busy!
There’s been a lot of dialogue about the importance of music education in Australia. How do you think music education can benefit the community as a whole?
The science is in on the value of a musical education to a student’s cognition (and therefore perhaps even life chances). It also helps develop a sense of self and encourages a student to find their own voice. At the same time, students learn how to organise their time, learn to listen, and work with others.
These skills are essential to any life, passion, and career, and as such, music education should be accessible to all. Therefore, it is not something that should only be accessed through elite programs and well-resourced schools. I firmly believe that the difference a musical education makes to a child’s life chances makes it a point of equity.
What changes would you like to see in music education in Australia on an industry level?
I think there should be more of an emphasis on playing by ear and improvisation, and a broad grasp on a range of instruments such as piano, percussion, bass, and singing. This would help in internalising and understanding music at a much deeper level, and would also enhance whatever genre of music students find themselves concentrating on. As I stated in the previous response, this would happen naturally if we all had access to strong musical programs in early childhood.
What impact have you made, or would you like to make, on the industry?
Everyone brings something to the industry, just by virtue of being who they are. As musicians, it is important to challenge yourself, remain open to differing perspectives, but also have great confidence in your inherently unique way you relate to the artform. I think it is important to realise that nobody can ever take that away from you, and it is also the only way the industry will continue to develop.
What advice would you give to musicians to help them get the most out of their educational experiences?
Stay open, watch, read, and listen to a vast plethora of music, art, and literature from all sorts of cultural heritages. Some of it will resonate and some won’t, but it will all help inform you as a person and, as such, help you make the most of your educational experience.
At the end of the day, music should be an expression of who you are. It is the greatest accompaniment for life, and it is there for anyone to develop and make their own.
Check out the ANAM concert season to see musicians such as Harry Ward and music educators, live in action.
We’re teaming up with ANAM throughout 2019 to share these interviews in our series Music education matters.
Stay tuned as we prepare to bring you more of the personal stories behind music education in Australia.
READ NEXT: Music education matters, says Virginia Taylor, flute
Images supplied. Credit: Pia Johnson. Featured black and white image of Harry by Judi Mowlem, Melbourne Camera Club.
