BY STEPHANIE ESLAKE
The Australian National Academy of Music finds itself in the middle of a unique COVID-19 situation: not only has it needed to cancel its concerts due to COVID-19 lockdowns, but it’s also closed its doors to musicians who are training at the educational institution.
That is, closed its physical doors.
Musicians, faculty, and arts administrators of the ANAM team are working hard behind the scenes to deliver an online training program — and they show no signs of stopping. That’s why we’ve launched a new interview series about the unstoppable artists of Australia — established and emerging — so we can facilitate an honest discussion about how musicians are continuing to engage in their music education during COVID-19.
In this series, you’ll hear from musicians in training — and musicians who are providing that training! We hope you’ll be inspired to continue your own engagement in music education, whatever form that may take.
Here, we talk with Dasha Auer, viola
Though she flew through her AMusA diploma on violin just a few years ago, Dasha has followed her passion for the viola through her experiences with the Melbourne Youth Orchestras, Australian Youth Orchestra’s National Music Camp, and now her studies at ANAM. This year, she’s involved in ANAM’s Bach X Bratsche project, through which she’ll perform in one of three virtual concerts taking place from June to July. (And yes, you can watch them from home.)
Dasha, let’s get straight down to business. The pandemic is unlike anything our industry has seen before. Where were you in your life, and career, when it all came to a halt due to the lockdowns?
We’d just had our first ANAM concert for the year, and there were lots of orchestral projects looming on the horizon. In fact, for most of my last day at ANAM, I didn’t even realise it was my last day — until an ‘extraordinary’ meeting was suddenly called! It was definitely a shock when it was announced the building would be closed just two days later for more than three months, although there had been speculations and rumours spreading. So it was quite a bittersweet day, and safe to say I was reluctant to leave and managed to waste a bit of time in the atrium before my last commute home for a while.
Despite the restrictions placed on artists in our community, practitioners like you are still spending time working hard to keep things afloat. How are you continuing to further your music education during this time — whether it’s online lessons or time spent reading?
I’ve been listening to a lot of music, as always, and having two online lessons per week — ANAM has been keeping us occupied with an online version of the course as well, so it’s been busier than I expected really!
To start with, I took advantage of the extra time to try to teach myself some piano, though that has taken a bit of a backseat, lately. In the meantime though, the ANAM violas have recently been preparing to launch our own virtual concert series online, for which we have a webpage!
Music education has shifted to the digital world almost seamlessly, hasn’t it? As a student, what have you found to be some of the best techniques to communicate in this new way, in the absence of physical presence? After all, music is indeed a physical practice!
I suppose lessons transitioned to Zoom quite efficiently and effectively, though of course sound quality is always still an issue. I think musicians — myself included — have become more willing to share videos of themselves playing and practising on social media, which has been encouraging. It’s a different kind of way of holding oneself accountable and also being able to share what we are producing at home with others.
For people like me though, and really anyone not exclusively aiming for a solo career, online mediums can only go so far — ie. not very far at all — when it comes to replicating music with more than one person. I’ve really missed the ability to communicate with and respond to peers in chamber music and orchestral settings. Patching together individually recorded parts is just not the same.
So how connected do you still feel to your community — from your ANAM community through to your friends in the industry? And how are you maintaining or even enriching these connections?
I’ve spent a lot more time with relatives, which has been nice, as most of my friends are not in Melbourne at the moment. Having this Bach viola project as well as viola class has meant seeing the violas a lot virtually, which is good, and it’s quite entertaining seeing what everyone is up to during string class, too.
ANAM has been hosting plenty of extra webinars for us, though it can feel a bit strange since a lot of the time we can only see one or two people. In a way, though, online socialising has allowed for some catch-ups with people I wouldn’t normally see very often, which is one advantage!
I do miss socialising in person, though — group settings especially are very hard to truly replicate on Zoom and often end up being somewhat stilted.
Outside community, there’s been a lot of time spent in solitude. How are you filling it?
As someone who usually has too many hobbies and not enough time, the first few weeks of quarantine were almost bliss! I felt like I had time for bike riding, other forms of exercise, language-learning, piano-learning, cryptic crosswords, knitting, cooking, writing, practice, reading, and even art!
However, as the weeks wore on and online classes launched, the time began to slip away, reminiscent of normal ANAM life — albeit with fewer people, less moving, and much more screen time.
I have, however, kept up my writing — if rather compulsively — and have now amassed some 50-odd pages of poetry. So keep an eye out for if I ever get published anywhere!
I’m also still hoping to get into actual fiction writing — at some point — and practise my French, and learn some more Chinese, among other things.
How has your practice routine changed, in style or duration?
My practice has definitely been a bit hit-and-miss. I think the first month was fairly successful, mostly because I was staying with my grandma, who doesn’t mind noise late at night, and has fewer Zoom obligations. Having that late-night practice window really helped, as the later it is, the more awake and productive I seem to be.
It definitely took me a while to adjust once online ANAM started, as I was no longer just able to practise whenever motivation or inspiration struck.
The last few weeks, I’ve been back home since my mum and brother are now back at work and school, although this week turned into a null practice week as I was sick. Hopefully, I’ll get back into the swing of things soon though!
Who else have you been with during these social distancing and lockdown periods, and how are you navigating around your different needs?
It’s a big old family home [I stayed in with my grandma], so I had the whole second living space as my music quarters, piano included. I think my grandma enjoyed the music — she herself used to be an accomplished pianist — and hopefully also my company, though it’s hard to tell when she is so polite and hospitable all the time!
Now I’m back to reality — home — which was a bit of a shock at first but I’m getting used to it again, and I’ve enjoyed having the occasional outing to the supermarket, shoe shop, etc.
My brother is in year 12, so not always a fan of me practising while he is trying to study, but he has been back at school and work so hasn’t had too many complaints — yet.
It does look like my night practice curfew has moved forward to accommodate my mum’s sleeping routine, but that’s just back to usual after all!
When things feel like they’re getting too hard, due to cancellations or uncertainty, what do you like to do to feel better?
Write some poetry! Or blast some music!
I do think it’s important to keep things in perspective, though. I find considering the big picture — and trying not to be so caught up with myself and my troubles or my place in the world — helps.
Take the pressure off yourself! I think a certain degree of realism and even indifference is healthy, though my vagueness often comes in handy, too.
What are you most looking forward to doing when it’s all over?
Chamber music! Orchestra! Real ANAM in the South Melbourne Town Hall! Seeing friends! Hugging people! Catching the train — though not during peak hour. I haven’t missed commuting, that’s for sure!
Visit the ANAM website for the full Bach X Bratsche program of virtual concerts from 26 June to 16 July.
Catch up on our UNSTOPPABLE ARTISTS interview series with Claudia Leggett, French horn
Images supplied, captured by Pia Johnson.
