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 James Littlewood, bass trombone
Melbourne performer James Littlewood first studied at Monash University, and obtained scholarships to continue his education at The University of British Columbia (Vancouver, Canada) and La Scuola comunale di musica “Giuseppe Verdi” (Prato, Italy). In 2018, he toured Asia with the University of Melbourne Symphony Orchestra, and undertook graduate studies at the Melbourne Conservatorium of Music before going on to participate in Domaine Forget’s Trombone Academy in Quebec.
So as you can see, James is certainly a well-travelled music student as well as a freelance performer. And now, as he’s placed under strict social distancing measures along with his fellow Australians during COVID-19, he continues his studies through digital means. This year, he kicked off his education at ANAM — and here’s how it’s coming along so far.
Thank you so much for taking part in our series. Aside from answering our questions, what have you been getting up to today?
Today, I attended a variety of classes as a part of ANAM’s online program for term 2, including a private lesson with my trombone teacher Scott Kinmont, Brass Class, and Performance Class.
Even though we are performing to each other online, it is still really inspiring to hear the level of artistry of my peers each week in our classes. It definitely motivates me to pick up my trombone and practice!
So where were you in your life, studies, and career when everything came to a halt due to the lockdowns?
I started my training at ANAM in March this year, and was really looking forward to the wide variety of concerts that were programmed. Of course many of these have unfortunately been cancelled, but I’m still keeping my fingers crossed for more live performance opportunities at ANAM later in the year.
Had COVID-19 not shaken the world, I would have been in Canada right now at Domaine Forget’s Brass Academy. I attended the academy last year and loved it so much that I couldn’t wait to go back! I also hoped that my time in Canada was going to help prepare me to compete in the Jeju International Brass and Percussion Competition in South Korea. It is disappointing that I have not been able to enjoy these overseas experiences, but I know that there will be more opportunities in the future as restrictions are lifted.
Lockdown has given me the opportunity to shift my focus towards technical development, audition preparation, and learning new solo repertoire. It has been great to have so much support from my teachers at ANAM who have all helped make this time at home so valuable.
The reason we’ve used the word ‘unstoppable’ is because, despite the restrictions placed on artists in our community, practitioners like you are still spending their 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 have found that taking this non-negotiable break from a busy performance schedule has been a surprisingly liberating creative challenge. As an orchestral bass trombonist, I am used to receiving creative direction from the conductor, principal players, and my low brass colleagues. I really enjoy this supporting role in the orchestra, but I have to admit that I don’t often get much of a say in matters of musical interpretation. Chamber music is usually much more collaborative, and I love the opportunity to discuss and debate ideas as a whole ensemble. However, without these outlets for ensemble playing, I am left to my own devices, and I can explore my own interpretations of pieces without having to compromise.
Of course, my teachers have been able to provide excellent guidance to help steer me if I turn into a rogue bass trombonist, but it has been really refreshing to have this opportunity to develop my own ideas about music.
It has been really refreshing to have this opportunity to develop my own ideas about music
So much subconscious learning happens in rehearsals and performances, so having these removed from my schedule has meant that I’ve had to become more of my own teacher during this time. I have spent a lot of time recording myself and reviewing my work over these last couple of months, and that has been a really valuable exercise in identifying what I value in music and trombone playing.
I’ve also had more time to find inspiration outside of my studies by listening to a broader range of music, and revisiting some favourites from my teenage years, watching documentaries, and reading.
It has also been important for me to find and create new opportunities to exercise creative freedom. I started Your Tune A Day in March, primarily as a free music education resource that could be used by students, teachers and professionals (you can read more about it here). I also wanted to exercise my composition muscles and felt that this would be an achievable and low-stakes way to do it. I’ve always enjoyed composing as a hobby; I don’t particularly identify as a composer, but its something that I love to do, even if I am writing just a simple little tune for the Your Tune A Day project.
Tell us more about Your Tune A Day.
What I love about this project is that I can do whatever I want with it – the tunes can be as long or short as I like, as conventional or unusual as I like, and can be in any style I fancy. I have a platform where I can try as many different things as I like and don’t have to worry about failing.
I took a week off from writing tunes in May and instead decided to interview friends who had been recording the tunes every day. This was a much bigger creative challenge than I anticipated as it was totally out of my comfort zone.
Ultimately, I am free to try a lot of new things in this project. I think that any opportunity I have to push myself creatively is critical to furthering my musical education during this time, and it is exciting to have so much freedom to experiment.
What have you found to be some of the best techniques to communicate digitally, in the absence of physical presence? After all, music is indeed a physical practice!
We live in a complicated time, and while technology has given us so much convenience in our day-to-day lives, it can hinder our ability to communicate effectively.
I think the most important thing when communicating online, whether with words or music, is to approach things with as much simplicity and clarity as possible. I aim to approach each of my lessons with clear intentions – I make sure I have questions to ask my teachers and that I know what I’d like to get out of the lesson.
When playing music, I try to do so with as much clarity in interpretation and technique as I can, so that I can easily communicate my ideas to the audience through the trombone.
The same goes for online lessons and performances, but it is important to be even more aware of these needs when our physical presence is removed.
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?
Having started at ANAM in March, I only had two and a half weeks at the South Melbourne Town Hall before everything closed down. This means that there are still plenty of ANAM musicians that I haven’t properly met yet!
However, everyone at ANAM has worked together to maintain a strong sense of community. I’ve been able to stay connected to the brass musicians and teachers, which has been so helpful for coping with such an unusual start to my time here.
It has been great to be able to interact with the rest of the cohort in our weekly Performance Class and Webinars, but I have found our informal Fridays @ 3 concert series to be a real highlight. It is great to have a combination of serious performances spread out across the week, as well as something more casual and social at the end of the week. It allows us to share many sides of our creativity and personalities with each other.
Of course, outside community, there’s a lot of time spent in solitude. How are you filling it?
I love to play 500, the classic card game. I have become a real 500 fanatic over these last couple of months. I play online and have been able to play with some of my friends from ANAM and elsewhere, which has been fun. I love the strategy behind the game, and could honestly play for hours on end.
More recently I [had] been able to go back to work at my retail job, which has certainly filled up my schedule alongside other musical and personal projects!
How has your practice routine changed?
The way I practice has changed a lot over the last couple of months! I’ve experimented with a lot of different parts of my practice, from the duration of sessions, to the types of exercises I play, and to the way I structure each practice session.
In the beginning of lockdown, I spent a lot of time recording my daily fundamentals, and listened back to identify the sound I want to make on the trombone. While this was really useful in the beginning of lockdown, it became a bit impractical to work like this because it was so time-consuming.
More recently, I’ve been finding ways to randomise my practice, rather than sticking to the traditional model of ‘blocked’ practice. It is a fun challenge to spend only five minutes working on one piece or exercise before jumping into something completely different. It definitely keeps me on my toes!
Who else is with you in lockdown, and how are you navigating around your different needs?
I’m currently living with my parents in Melbourne, so I’m very lucky to have ample time and space to practice throughout the day. I am the only musician in my family, so I don’t need to worry about scheduling my practice time around others.
Of course, I have to be conscious of my neighbours’ needs, but they have been okay with me practising at home so far!
When things feel like they’re getting too hard, due to cancellations or uncertainty, what do you like to do to feel better?
If I can afford to, I’ll make sure I schedule in time to get out of the practice room. I’ll take a walk through the parks near my house, spend time with my pet dog and cats, play 500, read, or watch a show.
Keeping in touch with my friends has been really important, too – it is a reminder that we’re all in this together.
What are you most looking forward to doing when it’s all over?
I’m most looking forward to reconnecting with people face-to-face, through music and friendship!
Catch up on our UNSTOPPABLE ARTISTS interview series with Damien Eckersley.
Images supplied, captured by Pia Johnson.
