Music 266 Conducting Sessions Review Form
Conductor:___ Ryan Stahl_____________ Date of session:_ 10/21/2009_________
Work conducted:_L'Arlesienne Suite No. 1, Prelude by George Bizet ___
Date of review:___10/22/2009___________
• Major strengths in the session:
-I used fluid arm motions while moving through space.
-I did a better job of using more vertical space while conducting.
-I had good arm speed and arm weight while conducting.
-I had much better eye contact with specific members of the ensemble as the session progressed, especially after Avi's focus on three individuals activity. I definitely know that there there is still plenty of room for improvement.
-I was self-aware of my posture while conducting and fixed it when I noticed it wasn't correct.
-I was expressing dynamics, rounder sound, and smoother articulation through my conducted gesture.
-My left had wasn't claw-like this week and was smoothly communicating musical gestures to the students and not just helping maintain the pulse
-I expanded out from pulse keeping in the right hand to being musically sensitive with my gestures and using them to better convey the music's expressions to the students.
-I noticed that I was conducting a lot more with my baton than my hands, which was a result of practicing in front of a mirror and noticing and immediately correcting whenever I began to rely on my hand for conducting.
• Major areas that need attention:
-I need to work on maintaining great tall, firm posture when expressing musical gestures through conducting. Though I had been making strides in this area the last two sessions, I really noticed that it went back down in quality this week when trying to be more musical with my gestures.
-With help from Avi, I noticed that I am conducting with my hands with my baton in my right hand instead of conducting with the baton.
-I need to work on giving a clear preparation to cue in the ensemble when bringing them in on count three. Avi said that I need to make sure that if I want them to come in together on beat three that my preparatory gesture needs to be in the opposite direction.
• Musical considerations i.e. appropriateness of tempo, character etc:
-I did a better job with how I bring my arms up to conduct ensemble, but still need to be aware of the style of the piece when bringing my arms up.
-I felt I held true to the desired tempo of the work and didn't rush the faster sections, nor drag out the more lyrical phrases.
-I felt that the character of the piece that I brought out from the ensemble matched what I heard in my head.
-I worked to emphasize the large amount of dynamic contrast in such a short excerpt, both gradual and sudden, with more vertical space and smaller gestures, but some more work is needed to smooth these dynamic transitions out.
• Conducting technique:
~Posture:
-I have been working a lot on maintaining a tall, firm posture, but it wasn't noticeable in this session. This was highlighted when Dr. Kiver came over and tried to hold a finger on the back of my head but instead had to hold back my entire head However, there were a couple times I did notice myself trying to lean forward and not maintaining this good posture, but I fixed it and resumed conducting. I still could use work on maintaining this good posture without having to correct it, but it was great to notice my self-awareness in discreetly addressing the issue.
-I still need watch my left hand so that it does not become the dominant hand while I'm conducting.
-I made definite improvements in adjusting the shape and position of my left hand. This week is was much more away from my face to not give the impression that I'm defensive.
-I noticed once or twice that I would tilt my head down. While I have made great strides in adjusting this, I need to continue to work on this to allow for freer head motion and maintain better eye contact.
~Affect display-facial expression, eye contact:
-My eye contact was alright this week. I thought I did a better job of making eye contact with the different voices in the classroom, but noticed I was looking down more at either the score or a spot on the floor. Avi's activity where I had to focus my eye contact on three individuals in the classroom showed I have the potential for maintaining better eye contact, but I now need to practice that way to ensure that I keep progressing forward. It is important that I maintain better eye contact with my students to effectively communicate with them.
-My facial expressions were much more animated this week to fully capture the mood and style of this piece. From what I saw, they worked well in communicating with the ensemble, but again more can be done.
~Clarity of non-verbal message sending:
-While I might have initially thought that I was giving a solid preparation to cue the student entrance, I learned right off the bat that I was offering a muddled preparation. Avi explained that I need to make sure I give my prep in the opposite direction of the beat I am presenting them. So instead of going to the right for my prep in my right hand,.I need to make sure to bring it in to the left first. This will greatly help cue the ensemble when to enter, so as they are more confident when entering, which helps me be more confident in front of them.
-I felt the ensemble did an alright job of reacting to my varied expression and dynamic gestures, especially this week with my more musical gestures that weren't emphasizing the pulse, but rather the expression the music demanded.
-I noticed that I had a lot more arm weight behind my conducted gestures and I wasn't always conducting, but being expressive with the phrase.
-I noticed that I did a better job using vertical space with dynamic gestures, but I know that I could do a better job incorporating vertical space into my other gestures without giving the appearance of being defensive.
-One thing that I noticed this week was that I was doing a better job of preparing a musical gesture before the beat it occurs.
~ Effect of conducting on tone and rhythmic quality:
-I liked how the group stayed very consistent with my conducted gesture in upholding the rhythmic integrity of the piece, especially with the legato eighth notes with my sweeping gesture.
-I learned a great deal about how the ensemble reacts rhythmically and tone wise to my conducted gesture from experimenting with my expressivity in my conducted gestures for this session.
• Rehearsal Methodology:
~Verbal communication
-While we didn't rehearse, Dr. Kiver did make an excellent comment when I was telling the students where to start, you should only say it once and say it confidently enough so they aren't second guessing where you are starting and will start with you..
~Problem solving (addressing issues such as pitch, rhythm etc)
• Specific skills to refine for next session:
-I will practice maintaining great tall, firm posture when conducting, especially after Dr. Kiver came up to work with me on addressing my posture..
-I will practice giving a clear preparation before click on the downbeat to cue the ensemble's entrance.
-I will continue to work on being more self-aware as I am conducting to address issues other than posture.
-I will work on adjusting my left hand to still be more fluid and expressive.
-I will continue to work on maintaining better eye contact with individual members of the ensemble as well as the entire ensemble.
• Biggest improvements/general comments:
-I was really pleased with the strides I made in correcting my eye contact with individuals in the ensemble through Avi's activity.
-I felt very happy with the decisions I made with dynamics and musicality and the ensemble reacting well to them.
Work conducted:_L'Arlesienne Suite No. 1, Prelude by George Bizet ___
Date of review:___10/22/2009___________
• Major strengths in the session:
-I used fluid arm motions while moving through space.
-I did a better job of using more vertical space while conducting.
-I had good arm speed and arm weight while conducting.
-I had much better eye contact with specific members of the ensemble as the session progressed, especially after Avi's focus on three individuals activity. I definitely know that there there is still plenty of room for improvement.
-I was self-aware of my posture while conducting and fixed it when I noticed it wasn't correct.
-I was expressing dynamics, rounder sound, and smoother articulation through my conducted gesture.
-My left had wasn't claw-like this week and was smoothly communicating musical gestures to the students and not just helping maintain the pulse
-I expanded out from pulse keeping in the right hand to being musically sensitive with my gestures and using them to better convey the music's expressions to the students.
-I noticed that I was conducting a lot more with my baton than my hands, which was a result of practicing in front of a mirror and noticing and immediately correcting whenever I began to rely on my hand for conducting.
• Major areas that need attention:
-I need to work on maintaining great tall, firm posture when expressing musical gestures through conducting. Though I had been making strides in this area the last two sessions, I really noticed that it went back down in quality this week when trying to be more musical with my gestures.
-With help from Avi, I noticed that I am conducting with my hands with my baton in my right hand instead of conducting with the baton.
-I need to work on giving a clear preparation to cue in the ensemble when bringing them in on count three. Avi said that I need to make sure that if I want them to come in together on beat three that my preparatory gesture needs to be in the opposite direction.
• Musical considerations i.e. appropriateness of tempo, character etc:
-I did a better job with how I bring my arms up to conduct ensemble, but still need to be aware of the style of the piece when bringing my arms up.
-I felt I held true to the desired tempo of the work and didn't rush the faster sections, nor drag out the more lyrical phrases.
-I felt that the character of the piece that I brought out from the ensemble matched what I heard in my head.
-I worked to emphasize the large amount of dynamic contrast in such a short excerpt, both gradual and sudden, with more vertical space and smaller gestures, but some more work is needed to smooth these dynamic transitions out.
• Conducting technique:
~Posture:
-I have been working a lot on maintaining a tall, firm posture, but it wasn't noticeable in this session. This was highlighted when Dr. Kiver came over and tried to hold a finger on the back of my head but instead had to hold back my entire head However, there were a couple times I did notice myself trying to lean forward and not maintaining this good posture, but I fixed it and resumed conducting. I still could use work on maintaining this good posture without having to correct it, but it was great to notice my self-awareness in discreetly addressing the issue.
-I still need watch my left hand so that it does not become the dominant hand while I'm conducting.
-I made definite improvements in adjusting the shape and position of my left hand. This week is was much more away from my face to not give the impression that I'm defensive.
-I noticed once or twice that I would tilt my head down. While I have made great strides in adjusting this, I need to continue to work on this to allow for freer head motion and maintain better eye contact.
~Affect display-facial expression, eye contact:
-My eye contact was alright this week. I thought I did a better job of making eye contact with the different voices in the classroom, but noticed I was looking down more at either the score or a spot on the floor. Avi's activity where I had to focus my eye contact on three individuals in the classroom showed I have the potential for maintaining better eye contact, but I now need to practice that way to ensure that I keep progressing forward. It is important that I maintain better eye contact with my students to effectively communicate with them.
-My facial expressions were much more animated this week to fully capture the mood and style of this piece. From what I saw, they worked well in communicating with the ensemble, but again more can be done.
~Clarity of non-verbal message sending:
-While I might have initially thought that I was giving a solid preparation to cue the student entrance, I learned right off the bat that I was offering a muddled preparation. Avi explained that I need to make sure I give my prep in the opposite direction of the beat I am presenting them. So instead of going to the right for my prep in my right hand,.I need to make sure to bring it in to the left first. This will greatly help cue the ensemble when to enter, so as they are more confident when entering, which helps me be more confident in front of them.
-I felt the ensemble did an alright job of reacting to my varied expression and dynamic gestures, especially this week with my more musical gestures that weren't emphasizing the pulse, but rather the expression the music demanded.
-I noticed that I had a lot more arm weight behind my conducted gestures and I wasn't always conducting, but being expressive with the phrase.
-I noticed that I did a better job using vertical space with dynamic gestures, but I know that I could do a better job incorporating vertical space into my other gestures without giving the appearance of being defensive.
-One thing that I noticed this week was that I was doing a better job of preparing a musical gesture before the beat it occurs.
~ Effect of conducting on tone and rhythmic quality:
-I liked how the group stayed very consistent with my conducted gesture in upholding the rhythmic integrity of the piece, especially with the legato eighth notes with my sweeping gesture.
-I learned a great deal about how the ensemble reacts rhythmically and tone wise to my conducted gesture from experimenting with my expressivity in my conducted gestures for this session.
• Rehearsal Methodology:
~Verbal communication
-While we didn't rehearse, Dr. Kiver did make an excellent comment when I was telling the students where to start, you should only say it once and say it confidently enough so they aren't second guessing where you are starting and will start with you..
~Problem solving (addressing issues such as pitch, rhythm etc)
• Specific skills to refine for next session:
-I will practice maintaining great tall, firm posture when conducting, especially after Dr. Kiver came up to work with me on addressing my posture..
-I will practice giving a clear preparation before click on the downbeat to cue the ensemble's entrance.
-I will continue to work on being more self-aware as I am conducting to address issues other than posture.
-I will work on adjusting my left hand to still be more fluid and expressive.
-I will continue to work on maintaining better eye contact with individual members of the ensemble as well as the entire ensemble.
• Biggest improvements/general comments:
-I was really pleased with the strides I made in correcting my eye contact with individuals in the ensemble through Avi's activity.
-I felt very happy with the decisions I made with dynamics and musicality and the ensemble reacting well to them.