I consider my job as a teacher not to teach my students what I know. It is to teach them what THEY know.
This is not the shortest route between two points. However, once coming to their own understanding of a concept or new piece, they will have internalized the information and also will be able to apply the knowledge of HOW they reached the solution for the rest of their career.
Giving up Power
For so long, I gave up my power to my teachers and mentors. I looked for the quick results. I figured that because they were my teachers, they undoubtedly knew more than me.
Similarly, in performance I could imitate numerous famous cellists, but I didn’t know why they did what they did. When it then came to forming my own interpretation of pieces, I often felt lost… or at least inferior.
Today, I know that my interpretation is no better or worse than anyone else’s. It is true that school has helped inform me of different performance practice styles, but even composers often vary in the way they like to hear their music performed.
Encouraging the Process
My students often ask me for direct answers and roll their eyes when I turn the question back on them. I am constantly amused when, after I insist they think of their own reason for wanting to play a passage more loudly than the prior phrase, they suddenly light up with excitement and perform the entire piece with more expression than when they were playing to imitate what they thought I would want to hear.
Teachers have given me many useful hints on how to best execute technically challenging passages or the most flexible bow grip. I pass on these “shortcuts” to my students. When it comes to interpretation, however, the lines blur.
My students have asked me to guide them in developing their love (and skill) of the instrument. What they are all learning is that this love is expressed through their own unique voice… and that they have the answers they seek.
Ms. Dewberry, an accomplished cellist, completed her DMA in Chamber Music Performance from UCLA in December 2005. She received her MM in Cello Performance from UCLA in June 2002 and her B.M. in Cello Performance from Western Michigan University in April 1998. She also holds a B.A. in French with a minor in Women's Studies and Philosophy.
Her website is www.carterdewberry.com
She may be contacted at carter@carterdewberry.com
