These posts stopped not because of a lack of ideas but because of a multiplicity of them. There is so much to discuss, digest, and dissect that a post on a blog could not sensitively address without substantial time. But rather than give answers today, here are a few questions that have passed through my mind this year that could have been addressed here:
What are new music advocates fighting for?
What are old music advocates fighting for?
(Side question—why is there such a fight at all?)
What is the value of academia in the arts (it’s certainly not the perfect trade school)?
What is the value of upholding Western classical music—is there something distinctly worthwhile to the tradition, or is it simply that—a tradition blindly passed down and set above others?
What is the intrinsic value of popular music? What is musically interesting about it that isn’t captured in the way we teach theory and other courses?
How does one streamline the theory core? (This has been a major struggle and opportunity teaching a 3-semester theory core curriculum instead of the usual 4 semesters)
What is the value of a textbook? Should students buy textbooks?
What would the perfect anthology have? (Hint: Diverse music for starters)
What makes electronic music both formidable and fascinating?
Many composing enthusiasts begin their craft on a computer, and then many of the unapproachable musicians are known for their technological prowess and difficult, experimental work. Why such a dichotomy?
How does a musician live (like finances from every avenue)?
How does one teach composition?
What is the most cumbersome part about class preparations?
Why is it important to determine musical values?
How is this tempered with having “an open mind?”
What is the future of music?
What can we do to shape the future of music instead of just conjecture about it?
How does one run a music festival?
Why should one run a music festival?
What are things I have learned since joining UW-La Crosse’s music faculty?
How do composers have time to write music when teaching full time?
Speaking of which, it’s time to go! Maybe some of these will be pulled apart in the near future, or feel free to ask your own question!