Conventional Music Education Streetband Model
| Goals:
– pride in individual excellence – eliminate wrong notes/surprises – faithfully replicate composer’s intent – impress audience until they start applauding – fun comes after hard work to achieve these goals
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Goals:
– joy in collective transcendence – encourage improvisation and spontaneity – adapt to make any tune “our own” – seduce audience until they start dancing – fun starts as soon as the music starts |
| Trappings:
– European – staged above seated audience or marching in sync – uniform uniforms
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Trappings:
– Colonial – unstaged, street level, moving organically – non-hierarchical, egalitarian, fluid organization – individualized attire within a band theme |
| Learning: one all-knowing teacher, many students | Learning: peer-to-peer, mentor/protégé, etc, |
| Direction: watching (charts/conductor) | Direction: listening (pulse of the band) |
| Literacy: based on sight-reading | Literacy: based on ear/rote playing |
| Composition: complex melodies, harmonies, and chord progressions, simple beats/rhythms | Composition: simple, repetitive melodies and chord progressions, complex beats/rhythms |
| Rhythmic Emphasis: down beat | Rhythmic Emphasis: upbeat/offbeat/backbeat |
| Orchestration: orchestral division of labor | Orchestration: “front line” vs “back line” |
| Arrangements: tight but idiosyncratic | Arrangements: loose but predictable |
| Performance: privilege accuracy and precision | Performance: privilege energy and spirit |
| Skill level: uniform difficulty throughout | Skill level: both simple and more complex parts |
| Lesson Plan: play full arrangement as written | Lesson Plan: begin with rhythm and bass line groove |
| Source material: classical or popular music | Source material: any world music |