Teaching Voice Teachers (2008)

[This month's Voice Pedagogy column is the first in a series exploring how we prepare our future generations of singing teachers for their important work. Representatives from prominent graduate voice pedagogy programs will discuss their curricula, educational philosophies, facilities, and special features that might be unique to their situation. These articles grow from the work of the NATS Pedagogy Committee, created by President Martha Randall and chaired by Katherine Barnes-Burroughs.] UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS AT AUSTIN Darlene Wiley THE CONCEPT AND CONTENT of the voice pedagogy program at the University of Texas at Austin are influenced by the highly diverse and international student population (4500 international students from 126 countries), access to a technologically rich learning environment, and the sheer mass of students, faculty, and staff (71,000 in all). The major challenge for the UT-Austin pedagogy program is to exploit and incorporate the vast expertise found throughout the campus. The confluence of technology and instruction has been given the highest priority on this campus. Campus wide initiatives, advanced faculty training, and competitive grants encourage online course development and allow voice pedagogy to flourish and reinvent itself annually. In 1998, voice pedagogy was taught with a single textbook, a few video and audio materials, and a bushel of handouts for the class. Today the core courses, a 32-week graduate class and a 16-week DMA class entitled Technology in Applied Voice Study, are taught in smart classrooms along with a state-of-the-art voice lab. Ancillary materials include interactive spectrography programs, the Texassings web site, CD-ROMS, and unlimited storage space up to one terabyte for eReserves (hundreds of readings, CDs for listening, DVDs, articles, on-line assignments available to enrolled students). The original model for the tech saturated Voice Pedagogy Program and preliminary web site comes from The College of Liberal Arts and Sciences Instructional Technology Services (http://www.laits.utexas.edu/its/) and its vast array of online instruction. Of particular interest to voice teachers are the foreign language instructional sites: Francais Interactif (http://www.laits.utexas.edu/fi/); Tex French Grammar (http://www.laits.utexas.edu/tex/); the Foreign Language Teachers'Toolbox (http://www.laits.utexas.edu/hebrew/personal/toolbox/ toolbox.shtml); and the Liberal Arts Compendium (http://www.laits.utexas.edu/ webcomp/) for other languages such as Persian, Arabic, Hebrew, German, Spanish, etc. The pinnacle of the voice pedagogy program is the highly selective DMA degree in Applied Voice with Pedagogy Emphasis, designed for only the strongest performers who wish to prepare themselves for tenure track positions at universities and colleges. All DMA students in the pedagogy emphasis program must give two full-length recitals, one lecture recital, and are strongly encouraged to participate in the Butler Opera Center, Austin Lyric Opera, the Choral Arts Society, or Chamber Singers. Currently four out of forty total graduate voice students are enrolled in this course of study. In their first tenure track positions, our graduates have been asked to teach: * courses in voice pedagogy, studio voice, and diction; * survey courses for nonmajors, such as Introduction to Western Music, World Music, Music Fundamentals; * nonmajor applied voice, class voice, ensembles (choirs, glee clubs, and jazz choirs), and opera workshop; * Medieval and Baroque music history for music majors. In some cases, this has been accomplished while simultaneously building a voice lab. Our Voice Pedagogy Program provides the best and most thorough training for these students who are often expected to be jack-of-all-trades in their first teaching assignment. The Butler School of Music offers three degree programs in pedagogy: a DMA in applied voice with Pedagogy Emphasis, and a MM and BM in Pedagogy and Literature. …