Long ago, I watched a Master's Class at Juilliard, with Luciano Pavrotti and about a half- dozen students, on PBS. All of the students were talented and technically proficient. They each did an aria, and Pavrotti would point out things to them, mostly matters of interpretation, perhaps sing an illustrative bar or two, generally coach them. Then they would sing the aria again. Without fail, they each improved from the coaching, and the performance was often startlingly better....
Similarly, in college I directed a few plays. There were always things that people had not, on the first or even 12th reading, grasped about their character, or the themes of the piece, or the dynamics of character interaction, and their performances always improved as we worked through and they saw more deeply into the play, especially as it bore on their roles. Going over the play together yielded more insight and appreciation......
I have gone over poetry and operas in classes, and participated in discussion groups on works of art, and often someone will point out something useful to myself or others in the course of discussion, that adds to appreciation......... |
