[Smt-talk] Schenkerian analysis - visual impaired student

[Deborah Stein]

Hi all,

I taught a blind student in my Lied course and learned a lot about how to
teach differently.  She had scores in braille  but the text wasn't in
braille. She was smart and attentive and had a great ear, so she probably
heard better than most of the other students. I had to describe things I
wrote on the board and identify where we were in the music and, of course,
she couldn't look at the poetry as I read it aloud.   And we had to meet
privately from time to time.

While it might seem unrealistic to teach Schenkerian analysis to someone who
cannot see, it is possible to teach the concepts without having to rely on
the graph.  Many of the concepts can be understood without seeing a graph:
structural levels, primary tone, linear progressions, etc.  And while the
student might not be able to do a sketch, he or she might be able to
describe what a sketch might do. It is amazing how a blind person imagines
things.

One problem might be getting the music into braille, if the student knows
braille.  It takes time for this, so if the student signs up for the course,
you'll need to get the music ready asap.  There are lots of scores already
available in braille!

Good luck!

Deborah

Deborah Stein
Music Theory Department
New England Conservatory
290 Huntington Avenue
Boston, MA 02115

(617) 469-2490 


From:  "Forrest, David" <david.forrest at ttu.edu>
Date:  Tue, 6 Nov 2012 14:58:54 +0000
To:  Nicolas Meeùs <nicolas.meeus at paris-sorbonne.fr>
Cc:  SMT Talk <smt-talk at societymusictheory.org>
Subject:  Re: [Smt-talk] Schenkerian analysis - visual impaired student

I agree that it is worth the struggle to overcome this challenge.  I have
been teaching theory and aural skills to a blind student for three semesters
now and it has been extremely rewarding.  We do have to meet one-on-one and
it does take extra work to convert materials into appropriate formats.
However I have learned a lot about my own teaching in the process.  Many of
the materials I have developed for her have been very useful in the
"regular" classroom.  I have begun to realize how much I rely on visual
aids, rather than aural aids, to teach theory concepts.  She doesn't read
braille but she has a computer program that will read text aloud.  So I can
still have her chart large forms of pieces, we have simply developed a
text-based chart that works via email.  The basics (and advanced concepts)
of Schenkerian theory can be taught aurally, and might actually be more
effective if you can't hide behind notation.  At least, that has been my
experience. 

I'd be happy to share resources if you are interested.

Best,
David


 
David Forrest, PhD
Assistant Professor of Music Theory
Graduate Theory Coordinator
Texas Tech University
(806) 742-2270, 265
david.forrest at ttu.edu





On Nov 5, 2012, at 12:02 PM, Nicolas Meeùs wrote:

> Dear collective wisdom,
> 
> The University Paris-Sorbonne, under the pressure of Luciane Beduschi (now of
> Skidmore College), organized compulsory classes in Schenkerian analysis for
> our third-year students. One of them, visual impaired, asked to be freed from
> these classes and, indeed, we saw no other solution than to exempt her from
> this course.
> 
> I would be most interested to know if anyone has experience of such a
> situation.
> 
> Nicolas Meeùs
> Université Paris-Sorbonne
> 
> _______________________________________________
> Smt-talk mailing list
> Smt-talk at lists.societymusictheory.org
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> rg

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