By Wissam Boustany
Posted with permission.
Date: Wed, 29 Aug 2007 14:52:17 EDT
From: WBoustany@AOL.COM
Subject: TREVOR - ROBERT....scales
Dear Friends,
I need to join in this discussion about scales, because something simply isn't adding up in my mind, the way it is being discussed. To a huge extent, it is probably down to the limitations of email-discussions, which can NEVER be comprehensive...there simply is too much to encapsulate into soundbites which leave gaping holes that can all too easily be taken up in a petty way by well-meaning and accomplished colleagues.
I studied with Trevor for four years...and I practised hard - very hard...and by the way, I subscribed to the kind of 'flute fanaticism' that makes me relieved that I was carrying a flute rather than a gun!! I owe a great debt to the guidance that Trevor gave me during my four years with him and beyond - but that does not mean that I always accepted everything he told me...in fact, I think the success of our teacher/student relationship thrived BECAUSE of this creative tension.
I also know and admire/respect Robert, and testify to his genius and creativity as a flutist and musician. His influence on flute players and flute playing is enormous.
So - here are a few points and questions about scales:
1- While I agree that music cannot exist without scales and arpeggios (well maybe it can, but I would say that 99% of music relies on some form of modes and tonalities), I CANNOT agree to any wholesale way of perceiving and practising these 'building blocks' of music. I believe that this is a recipe for a certain dysfunction and lack of expression in playing. It is like saying 'once you have seen one person, you have seen them all', or ' why bother waking up today? I have seen a thousand sunrises before'. To be THAT accomplished/familiar at playing scales, gets dangerously close to becoming blind to their intrinsic emotional impact - and that (to the musician) equals 'failure'. I would argue that if we wind up listening to music and all hearing 'diminished seven' or 'augmented triad' or whatever...we are close to losing the ability to be moved by the underlying impulses of the music...this emotional response/approach needs to be nurtured, if we are to respond to these scales and give them in an inspired way. This is why improvisation is the beginning and the end of this process, not dry patterns.
2- Trevor's quote '...Learning scales and arpeggios is the quickest way to learn the repertoire. Its the quickest way to success in the profession....' must not be taken out of context, nor must it remain unquestioned. Is the 'quickest way' necessarily the best way? If you have any kind of real experience of life, then clearly, the answer is not that obvious. Why not turn the whole concept upside down? Why not learn AS MUCH music as possible, so that eventually we will know our scales/arpeggios...and in the meantime, we will have been in touch with the CONTEXT of each single living scale that we play...like trying to see/understand every single person in front of us, in their own right - rather than trying to pin them down into a vague stereotype for convenience's sake.
3- The issue (as I see it) is NOT about muscular control, nor is it about recognizing patterns, although these are very important aspects of a musician's discipline. The primary issue is to SENSITIZE and heighten our AWARENESS when we play....and that goes way beyond the realm of words, although words can sometimes help us along the way. We don't need to know the name of the bird or flower we look at, in order to perceive its beauty and miracle of existence. Ironically, after a lifetime of building up the intellect we tend to arrive at the conclusion that wisdom comes from the heart, not the brain. The challenge is to arrive at an enlightened and poetic connection with these wonderful patterns called scales, which symbolize so many wonderful aspects of life, nature and emotion.
4- Another question: If we want to learn to walk, do we need to weight-train and develop each of the muscles we use for walking separately? No...we just practise WALKING - and occasionally we may choose to refine, supplement and inform our instincts with further knowledge, if we feel the need for it. If we feel the need to appreciate walking more, why not take a walk in a forest, on the beach, in the Alps or in the ghetto...let's not limit our experience to the treadmill in the gym! Same thing applies to scales/arpeggios - I believe we learn them BETTER, when we experience them in their TRUE and INSPIRED environment - in the music.
5- Finally, all this talk about 'getting jobs'...frankly, it all sounds a little gruff to me. Lisa Nelson, are you telling me that you get your jobs because of the percentage scales that you managed to nail? Of course not - I know you...the reason why you are successful, is because of your beautiful and vibrant energy which infiltrates into the flute that you hold in your hands; you get your jobs because of 'who you are' and 'how you radiate these energies'. Many MANY other things contribute to the reasons why people get jobs - scales/arpeggios being only one of component.
Oh god....I dread to open my emails tomorrow...I hope nobody is offended by all that! Thanks Trevor, Robert and Lisa for your stimulating comments.
love
Wissam
Wissam Boustany
12 Walham Grove
London SW6 1QP
Tel: +44 207 385 5569
Fax: +44 207 381 9001
Email: wboustany@aol.com
Website: www.wissamboustany.com
