Some days ago, I found myself in an interesting conversation with a colleague at work. The conversation made me realise something extraordinary: that we take education in general for granted. I admit, I never thought about it before now, but it happens to be true.
Let me explain what I mean: Ideally, we all go to school to learn stuff. And of course we hate it most of the time... It's only natural! Who likes waking up early in the morning to do calculus or grammar - especially if the weather outside is inviting you to go for a pick nick! Still, we all suffer through the school years and eventually graduate. After that some of us go to university to further our education, while others find a job and yet others simply do nothing (or go into politics...) What we do not realise is that the education we received at school and university is what qualifies us to do a specific kind of work. It can be our choice or it can be a job we do because nothing better came up and we desperately need the money or it's something someone else chose for us. In any case, our education is what helps us perform our duties...
And that is the linking word taking us into the next part of the conversation: "perform"! Ideally, musical education begins at an early age. Now, I am not going to talk about those of us who started to learn an instrument and dropped out for different reasons. I am going to talk about those talented and patient people who succeed in their musical training and turn that into their way of life. Let's think backwards for a second: All the musicians comprising an orchestra have studied at a conservatory or music academy. Even wunderkinder in music take lessons to further their skill and talent (but a wunderkind usually pursues a solo career and doesn't join an orchestra body for life). So, our musicians have to start from somewhere, otherwise no orchestra can exist!
Now to the politics part of this discussion - and yes, I will turn yet another blog entry into a "Save the State Conservatory of Thessaloniki" propaganda. The most talented musicians of northern Greece aspire to be accepted into this conservatory at a young age, because from there, they can work in the most important music bodies of Greece - the Thessaloniki State Symphony Orchestra being one of them. Let's also not forget that this particular orchestra was founded and staffed by musicians of the Conservatory! Also, even to this day, a large number of musicians at the Thessaloniki State Symphony Orchestra are graduates of the Conservatory. So, I ask our government: What will become of the Orchestra, if you stop funding the Conservatory? It will lose a number of future musicians who would love to become members of the Thessaloniki State Symphony Orchestra, because it is THE leading orchestra of northern Greece!
Of course, one has to take into account the fact that even the Orchestra is faced with huge cuts in its budget; cuts that might affect its function in the very near future... Everything is the result of a faulty financial policy created with the sole purpose of destroying nations. Hopefully, someone will step forward and change things for all culture institutions all over the country and save them. Until that time comes, I am obliged to remind the audience that visits the concerts of the Thessaloniki State Symphony Orchestra that they need to help save the State Conservatory of Thessaloniki as well, otherwise their Orchestra will lose future musicians that will staff it. Musicians do not spring up from the ground, they become musicians through training and education, just as a mathematician has to learn mathematical forms first and then teach or revolutionise the field... No parthenogenesis exists, we all acquire our skills through our teachers. What we do with those skills afterwards, is entirely up to us.
Κυριακή 4 Μαρτίου 2012
Σάββατο 28 Ιανουαρίου 2012
State Conservatory of Thessaloniki: A Century of Musical Offering
Here is a video from the performance of students of the State Conservatory of Thessaloniki, with the Municipal Orchestra of Thessaloniki under the musical direction of Vladimiros Symeonidis and the collaboration of the Mixed Choir of Thessaloniki (director Mairi Konstantinidou). The performance took place in January, in the second stage of the Concert Hall of Thessaloniki.
State Conservatory of Thessaloniki (Greek - English letter of demands)
ΑΚΡΩΤΗΡΙΑΣΜΕΝΟ ΤΟ ΚΡΑΤΙΚΟ ΩΔΕΙΟ ΘΕΣΣΑΛΟΝΙΚΗΣ ΠΡΟΣΠΑΘΕΙ ΝΑ ΕΠΙΒΙΩΣΕΙ
Η γενικότερη κρίση απειλεί βαθιά πια και την ύπαρξη του Κρατικού Ωδείου Θεσσαλονίκης (ΚΩΘ).
Ζωτικά τμήματα οργάνων δεν λειτουργούν, οι καθηγητές στην πλειοψηφία τους και το υπόλοιπο προσωπικό με συμβάσεις εργασίας παραμένουν απλήρωτοι από τον Ιανουάριο του 2011, η αντιμετώπιση των λειτουργικών εξόδων είναι πια δυσβάστακτη.
Το ΚΩΘ προσέφερε γενιές μουσικών, καλλιτεχνών της πράξης, θεωρητικών και παιδαγωγών στην Ελλάδα και το εξωτερικό.
Η Κρατική Ορχήστρα Θεσσαλονίκης ξεπήδησε από τους κόλπους του.
Μια πυκνή συναυλιακή δραστηριότητα γνώρισε στην πόλη τον γοητευτικό κόσμο της σοβαρής μουσικής.
Το νομικό πρότυπο του ΚΩΘ λειτουργεί ως πρότυπο για όλα τα ωδεία της χώρας.
Και βέβαια, όσοι νέοι και νέες ασχολούνται με την μουσική, αναδεικνύουν την φαντασία τους, πλαταίνουν την οργάνωση της σκέψης τους, καλλιεργούν την ευαισθησία τους.
ΖΗΤΟΥΜΕ
Να μην καταστραφεί ό,τι με στερήσεις και αυτοθυσία στήθηκε από το 1914 στην πόλη για την ουσιαστική μουσική παιδεία.
Να εξακολουθήσει η ζείδωρη χρηματοδότηση του έργου του ΚΩΘ με συνέπεια, συνέχεια και σεβασμό.
Να ξαναβρεθούν η παιδεία και η τέχνη στην προτεραιότητα που τους αξίζει.
Δημήτρης Ιωάννου
Καθηγητής ΚΩΘ
THE AMPUTATED STATE CONSERVATORY OF THESSALONIKI FIGHTS FOR SURVIVAL
The grobal crisis is now a big threat to the existence of the State Conservatory of Thessaloniki (SCT).
Vital courses of instruments have been shut down, most music teachers and the rest of the assistant staff with limited time business agreements remain unpaid since January of 2011, covering of directly incurred costs has become unbearable.
The SCT has trained generations of musicians, artists of performance, theorists and educators who are now active in Greece and abroad.
The State Symphony Orchestra of Thessaloniki was conceived and created by musicians of the SCT.
A dense performing activity introduced the city to the charming world of serious music.
The legal framework of the SCT is the model for every other conservatory of Greece.
And of course, all young people who study music, use their imagination more often, broaden their horizons, organize their thoughts more efficiently and cultivate their sensitivity.
WE ASK
That everything that was created through self-sacrifice and hardships in 1914 for the music education of the city not be destroyed.
That the life-sustaining funding of the SCT and its projects not be stopped but delivered with consistency, continuity and respect.
That education and art become top priorities in our lives once again.
Dimitris Ioannou
Teacher at SCT
Κυριακή 15 Ιανουαρίου 2012
Opera Quiz No. 3
Question No. 3:
How many women did Don Giovanni "satisfy" in total?
a. 2063
b. 1988
c. 1003
d. 734
Answer to Quiz No. 2:
The correct answer is b. "Madness", which drives Lucia to sing her aria "Il dolce suono", after she has stabbed her newly-wed husband. Dripping blood, still holding the murder weapon in her hands, she fantasizes of a wedding with her true lover.
Congratulations to Arepo who answered correctly!
Παρασκευή 6 Ιανουαρίου 2012
Opera Quiz No. 2
Question No. 2:
In which mental state does the protagonist of "Lucia di Lammermoor" sing her most famous aria?
a. Love
b. Madness
c. Hatred
d. Happiness
Answer to Quiz No. 1:
The correct answer is d. "Les contes d'Hoffmann"; the other three fall under the category of "operetta". However, there exists a second - relatively unknown - opera from Offenbach: "Die Rheinnixen".
Congratulations to Smorg, who asnwered correctly! I wish I had a prize to give out every time, but... financial crisis makes this slightly impossible! For now...
"The Story of the Weeping Camel" and what we can learn from it.
Today, I had the chance to see this fantastic documentary-movie "The Story of the Weeping Camel" again and while watching it, a number of thoughts came to me.
First, these people there, living in harsh conditions, completely isolated from what we today call "the civilized world", are perfectly happy. They have each other, they have their herds of camels and sheep, they have their portable homes, they have the entire steppe to explore. Their exposure to technology is relatively minimal, although, in the end, they do buy a TV set, complete with satellite dish, to satisfy the younger boys' wish.
Second, they have a stronger connection with Religion and Tradition. They make food offerings to their gods and they open their houses to everyone, without asking for anything in return. They are simple, but not simple minded. They speak little, because there is no need for them to say many things. And in the evening, the grandfather gathers the family around the fire and tells them stories and legends.
But the movie is - above all else - the story of a camel and how traditional music changed it. In case you haven't seen the movie yet, I will not spoil the ending for you. But I will talk about the music part. It is extremely interesting to hear that they have a music ritual to fix a camel with a particular problem. The people in the film didn't come up with the idea, it is part of a tradition; which means, that an ancestor once realized that music had healing effects on camels! Nowadays scientists have proven the healing effects of music on a variety of things - there is even a man who plays Mozart to his grapes to make them grow and produce better juice... But to see how people who have no access to hard science, only through observation, understood that, is simply incredible. I believe that it is incredible for two reasons: first, it shows how important a role music has had ever since the dawn of civilization and second, that as a collective, humans and animals alike, benefit from the harmonics of music and song.
I know that I am not saying anything groundbrakingly novel here. But it is a small realization, that makes me feel comfortable and all warm inside. All I can say is, in case you haven't seen the movie, see it; and if you have seen it, then maybe dwell on the importance of the music ritual in it and see if you can transer it in your life - not necessarily with the particular music of the film, but with the kind of music that makes you feel good and happy!
Τρίτη 3 Ιανουαρίου 2012
Επιστολή-αίτηση στήριξης του αγώνα του Κ.Ω.Θ.
Ο Θανάσης Παπαϊσίου γράφει:
Όταν τα κύτταρα ενός οργανισμού φθαρούν ανεπανόρθωτα, τότε ο οργανισμός πεθαίνει. Τα κύτταρα του Κρατικού Ωδείου Θεσσαλονίκης, οι μαθητές και οι εργαζόμενοι, έχουν πληγωθεί βαθιά και άγρια τον τελευταίο καιρό. Οι μη ανανεώσεις των συμβάσεων, η μειωμένη επιχορήγηση, η επιλεκτική αδιαφορία του αρμόδιου Υπουργείου Πολιτισμού έχουν συρρικνώσει και ακρωτηριάσει το Ωδείο, αλλά δεν το έχουν σκοτώσει. Τουλάχιστον όχι ακόμα. Γιατί τα ζωτικά του όργανα, η καρδιά και ο εγκέφαλος είναι ζωντανά και εύρωστα. Η καρδιά και το μυαλό του Ωδείου είμαστε όλοι εμείς, οι καθηγητές, οι μαθητές, οι γονείς, οι διοικητικοί υπάλληλοι, οι φίλοι του Ωδείου, οι άνθρωποι που το αγαπάμε και το πονάμε. Κι εμείς έχουμε τη βούληση να σώσουμε το Ωδείο. Κι όταν υπάρχει βούληση, τότε εμφανίζονται και επιλογές και λύσεις.
Στους παρακάτω συνδέσμους και ηλεκτρονικές διευθύνσεις μπορούμε να γράψουμε ένα υποστηρικτικό σχόλιο, να κάνουμε ένα ‘like’, ή έστω απλά να ενημερωθούμε για την πραγματική κατάσταση του Ωδείου.
Είναι καιρός να κάνουμε γνωστό σε όλους πως το Ωδείο δεν είναι μία ακόμη δημόσια υπηρεσία που πρέπει να τελεί υπό διωγμόν καθώς είθισται στη σύγχρονη Ελλάδα. Είναι το μοναδικό δημόσιο ωδείο της χώρας, η προσφορά της ίδιας της Ελλάδας στα Ελληνόπουλα που θέλουν να σπουδάσουν μουσική. Είναι ο χώρος όπου καλλιεργούνται ψυχές με αγάπη κι αυταπάρνηση. Δεν είναι τυχαίο που οι εδώ και ένα χρόνο απλήρωτοι καθηγητές συνεχίζουν το εκπαιδευτικό και καλλιτεχνικό τους έργο εντός του Ωδείου με αμείωτους και ίσως και αυξημένους ρυθμούς. Το κάνουν αυτό γιατί αγαπούν τα παιδιά, αγαπούν το Ωδείο, αγαπούν αυτό το οποίο ευλογήθηκαν στη ζωή τους να κάνουν, τη μουσική.
Σταματάμε λοιπόν να καθόμαστε δίπλα από το προσκέφαλο του ασθενή περιμένοντας το θάνατό του. Ξεκινάμε τις δράσεις με μια απλή αιμοδοσία αγάπης κι ενδιαφέροντος προς το Ωδείο. Ενημερωνόμαστε γι αυτό και κοινοποιούμε τα προβλήματά του σε όσους περισσότερους μπορούμε. Οι λύσεις μερικές φορές έρχονται από εκεί που δεν το περιμένουμε.
Με τιμή,
Θανάσης Παπαϊσίου
Καθηγητής του ακρωτηριασμένου δημόσιου Κρατικού Ωδείου Θεσσαλονίκης
Εγγραφή σε:
Αναρτήσεις (Atom)