a) "Asi Kotama: The flutes of Otavalo, Ecuador"
(b) Hatun Kotama; members of Otavalo in the Kotama Village (flute school)
(c) Otavalo, Ecuador; Kotama Village
(d) flute, conch shell, voice, dance (body percussion)
On the helm of my group's discussion and the Koops reading this week, I decided to investigate the learning model that presented the most difficulty/challenge with my current teaching view. For me, the Reproduction/Reality/Relevance model was one that I felt would pose the most challenge as it required the teacher to access original recordings of pieces to be performed or recordings of performances that were similar to the one being performed. Additionally, it asks for the teacher to maintain focus on the traditions of the culture being taught and then ask for the students to find relevance in it without adding to or altering the piece in any way. Authenticity is the most important aspect of the recordings, so when I found these two, I felt I understood the premise of the Reproduction/Reality/Relevance model more. I began with the first video in which the reality and relevance aspect was presented so clearly. Koops defines reality as, "the examination of whether a piece of music actually reflects a musical practice in the world, and not just for the music classroom" (p. 25). He goes on to say that, "Relevance refers to generating individual meaning in the act of music making" (p. 25). In this village, the traditional flute-based performance music of their indigenous ancestors is preserved through these performances at festivals in which they travel throughout the village performing. Throughout the video, statements of relevance are made as the culture of the people is revealed in their respect for nature and its ties to sacred harmony with the lives its people. They make reference to the elements and its ties to the movement of the music. The second video is a performance excerpt of the same group, which could be used for the reproduction aspect of the model.
Reference
Koops, L. H. (2010). ''Can't We Just Change the Words?'' : The Role of Authenticity in Culturally Informed Music Education. Music Educators Journal 97: 23. DOI: 10.1177/0027432110376892.
Chasity-
ReplyDeleteGood post for this week's discussion on authenticity. The reference made to reality and relevance are represented in your post but the concepts are from Swanwick who is referred to in Koops article. Never the less they are well represented in the post. The beyond authenticity model is also represented in the post because of the first video. In Koops article there is also reference to educator and researcher sherry Johnson who's question is who needs authenticity? She suggest answering questions such as "How was the music produced? For whom? By whom? In what context? For what purpose? With what influences?" for investigating music practices and improving classroom performance (koops p. 26). I agree that acquiring at least some of this information would improve the performance quality of music outside of ones culture. Thanks for sharing.
Excellent reflection on Koops’ models, but again, I would like more reflection on the piece itself.
ReplyDelete