Wisdom From Conservatory Faculty: Insights on Success in Classical Music Performance

Abstract

What does it take to become a successful performer of Western classical music in the United States today? What factors, beyond technical proficiency and musicality, come into play? We started exploring these questions in a study of gatekeepers' (e.g., critics, artistic directors) views on key variables that contribute to the career trajectories of classical musicians. In this article we focus on the perspectives from faculty at three world-renowned classical music conservatories and compare the wisdom about career success gained from gatekeepers with that gained from faculty. In sum, faculty and gatekeepers tend to agree overall on the developmental stages of musical abilities turning into competencies, expertise, and finally high-level scholarly productivity or artistry (SP/A). Because teachers interact with a broader range of musical talents than gatekeepers (who typically only hear exceptional talent; i.e., musicians having reached the SP/A stage), they sometimes have a more nuanced perception of the mediating variables that enable a musician to progress from one stage to the next. This article concludes with a proposed model of talent development in the domain of classical music.

Keywords:

• classical music
• development
• faculty
• model
• psycho-social variables
• students
• talent