Education and Pedagogy
Many people have really come to dislike being on online platforms, such as Zoom. And there are many reasons for that – from staring at your own face or knowing other people are staring at your own face, to feeling disengaged, and to missing in-person social connections. The list goes on. This is especially true the further along the pandemic goes.
There are, however, benefits that come from living and working in a virtual world. Not only has it increased accessibility for people with disabilities, but it has proven to save time and money through the reduction of need to travel for activities. This also means that individuals can work and live in two separate cities. Virtual work is also favored by some, especially who value flexibility, like parents (as I’ve heard).
The benefits of living in a virtual world have become popular for many. The same is not true, though, for most people involved in music making. The main reason being that music making requires high quality visual and auditory information, something that lacks in most video-conferencing platforms.
However, musicians have found some benefits of using video-conference platforms, especially the practicality of it. As Joel Quarrington, Double Bassist with the NAC Orchestra, told me: “Yeah, I think it's great, actually. And again, it's like, part of the silver lining of this. It should continue. It beats flying somewhere with a bass.”
For Quarrington, using online platforms has allowed for easier global collaboration with musicians. “Me and some buddies that are teachers at other places around the world—we started doing teaching at each other’s schools. So, I did classes at Coburn and the Guildhall and in Rotterdam, and in Bern in Switzerland. As well as—I did a thing in Trondheim, Norway. Stuff like that. Which has been, I mean, it's been great. And then I started my summer programs too, like Orford. So, I was spending like 30 hours a week with this teaching. Now I'm sick of it [laughs].” And in the video below, Quarrington discusses in further detail the scenarios in which virtual teaching may be most practical.
The benefits of virtual music making and learning do, however, rely heavily on technology. Especially reliable high-speed internet, something many of us take for granted, even though many people lack it, including families in rural Ontario communities (Butler 2021).
And yet, reliable internet may not be enough for some. Adding on to the expenses of instruments and tuition, suitable electronics can be very pricey. As Quarrington told me: “and the trouble is, you know, students have limited resources, they can't get great equipment and stuff. It'd be great if the schools were a bit more helpful and giving them good equipment. But even like—sort of old laptops aren't good enough. You know, everyone should be investing in this stuff because I think it's going to be here for a while, yet, this online environment. And, you know, it's like, you should invest a couple or $3,000 in getting yourself as well set up as possible.”
Whether it be music education or music making, moving music into the virtual world was always going to be tough. Despite it all, over time, I myself have come to accept a middle ground, between both sides of this issue: feeling lucky to have technology that allows one to connect with other musicians — during a global pandemic — and at the same time, lament the experiences that have either been cancelled or somewhat replaced by an internet experience, which will never fully make up for the real thing.