Harmony and the Oneness of Opposites: Teaching Music Theory through Aesthetic Realism (EN)

Green, Edward; Manhattan School of Music

With examples from Bach, Chopin, Stravinsky, Ellington, and Monteverdi, this paper provides an answer to the question: "What is the best way to motivate students to learn music theory?" By relating it to the questions people face in life! And the most effective, accurate, exciting way to do so is through the Aesthetic Realism teaching method, created by the great American poet and educator Eli Siegel. According to Aesthetic Realism, art and life have in common the Opposites: the very substance of the world and our emotions, and likewise the technical basis of music. As Siegel explained: "In reality opposites are one; art shows this." Central technical concepts in harmonic theory are considered in the light of this philosophic idea, and the work of various theorists is cited in support of it, including Zuckerkandl, Schönberg, Schenker, and Toch. The essay also addresses two ethical matters inseparable from effective pedagogy: how to bridge the gap between "art and science," famously described by C.P. Snow, and how to recognize the temptation, for student and teacher, alike, to establish our personalities on the basis of contempt rather than respect-a danger Eli Siegel did more to unearth and explicate than any previous educator. (EN)

info:eu-repo/semantics/article

info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersion

Peer-reviewed Article (EN)

Combination of Empirical Research (Classroom based) and Philosophic Analysis (EN)

Harmony (EN)

Eli Siegel (EN)

Music Education (EN)

Aesthetic Realism (EN)

Philosophy (EN)

Music Theory (EN)

Ένωση εκπαιδευτικών μουσικής Πρωτοβάθμιας Εκπαίδευσης

Επιστημονική Έκδοση για τη Μουσική, την Εκπαίδευση και τον Πολιτισμό

Articles

Επιστημονική Έκδοση για τη Μουσική, την Εκπαίδευση και τον Πολιτισμό

Αγγλική γλώσσα

2011-11-13

http://hejmec.eu/journal/index.php/HeJMEC/article/view/10

Greek Association of Primary Music Education Teachers (EN)

1600 - present (EN)

World (EN)

Classroom-based (EN)

1792-2518

Επιστημονική Έκδοση για τη Μουσική, την Εκπαίδευση και τον Πολιτισμό; Vol 2, No 1 (EL)

Hellenic Journal of Music, Education and Culture; Vol 2, No 1 (EN)

Authors who publish with this journal agree to the following terms:Authors retain copyright and grant the journal right of first publication, with the work [SPECIFY PERIOD OF TIME] after publication simultaneously licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution License that allows others to share the work with an acknowledgement of the work's authorship and initial publication in this journal.Authors are able to enter into separate, additional contractual arrangements for the non-exclusive distribution of the journal's published version of the work (e.g., post it to an institutional repository or publish it in a book), with an acknowledgement of its initial publication in this journal.Authors are permitted and encouraged to post their work online (e.g., in institutional repositories or on their website) prior to and during the submission process, as it can lead to productive exchanges, as well as earlier and greater citation of published work (See The Effect of Open Access). (EN)