The Bulletin | April 4, 2013 | umanitoba.ca/bulletin
Page 5
Q&A
meet the dean:
Edmund Dawe
Marcel A. Desautels Faculty of Music MARIIANNE MAYS WIEBE The Bulletin
What is your motto or guiding principle?
and music-related careers. This is a tall order and we must therefore have the courage to place all aspects of our curriculum under the microscope regularly to see if we are meeting these goals and build consensus to make changes where necessary,” he adds.
For Edmund Dawe, pianist, professor and dean of the Desautels Faculty of Music, his love of music comes down to this: “I love all of the research and practicing required to create an interpretation of a great piece of music, and collaborating with other performers whenever possible. “
Photo by Mariianne Mays Wiebe
What drew him to Winnipeg was the “There was always music in the house,” he said of his reputation of the music childhood in Newfoundland. program at the U of M. Mostly it was traditional “It’s an ideal place; a folk music. “My grandfather vibrant university located played the accordion and I in a cultural capital with would accompany him on a many opportunities for keyboard; I played by ear.” partnering with other While his grade one Edmund Dawe with his piano in his office at the Desautels Faculty of Music. outstanding arts and music organizations.” A classmates were jotting down dreamy answers such as “astronaut” or week — shaped his ear and inspired him. recent statistic he cites lists Winnipeg as “explorer” in their grade one printing “It set the bar for what I wanted to strive having a little over 2 per cent of Canada’s journal to the question of what they wanted to achieve,” he says. Though he continued population but 12 per cent of the nation’s to be when they grew up, Dawe was focused and completed a conjoint degree program professional musicians. “We have a very on a decided goal: he wrote “music teacher.” in Music and Music Education, he significant concentration of outstanding He loved music, and started playing the subsequently pursued graduate degrees in musicians in our community,” he notes. piano when very young, he says, and was performance at the University of Western enrolled in formal lessons by the age of Ontario and the University of British I see the Desautels Faculty as playing a seven. He gained exposure to classical Columbia. key role in spreading the reputation for
While grade one classmates jotted down dreamy answers such as “astronaut” to the question of what they wanted to be when they grew up, Dawe had a decided goal: “music teacher.” music at 14, and later, upon attending Memorial University with the intent of becoming a high school music teacher, Dawe became increasingly interested in performance. “Because I was exposed to classical music later than most people who choose that route,” he says, “and Memorial University opened that world to me.” While an undergraduate student, an opportunity to go to London on an external semester program at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama was “lifechanging”. At the conclusion of the first concert he attended in London, featuring mezzo-soprano Dame Janet Baker with the London Symphony Orchestra, he sat in a daze of wonder in his seat in Royal Festival Hall until the ushers finally prodded him to leave. The high calibre of live music — he attended three or four concerts per
As for the interplay between scholarship, teaching and artistry or performance, “the teaching and performance aspects inform each other,” he says. What makes for exceptional music training? First and foremost, “students must have the opportunity to study with outstanding practitioners in the field performers, composers, conductors, and scholars. Furthermore, the professors must also have a gift and passion for teaching. “Secondly, the curriculum must meet the demands of the times and the profession. Courses and programs require depth and breadth that provide training in the essential core aspects of music while offering content and choices that enable students to explore specific areas of interest and prepare them for a wide range of music
excellence at the University of Manitoba. With the completion of new facilities for Music, Art, and Theatre in the Taché Complex, there are exciting opportunities on the horizon for collaborations and synergies that will enable the institution to position itself as a major cultural force in the city, province and country. “There’s a lot going on and a huge opportunity for more,” he says. “It’s a good place to work and to build a faculty of music,” he says. He names a mentorship program with the Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra as an example of the types of partnering that are possible. “It is an honour to work at the University of Manitoba and to be in my second term as dean of the Desautels Faculty of Music.”
Work hard. As one of my teachers used to say, “The only place you find success before work is in a dictionary!” What inspires you?
Talent in any discipline inspires me. Talent = potential, and we have the privilege of being in the profession of nurturing and developing potential. Our students and faculty inspire me with their talent, dedication and work as performers, conductors, composers and scholars. This past week, we began our annual performance reviews in the Desautels Faculty of Music. As I meet with each colleague to discuss the past year, I am constantly impressed by the diversity and calibre of work being carried out in all areas of the faculty. What do you admire in someone else?
Kindness.
What do you value in a friend or colleague:
Honesty.
An eye-opening experience:
One of the most eye-opening happened very recently. My 81-yearold mother is battling dementia. I witnessed her recall and sing a song from the 1950s while watching a group perform it on a PBS special. She did this on a very slow day when she didn’t seem to recognize close family members. I have never heard her sing this before, and she was 19 years old when it was a hit single. Best day of your life and what made it so?
In September 1982, I met my wife Karla in the cafeteria at the University of Western Ontario’s Talbot College. Favourite piece of music:
That’s a tough question because there are many pieces I love. However, Liszt’s B Minor Sonata is a work that I learned in graduate school. It’s one of the most demanding pieces in the repertoire and took a huge amount of practice and research. I programmed it on my M.Mus recital and it was very successful - in hindsight it was an important turning point in my development as a pianist and it remains one of my favourite pieces.
The Marcel A. Desautels Faculty of Music The Marcel A. Desautels Faculty of Music is a bustling faculty with many programs. It offers degree and diploma programs, including: Bachelor of Music (General, Performance, Composition or History); Bachelor of Jazz Studies; Post-Baccalaureate Diploma in Performance; a Master of Music; and an integrated program with the Faculty of Education, the Bachelor of Music/ Bachelor of Education degree. The faculty prepares students for a wide range music and music-related careers through an outstanding academic/ performance curriculum, a collaborative and stimulating learning environment, broad exposure to a wide range of classical and jazz styles taught be leading experts, and instruction in all orchestral, band, jazz, instrumental and vocal areas.
Composed of internationally acclaimed artist-teachers and scholars who share a passion for teaching and are committed to excellence and student success, the Desautels Faculty of Music is located at the Fort Garry campus in Winnipeg—one of Canada’s most culturally vibrant and artistically diverse cities. The faculty also boasts high academic standards, numerous, rich opportunities for performance, a small conservatory atmosphere offering individualized attention within a large and dynamic research university and a growing endowment providing substantial scholarships and bursary assistance. Edmund Dawe, dean of the faculty, adds, “The Desautels Faculty of Music is located on a lively campus in a cultural capital, and offers exceptional opportunities for
the study and performance of music.
eXperimental Improv Ensemble (XIE).
“Our faculty is comprised of an outstanding group of performers, conductors, composers, and scholars who have a passion for teaching. Similarly, the level of talent among our students is an inspiration!”
In addition to the courses that run during the term, the faculty offers a number of summer programs each year, such as Aboriginal music in the K - 8 classroom, Orff certification program, contemporary opera lab, choral conducting intensive and a summer jazz camp. Music instruction and other programs (such as RCM theory classes, chamber music program, adult beginner guitar, musical theatre camp, summer singing for adults and introduction to keyboard) are offered through year-round through its division of preparatory studies. See more at: issuu.com/uofmanitoba_bulletin/docs/ november_10_2011_bulletin_web_music
Several courses are open to students outside the faculty, such as The Well Tempered Concert-Goer and The Rudiments of Music. University students and community members are also encouraged to audition for many ensemble groups: Bison Men’s Chorus, Cantata Singers, Collegium, Concert Band, Concert Choir, Jazz Lab Band, Jazz Orchestra, Opera Theatre, Musical Theatre, Symphony Orchestra, University Singers, Wind Ensemble, Women’s Chorus and the
Turn the page for a special feature on this vibrant faculty.