Another teacher at the Curtis Institute who was treated like a God was harpist Carlos Salzedo, whose influence on generations of harpists is legendary, given their ultimate career success. It is true that the two pedagogues, Tabuteau and Salzedo, are from a past generation, but I have chosen them intentionally to demonstrate that this form of adulation did no long-term harm to their students. Indeed, the career accomplishments of their students as a group far outshine the results of students of other pedagogues on these instruments. Students of each whom I have known personally were both lavish in their praise and had few complaints about interpersonal relationships.
One could easily point to music teachers active today who are treated as God-like by their students without seeming ill effects.
On the other hand, there are two cautions that must be kept in mind as one considers the questions that Biss raises. The first has to do with the danger he cites of students developing a closed mind, musically speaking, and becoming poor imitators of their teachers. There is a tendency to assume that what the God-like teacher has imparted is the ultimate musical truth. Music, as Biss points out, is more complex and nuanced. He writes:
“If we want musicians who engage deeply with the music they play, who approach it with imagination and courage and marry instinct to insight, then we should elevate teachers who acknowledge their own fallibility and who help their students learn to think and listen critically. If we want musicians who reduce their work to a set of rules to be followed, we should elevate teachers who think they can do no wrong and demand that their students think the same.”
But how can a music student develop such high-level imagination and insight when he or she is still learning the craft? Here, I think, there is a simple solution. Study with more than one great teacher—with each bringing a different perspective to the instrument.
I, along with many other flutists of my generation, for example, had this experience. Many flutists at the Curtis Institute of Music studied with the legendary American flutist, William Kincaid. Of these, several then went on to study with the iconic French flutist, Marcel Moyse, (one of the founders of the Marlboro Music Festival which Biss co-directs). The approach of these “Gods” to the instrument could not have been more different. The result was that students forged their own way and many became instrumental leaders of their generation. Similarly, my brother, Andrew Wolf who was a piano student at Curtis, studied both with Rudolf Serkin and Mieczysław Horszowski, and the contrast in approach allowed him to be worshipful of these two “Gods” while forging his own unique style of playing.
