John EricsonIt is that time of year! Questions tend to come in toward the end of semesters. Today we have questions that came in from students for classes.
First up are these questions for a career development class.. The answers go beyond what you might pick up from my bio or resume.
- What is your educational background and how has it helped you reach the career you have today?
JE: I have three college degrees, a BM in performance from Emporia (KS) State University, a MM and the Performers Certificate from the Eastman School of Music, and a Doctorate from Indiana University. In the bigger picture I was not an especially strong player out of high school (made all-state in Kansas as a senior only, middle of section) with in retrospect a pretty serious embouchure problem, but I came out of a good band program, worked very hard, and made the best of where I was. By the end of undergrad I was really only a little above average but making a lot of progress, enhanced by extra summer studies every summer. Looking back I think those summer studies were key in making the progress I needed to make. Also I learned a lot by very seriously taking a lot of auditions starting around the end of my MM studies, which ultimately led to playing third horn in Nashville for six seasons and on eventually to Arizona State. I think it helped me a lot actually as well to have lived in small and large towns and to have been to a variety of schools.
- What are some other extra-curricular activities that have helped you prepare for your career? (Clubs, etc.)
JE: For this all that comes to mind is for sure church and faith have helped me and kept me grounded in many ways. I have hobbies but I am not sure for example there is much connection between model trains and horn playing/teaching, other than to say it is good to have other serious interests, it is not all horn all the time for me.
- What were your goals when you first started in the music career?
JE: I don’t put this out there a lot but originally I was a music business major who had the goal of becoming an instrument repairman. In my sophomore year, taking Econ 101, I had a realization that I did not want to complete a business degree and felt if I were going to try to perform this was the time to try.
- What does an average day at work include?
JE: Variety! There is in a sense no average day as a college professor but every day I do teach a number of lessons and keep ahead of a number of different projects and teaching duties as brass area coordinator.
- What is your favorite thing about your job?
JE: Working directly with students. I liked playing full time in Nashville too but a time comes in that type of performing job when you realize that you are, to a point, just part of an entertainment product. I enjoy the direct experience of working with students and seeing them mature as players and individuals.
- What is your least favorite thing about your job?
JE: Anything that is an Excel spreadsheet is my least favorite thing to deal with.
- How would you say is the best way to succeed in the job that you’re in?
JE: Part of the answer is to stick with it and work hard over the long haul. Another element of this is related to the Midwestern work ethic I learned from my parents. They were both farm kids who grew up in the 1930s and even though my dad was a chemistry professor we still owned and worked often on a farm near our home. This is to say I learned something about how with large projects and goals you work on them little by little to achieve them. Progress may be slow, but do your best job and give all you do your best effort. One last point I often mention is related to resume building. Some of this I did inadvertently honestly, I was just following opportunities and interests, but the net result was after my studies and I was beginning to develop the kind of resume needed to win a job like the one I have now. Think big and look toward the longer goals, working steadily toward them.
The final questions of the day from a student are from a horn pedagogy class and relate closely to the topics addressed in an article earlier this year, “Start the Year with a Mission.” That article goes into more depth on this but it involves development of a mission statement, and the answers developed there fit the first two questions well.
- What is the role of the teacher in the learning process?
JE: My best short answer would be this, drawn from my studio syllabus. “Faculty in this course have the primary objectives of challenging and encouraging students through honest feedback. Faculty will demonstrate high standards, guide study in the studio, and support students as they progress toward achieving excellence in their larger personal and performance goals.”
- What is the role of the student in the learning process?
JE: Again, looking at my syllabus, “Students in this course should strive for excellence. This includes developing a primary objective of working on problems, to face those realities and overcome them with the objective of progressing toward horn performance goals. Students should also encourage and challenge their colleagues and teachers in a musically supportive atmosphere.”
- Any comments about how you structure your lessons and teaching around those roles.
JE: In short I am for a balance in study between etudes, solos, and excerpts and try to guide study effectively toward the goals of each student. From an article earlier this year I would offer this to close,
…in my opinion the best horn teachers are able to do three things in roughly equal proportions:
Challenge
Encourage
Inspire
Not all teachers are equal in respect to those things, and over time one challenge as a teacher is to take stock and see where you fit in that spectrum. Those that consciously try to inspire always come across to me as a bit fake and contrived. The most inspirational people just are naturally inspirational. The other two points though you can pretty directly influence in your teaching.