Surgery or Studio: Music Teaching- learning in a Regional Conservatorium, NSW, Australia

Abstract

This study documents and analyzes the environment where music education happens in a regional Conservatorium in New South Wales, Australia. The study aimed to gain insight into the structure, nature and professional practice of a regional conservatorium, and iden- tify innovative pedagogical possibilities. An ethnographic case study was undertaken over one year, with intensity ranging from weeklong immersion schedules to occasional short- term observation of activities. Schwab's (1969) commonplaces of schooling (Milieu, sub- ject matter, students and teachers) were applied as apriori themes, providing a scaffold for preliminary classification and further exploration of the data. Empirical themes were iden- tified as they emerged through data analysis, and subsequently applied. A dominant find- ing of the study underscores that relationship is at the heart of curriculum transfer in the music studio.