Part Recordings

Recently asked online: “Are part recordings cheating?” That is, does providing part recordings diminish an ensemble experience because we don’t force our students to develop the reading and keyboard skills to learn the music on their own?

The answer is: of course not. In fact, I think our music education system, especially at the secondary and non-music-major levels, put entirely too much emphasis on reading skills.

The truth is that most of our students will not be pursuing careers or even experiences in which reading will be a sine qua non. And I teach more about music when I am not teaching notes and rhythms in rehearsal by osmosis, rote, or other semi-literate means.

I want to get to the music as fast as possible, and if part recordings help, then they are a net positive. For the small percentage of my students who will continue into fields where reading is essential, they will find part recordings to be an additional help – for practicing in the car, for learning inflection and nuance that can be in a recording but not on the page.

In 2021, with high level music literacy, I wouldn’t start learning a new song without seeing if there were reference recordings online to compare to. And if part recordings don’t exist, I’m going to make them for myself – as I’ve been doing since college. Why should my students be any different? And why is it anything but punishment to withhold tools to empower their music-making?