We would like to thank Esther Hayter for this insightful article on The New School for Music Study’s Postgraduate Teaching Program. Want to learn more about the Postgraduate Teaching Program? Learn more and apply by clicking here.
As the 2017-2018 Postgraduate Fellow, I came to the New School eager to teach, and put into practice all that I had learned in my master’s degree. I had heard that NSMS was a special place and knew that it was renowned for its legacy of teacher education programs. Little did I know that it would change my life, personally and professionally. What makes NSMS special is not primarily its teacher education programs or curriculum, although they are excellent. What makes NSMS special is most of all the people; both students and faculty.
My year as the fellow, spent under the close guidance of Amy Glennon, transformed my teaching. Amy’s endless creativity, her vast knowledge of repertoire that enables her to assign just the right piece at the right time, and her insistence on technical and musical excellence in every student inspired me then and continues to inspire my teaching. When trying to help a student conquer a difficult passage or technical difficulty, I often find myself thinking “What would Amy do?” Her warmth, compassion, and kindness make her not only a beloved teacher to her students but a beloved colleague and friend.
The memories made during my fellow year, including observing Marvin Blickenstaff’s PEPS rotations, faculty meetings and recitals, and lesson planning with other faculty members in the upstairs office, will stay with me for the rest of my life. Before coming to the New School, I looked up to and admired Marvin and Amy and the rest of the faculty from afar and now I am privileged to not only call them mentors and colleagues, but dear friends. I will forever be grateful for the impact that the NSMS has had on my personal and professional life.
Learn more about teaching and professional development opportunities at The New School for Music Study by clicking here.
MORE ON THE NEW SCHOOL FOR MUSIC STUDY
- DISCOVERY PAGE: Reflections on the Postgraduate Teaching Program by Allison Shinnick Keep
- PRESS RELEASE: New School for Music Study Appoints New Leader
- ABOUT: The New School for Music Study
- MAGAZINE ARTICLE: Then and Now: A Retrospective of the New School for Music Study’s Sixty Years by Rebecca Mergen Pennington
- MAGAZINE ARTICLE: Celebrating Fifty Years at the New School for Music Study: A Three-Generation Review by Judith Jain
- DISCOVERY PAGE: Six Reasons You Should Apply to the Postgraduate Teaching Program at The New School for Music Study by Trevor Thornton