Metamorphosis: Creative and Integrated Teaching Methods in European Music Education

Abstract

The image of change, as witnessed in the process of metamorphosis, emphasises the importance of an approach to music education which is not confined to the development of skills without placing these in the context of a holistic creative framework. The theme of structuring a music education curriculum within such a creative framework is not new; however, while national and more local directives on education (in Britain and abroad) continue to emphasise a ‘knowledge-skills’ basis to learning, it remains necessary to draw attention to the long-term purpose of education and the position of knowledge and skills within an individual's understanding and creative development. The issue explored in this article is not one of ‘either/or’, but rather that of perception and emphasis.

Structurally the article reflects the development of a butterfly, with an increasing emphasis on creativity towards the final section of the paper. In addition the rondo structure of Smetana's Vltava contributes to the structural framework of the article – broadly in terms of the progress of a river from source to end, as well as at the particular level: for example, in the area of duality and balance of such elements as the cold and warm streams, and the two main scenes (day and night) through which the river passes. In this article, the two concepts of creativity and integration are combined within a creative structure, just as the elements of Smetana's composition are imaginatively and creatively integrated. The sub-title of the article places the themes of creativity and integration within a European framework, where ongoing attempts at political, economic and social bonding are reflected in the need to establish a currency of educational approaches to enable professional interaction and mobility to develop.