Ivan Matetić Ronjgov Music School in Pula and the Comenius project The only music school in Istria11 offering complete music education, from primary to secondary school, is the I. M. Ronjgov12 Music School in Pula.
The school distinguishes itself by, among other things, a good choir which is, in some of its performances, accompanied by the school’s accordion orchestra, the dance ensemble, etc. The choir participates in the music programs of the Academy of Music in Pula, where students perform various musical works together with the students from the Academy and with renowned conductors.
The choir gives many of concerts in Croatia, Sweden and Czech Republic.
In addition to numerous concerts for the community, one of the most important events was the participation in the Comenius project The Roots of Eternity (2011–2013), a multicultural music theater project. Together with the Austrian partners, who initiated the project (Landesmusikschule Bad Ischl), and the Music School of Pula, the High School Center Celje, Slovenia, also participated in the project. Since the project highlighted the folklore elements, the teachers from Pula showed the particularities of the traditional Istrian folk music “[…] with the desire to cultivate an autochthonous cultural idiom and to present Croatian culture” (Škara & Goldin 2013, 523). The authors point out that the project intensified the cooperation between students and teachers from different countries with the aim of creating a common European future.
MUSIC SCHOOL OUT OF THE BOX / SABINA VIDULIN
11 In Istria there are 13 art schools (mainly music schools) with 1,139 students at the beginning of the 2015/16 school year (Državni zavod za statistiku [Croatian Bureau of Statistics – Basic art schools]).
12 GŠ Ivana Matetića Ronjgova, http://www.imr.hr/hr/; Istarska enciklopedija – Istrapedia, http://istra.
lzmk.hr/clanak.aspx?id=994.
Škara and Goldin, teachers from the Music School of Pula, note that one of the main ideas was to enrich the curriculum:
“From the didactical side, the project has enabled the integration and correlation of existing activities between theoretical and practical contents and performing musical disciplines. The combination of choir singing, dance, orchestra, and acting […] was a new experience for all the participants. Contextual learning, opening, and linking elements of traditional Istrian folk music with contemporary art […] requires a change in the educational paradigm. […] It is important to point out that the work on the project encouraged the collection and processing of traditional folk music and intensified folklore lessons.” (Škara & Goldin 2013, 528) Poreč Arts School and classical music competitions
The Poreč Arts School13 offers music and dance education. Apart from basic orientation towards performing music alone and in a group, the development of listening habits, students’ musical taste, and individual creativity have been encouraged at the school. In addition to numerous concert activities with talented students, the school organizes three competitions: the Competition for Young Guitarists Porečki tirando, the International Guitar and Violin Competition Poreč Fest and the Cello Festival – International Cello Competition Antonio Janigro.
Cello festival – “Antonio Janigro” International Cello Competition
In honor of the Italian artist Antonio Janigro, one of the greatest cello players of the twentieth century, a conductor and educator who has gained world renown as the founder and longtime leader of the Zagreb Soloists, a com- petition is held every second year for young cello players aged up to twenty years in one of the Croatian cities. The first competition was held in 1996 in Samobor, the second in Čakovec in 1998. Since 2000 it has been held in Poreč. The competition is growing and gaining an international reputation; it is recognized by the European Union of Music Competitions for Youth. The competition brings together talented young cellists and their teachers. To exchange experience and educational work, a master class is organized, a seminar for all the participants in the competition conducted by the members of the international jury. As part of this competition, there are concerts by renowned cello virtuosos, a welcome concert given by students and teachers from the school, as well as an opening ceremony concert and closing concert14.
13 http://www.os-umjetnicka-porec.skole.hr/
14 http://www.os-umjetnicka-porec.skole.hr/skola/projekti
Lada Duraković, a former editor of the music program of Radio Pula, has been following the competition as a journalist for several years. In an interview by the author of this text, Duraković points out that the original purpose of the cello competition was to raise children’s interest in string instruments to open a string department at Poreč Music School. Today, thanks to this competition, the school has its own violin and cello classes. With the effort and commitment of leading people and school teachers, this competition has made the school one of the most active music schools in the county and beyond.
The most beautiful part of the story about the Janigro contest is the opportunity to follow the career of young people I first heard playing in Poreč. I am exceptionally happy that the Poreč episodes are one step forward in the students’ and teachers’ careers. (Duraković 2017).
Sandro Peročević, a contrabassist and former teacher at Poreč Music School, states in an interview with the author of this text that it was especially important that the competition gathered talented young cello players and their teachers. Apart from the competition part, it became a meeting point for teachers and a place for exchanging their educational and concert experiences. The events are of a high standard.
Matko Brajša Rašan Arts School in Labin and the Big School Orchestra The M. B. Rašan Arts School15 in Labin offers music and dance education.
Talented students represent the school at various events and participate in competitions. In addition to the preparatory program of music and dance, which introduces primary education, the opening of the jazz department is being prepared, which indicates the school’s openness to other, non-classical genres. The Big Orchestra, which gathers accordionists, guitarists, violinists, flutists, clarinetists, saxophonists, pianists, and percussionists, is also active in the school. It emerged from the desire of students and teachers to play together. Thus, students and teachers create synergies and have the opportunity to socialize. The repertoire of the orchestra is manifold.
The program includes music of different styles, from classical music, jazz, pop, rock, and funk to electronic and movie music. The orchestra gives many concerts. There were numerous tours throughout Croatia, but also in the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary, and Slovenia. The orchestra also performs together with the school choir and vocal and instrumental soloists, giving music a new dimension.
MUSIC SCHOOL OUT OF THE BOX / SABINA VIDULIN
15 http://us-mbrasana.skole.hr/
The Big School Orchestra had a striking performance at the famous festival in Opatija (Croatia), the 17th Liburnia Jazz Festival, which took place from 7 to 9 July 2017. The concert was titled The youth carries jazz on. It was announced on the website of the Liburnia Jazz Festival16:
The Liburnia Jazz Festival is proud to present the orchestra of young musicians from the M. B. Rašan Arts Music School from Labin because it is the youth that will continue the tradition of jazz. Besides classical music education, this school is one of the few in Croatia which also include jazz music in the program, and some of the members are Croatian jazz musicians (Damjan Grbac, Bruno Mičetić, etc.).
Conclusion
Music schools are an important part of the music culture of a city, having a direct impact on the city’s musical life. The teachers’ positive attitude and dedication in terms of willingness to additional (unpaid) engagement, as well as their hard work, result in their leaving the traditional ways of working and moving towards new and different methods.
This paper has presented the work of teachers and students in some music schools in Istria. As one aspect, the orientation towards promoting the classical ideal of art music is evident, supporting competition as a form of expression and encouragement of excellence. The second aspect leads to openness to traditional music and other musical genres. The results of the analyzed projects point to numerous musical and non-musical benefits:
Students play/sing and listen to each other, learn, measure their strengths, and become friends, which can inspire new musical initiatives. At the same time, teachers improve their musical and pedagogical capabilities and assume other roles such as producers and event organizers. The projects enable cooperation with local and regional authorities, whose duty should be financial support. Students and their teachers contribute to the city’s and region’s culture by giving concerts as part of the project. The concerts are open to the public with the goal of presenting youth music accomplishment and promoting music and the tradition of the city and/or the region.
A different way of working, in which artistic expression is combined with other musical practices, is a challenge for students and teachers. Students,
16 http://www.liburniajazz.hr/skola_en.html
according to these experiences, are approaching new challenges beyond classical education with greater enthusiasm, and their inner motivation results in greater desire for singing, playing, or dealing with different kinds of music. By monitoring their interests and encouraging them to discover other musical affinities, students and teachers interact in a more intense way, which has impacts on their emotional and social dimensions. Collective music-making, working together to play music, live concerts, and traveling together deepen their relations and leave a positive mark on children’s and adults’ lives. Working on the project, the teachers move away from the past education in (only) classical music, try out different musical genres, act as organizers, animators and leaders, examine their teamwork skills and establish their musical personality in a new and different context.
Maalouf emphasizes the following: “If we believe in something, if we carry enough energy, enough passion, enough joy of life, we can find the resources that today’s world offers to achieve some of our dreams.” (Maalouf 2002, 117).
Maybe some teachers realized their dreams of modernizing school, but could not imagine what it meant for the students. Music school out of the box is the way to bring music closer to the students—to their hearts and minds and to open themselves to the community, creating the European future.
_
REFERENCES
Armstrong, T., (2006). Višestruke inteligencije u razredu [Multiple intelligen-ces in the classroom]. Zagreb: Educa.
Gardner, H., (1993). Multiple intelligences: the theory in practice. New York:
Basic Books.
Harnoncourt, N., (2008). Glazba kao govor zvuka: putovi za novo
razumijevanje glazbe [Music as speech: the way for a new understanding of music]. Zagreb: Algoritam.
Kazić, S., (2013). Solfeggio: historija i praksa [Solfeggio: history and practice].
Sarajevo: Muzička akademija u Sarajevu, Institut za muzikologiju.
MUSIC SCHOOL OUT OF THE BOX / SABINA VIDULIN
Letica, M., ed., (2014). Vjerujem svakom djetetu: tekstovi iz ostavštine lly Bašić [I believe in every child: texts from the legacy of Elly Bašić].
Zagreb: Glazbeno učilište Elly Bašić.
Maalouf, A., (2002). U ime identiteta [In the name of identity]. Zagreb:
Prometej.
Ministarstvo znanosti, obrazovanja i sporta, (2011). Nacionalni kurikulum za predškolski odgoj, opće obvezno i srednjoškolsko obrazovanje [National curriculum for preschool education, primary compulsory and secondary education]. [online]. [Viewed 20 August 2017]. Available from: http://mzos.hr/
datoteke/Nacionalni_okvirni_kurikulum.pdf.
Ministarstvo znanosti, obrazovanja i sporta, (2008). Nastavni plan i program za srednje glazbene škole [Teaching plan and programme for secondary music schools]. Zagreb: Ministarstvo znanosti, obrazovanja i sporta.
Škara, B. and Goldin, S., (2013). Multikulturalni muzički teatar “Korijeni vječnosti – The Roots of Eternity” [Multicultural Music Theatre “The Roots of Eternity”]. In: S. Vidulin-Orbanić, ed. Music pedagogy in the context of present and future changes 3. Pula: Sveučilište Jurja Dobrile u Puli. pp. 521–533.
Vidulin, S., (2017). Study of music pedagogy in the republic of Croatia:
opportunities and restrictions. In: A. Michalski, ed. Ontology of music pedagogy: European systems of music education. Gdansk: Wydawnictwo Athenae Gedanenses. pp. 293–311.
Vidulin, S., (2016). Reforms of the education system in Croatia and
reflections on music teaching in compulsory school. In: F. Hadžić, ed. Music in society. Sarajevo: Muzikološko društvo FBiH, Muzička akademija Univerziteta u Sarajevu. pp. 345–358.
Vidulin-Orbanić, S., (2013). Glazbeno stvaralaštvo: teorijski i praktični prinos izvannastavnim glazbenim aktivnostima [Musical creativity: theoretical and practical contribution to the extracurricular musical activities]. Pula: Udruga SEM.
Vidulin-Orbanić, S. and Duraković, L., (2012). Metodički aspekti obrade muzikoloških pojmova: mediji u nastavi glazbe [Didactical aspects of teaching musicological contents: media in music lessons]. Pula: Sveučilište Jurja Dobrile u Puli.
ONLINE SOURCES
Državni zavod za statistiku Republike Hrvatske [Croatian Bureau of Statistics - Republic of Croatia]. [online]. [Viewed 20 August 2017]. Available from:
https://www.dzs.hr/default_e.htm
GŠ Ivana Matetića Ronjgova [Music School I. M. Ronjgov]. [online]. [Viewed 23 August 2017]. Available from: http://www.imr.hr/hr/
[online]. [Viewed 21 August 2017]. Available from: http://vijesti.hrt.hr/29903/
osnovana-prva-glazbena-skola
Istarska enciklopedija – Istrapedia [Istrian encyclopaedia - Istrapedia]
[online]. [Viewed 23 August 2017]. Available from: http://istra.lzmk.hr/clanak.
aspx?id=994
Liburnia Jazz festival. [online]. [Viewed 1 September 2017]. Available from:
http://www.liburniajazz.hr/skola_en.html
Pravilnik o osnovnom umjetničkom školovanju [Ordinance on Basic Art Education] (1993). [online]. [Viewed 25 August 2017]. Available from: http://
narodne-novine.nn.hr/clanci/sluzbeni/1993_06_53_1035.html
Središnji državni portal [Central State Portal]. [online]. [Viewed 20 August 2017]. Available from: https://gov.hr/moja-uprava/obrazovanje/srednje-obrazovanje/umjetnicko-obrazovanje/1688
Umjetnička škola Matka Brajše Rašana [Art School M. B. Rašan]. [online].
[Viewed 26 August 2017]. Available from: http://us-mbrasana.skole.hr/
Umjetnička škola Poreč [Art School Poreč]. [online]. [Viewed 30 August 2017].
Available from: http://www.os-umjetnicka-porec.skole.hr/
Umjetnička škola Poreč [Art School Poreč]. [online]. [Viewed301 August 2017]. Available from: http://www.os-umjetnicka-porec.skole.hr/skola/projekti Zakon o umjetničkom obrazovanju [Law of Art Education] (2011). [online].
[Viewed 20 August 2017]. Available from: http://narodne-novine.nn.hr/clanci/
sluzbeni/2011_11_130_2602.html
MUSIC SCHOOL OUT OF THE BOX / SABINA VIDULIN