April 2022 MTNA e-Journal

The Experiences of Freelance Orchestral Musicians in the UK During the First COVID-19 Lockdown
By Susanna Cohen and Jane Ginsborg

Before the COVID-19 pandemic, 85% of the UK’s 14,000 professional orchestral musicians were self-employed freelancers with varied portfolio careers. When the pandemic struck, their lives were suddenly and drastically disrupted by the introduction of social-distancing measures. As musicians are often deeply identified with their work, and involuntary career transitions can be experienced as traumatic, researchers wanted to examine the experiences of freelance orchestral musicians at different stages of their careers during the first COVID-19 lockdown. The researchers conducted semi-structured, one-to-one interviews with 12 mid-career and 12 seasoned musicians. This paper presents and discusses the findings and their implications for music conservatories. [Read More]

Lost Gems from the “Golden Age” of Spanish Piano Music: Andrés Isasi, Emiliana de Zubeldía Piano Music: Andrés Isasi, Emiliana de Zubeldía and Manuel Blancafort
By Asher Armstrong and Younggun Kim

Considerable attention has been given to the late-19th and early-20th century renaissance of Spanish keyboard music, referred to by Linton Powell as a “golden age,” with Albéniz’s Iberia as a symbolic representative. However, much of the repertoire written during this period remains unexplored or entirely forgotten. This article explores some of the piano music of Andrés Isasi, who looked to Berlin, rather than Paris, for inspiration. The life of another Basque composer, Emiliana de Zubeldía, is fascinating, as is her succinct and evocative piano oeuvre. Finally, some hauntingly memorable moments from the keyboard output of Catalan composer Manuel Blancafort are considered. [Read More]

Poster Sessions

Adapting STEM’s Peer Instruction Model for Music
By Michael Clark, NCTM [View]

Connecting the Modern Audience to Classical Music: An Interdisciplinary Approach
By Abigail Mullis [View]

Current Research

A Stylistic and Performance Analysis of Selected Solo Piano Compositions by Helen Hopekirk
By Hannah M. Roberts [View]

Student-First Piano Pedagogy: Practical Strategies for Creating Dynamic Relational Connections in the Piano Studio
By Jessica L. Welsh , NCTM [View]