Cellist wants to strike creative spark

Press, 8 April 1987, Page 18

Cellist wants to strike creative spark

By

CHRIS MOORE

The cellist James Ten,nant is a musician in 'perpetual motion. e Tennant recently took -■up a 12 month teaching at the University of Canterbury’s .School of Music — but academic groves do not appear to have slowed the young American down. r Trio and orchestra work, recording sessions and teaching commitments have combined to make life scherzo rather than andante. "When you have a level of energy and a number of ideas, you simply do not stand still when there are things to be done. You ‘ zero in on specific projects,” he said this week. The road to Canterbury ' began with a Michigan childhood, training in the United States and a move to Europe where he lived and worked in London, taught in South America, married a New Zealander, and decided to sample life there. “I guess I have been the sort of individual who , has lived in several countries without every going ; back. Michigan would • have seemed quiet after : New Zealand — no earthquakes, no volcanoes.” ; James Tennant was a ! comparative latecomer to

the cello, first taking up the bow when he was 11.

"My mother played the piano, my sister the violin. I was seeking my own voice. I played a cello and it stuck. I was attracted by the instrument’s sound and its wide range of expression.”

The instrument has blossomed as a performing instrument during the past decade — a renaissance led by the English cellist Jacqueline du Pre, an instrumentalist he still sees as one of the most musicially and physically expressive of contemporary cellists, establishing herself and the cello on the minds and ears of an entire generation of musicians and music lovers. “Other cellists have followed in this tradition of warm personalities and expressive playing. Of course, there are people who find this a bit much.” After four years in Auckland, James Tennant moved south to Christchurch to experience music teaching in a university. “Students perform at a certain pace. Kids are coming to university and for the first time are dedicating their whole life to practising and playing music. Overseas, this happens much earlier. In New Zealand, these

students have previously led lives filled with variety and outside interests. Suddenly they must devote themselves full time to a particular instrument. "Some get caught up in this movement fairly quickly. Others take far longer." Many students progress in their own way. James Tennant prefers not to work against an individual style but to go with it, easing them into a new pace of learning.

“The dedication will be there, as long as you are careful how you teach them and give them confidence that what they have achieved is important.

“I have found a certain authoritarian feeling towards New Zealand music students. You have rules and regulations and the authority which tells you everything. I personally feel that it is not the best way to handle a student. It means that individuals are simply waiting to be taught rather than having their minds lit up, fired by the experience of making music and reaching their own decisions on how to play a piece or a particular phrase. “They should know about all the possibilities, then make their own choice.”

He refers to “creating the spark” to light the musical fires. “There is a lot of fuel in New Zealanders. There is a lot of potential — if only you can open them up and give them that little bit of confidence, allowing them to believe in themselves and their own ability.” He criticises the attitude that a student will eventually be a clone of the teacher.

“As soon as you do that, you are putting them into a box. And the fire will go out.”

Apart from teaching, he wants to play as much as possible. One avenue has been the Amici Chamber Orchestra. He has also made a recording of the Brahms Piano Trio in C.

“I am looking toward to this being a year of being able to perform and play.”

Although he enjoys the experience of playing in an orchestra, he refers to the limitations and frustrations which lead to many musicians deciding to play in smaller groups. “If you have a strong feeling about how you hear music then it can be difficult when you have to sit among 10 other cellists. Being an American, I suppose that somehow the individual is very important.”