The History of the Conducting Gesture Is
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he history of the conducting gesture is evolution of the conducting gesture over the as old as recorded history itself. While years encourages conducting students to de- Tthe modern “professional” conductor velop new solutions to modern conducing did not invade the popular consciousness un- problems and inspire them to be innova- til the middle of the nineteenth century, de- tors rather than imitators. Finally, studying pictions of conducting gestures were etched conducting holistically within a historical in hieroglyphics and Pharaonic friezes, re- framework helps students consider diff erent corded in Greek and Roman literature, and leadership styles to achieve the best possible encoded above Jewish and Gregorian texts as performance, whether that requires conduct- cheironomic neumes. Conductors in the an- ing or giving direction in other ways. cient world were so revered, in fact, that the The purpose of this article is to review ancient Egyptians dedicated images of the the literature on conducting history, particu- hand and arm in art exclusively to refer to larly as it pertains to choral conducting and music, musicians, and especially conductors.1 to argue the pedagogical value of history for Yet for some reason, conducting history conducting students. First, I summarize cur- has been overlooked by instructional pro- rent literature on existing instructional con- grams for choral music educators in Ameri- tent related to history in conducting course ca. Studying the development of conducting syllabi. Then, I overview the current under- gestures emphasizes that conducting gestures standings of the development of kinesthetic have an array of meanings and contexts be- musical practices from ancient times to the yond “keeping time.” Analyzing the histori- present day. Finally, I provide implications cal use of gesture to transmit melodic infor- for teaching conducting history to students mation lends authority to the modern use in conducting courses and instructors in the of kinesthetic educational practices such as choral conducting classroom. the Curwen hand signs.2 Understanding the William Southerland PhD Student School of Music, College of Visual and Performing Arts University of North Carolina at Greensboro [email protected] 30 CHORAL JOURNAL March 2019 Volume 59 Number 8 GIVING MUSIC A HAND Conducting History in Practice and Pedagogy WILLIAM SOUTHERLAND GIVING MUSIC A HAND Conducting History terms—tempo, beat patterns, control gestures, expres- in Today’s Classroom sive gestures, and score study—but did not address any For beginning conductors in conducting classes today, historical knowledge regarding the discipline. Hart con- textbooks serve as a primary resource for information. cluded that conducting instructors emphasized technical Today’s conducting textbooks, however, make either skills over pedagogical skills,8 consistent with the theory only cursory reference to history or omit it altogether. that many current conducting courses focus exclusively The typical textbook begins with basic posture and beat on hand-waving without substantial historical context. pattern guidelines, then describes a system of gestures Some sources that have included conducting history without any historical context. Timothy Benge’s sur- contain incorrect information. Karl Gerkens’s 1919 vol- vey of college conducting textbooks acknowledged that ume Essentials of Conducting stated that there was no evi- these texts are generally excellent examples for the me- dence of conducting gesture before the fourteenth cen- chanics of conducting. Only six of the twenty-four cho- tury,9 an argument refuted by his own contemporaries. ral pedagogy texts Benge surveyed, however, contained Even as late as 1960, William Finn’s The Art of the Cho- any information on the historical development of the ral Conductor provided misrepresentations of the use of conducting gesture.3 the conducting gestures during the Gregorian period.10 As early as 1968, Julius Herford called attention to the Robert Demaree and Don V Moses’s 1995 textbook, lack of information that is currently provided to students The Complete Conductor, provided inaccurate informa- regarding historical gesture and performance practice.4 tion about the use of gesture during the Renaissance.11 The most extensive description of ancient conducting Charles Chapman’s 2010 article regarding chant con- history in any textbook appeared in Wilhelm Ehmann’s ducting technique, while not technically incorrect, rec- 1968 Choral Directing, in which the author described the ommended conducting gestures based on the author’s use of hand gestures and feet by Greek choruses, the “experimentation” rather than either historic or authen- Gregorian gesture, and the origins of chant conduct- tic contemporary cheironomic practice.12 ing or cheironomy. However, this information is extremely There are two comprehensive, accurate sources of brief, only fi lling about two pages of the entire text. 5 scholarship on the full history of the choral conducting Conducting instructors frequently provide substantial gesture. The fi rst was published between 1923 and 1924 content to students through handouts, articles, and di- by William Wallace, notable Scottish composer and rect instruction. One might argue that conducting his- dean of music faculty at the University of London.13 In tory may be studied in the classroom through sources a remarkable series of seven articles, Wallace surveyed other than textbooks. Scot Hanna-Weir’s 2013 doctoral conducting history as a whole, from ancient Egypt up to dissertation surveyed twenty-two undergraduate con- Wallace’s own time. The scholarship in these texts is still ducting course syllabi and found no indication of any highly accurate and readable and would be an excellent historical context. The researcher determined that, like resource in any undergraduate conducting course. The textbooks, most undergraduate courses “begin with a second is Elliott Galkin’s (1988) The History of Orchestral discussion of posture…then introduce the basic patterns Conducting: Theory and Practice. Galkin’s review of histori- in the right arm.”6 Hanna-Weir argued that this focus cal sources on conducting practice is painstakingly com- on metric gesture as the underpinning for conducting prehensive in breadth and detail. The writing is impec- syllabi likely was encouraged by popular mid-twenti- cably sourced and annotated, including primary source eth-century conducting texts like those of Karl Gerkens authors from every possible European background. and Nicolai Malko.7 Galkin’s two chapters on conducting history may be a Research by John Hart published in 2018 on the sta- bit dense for undergraduates but will still provide an ex- tus of choral conducting curricula surveyed conduct- cellent overview of the topic for instructors and a com- ing pedagogues at American universities regarding in- prehensive list of primary sources for study. structional content. The questionnaire distributed by Hart defi ned content knowledge in exclusively technical 32 CHORAL JOURNAL March 2019 Volume 59 Number 8 Conducting History in Practice and Pedagogy Conducting in the Ancient World Today, some Jewish sects use a system of written symbols The earliest use of hand signals for musical instruc- within their scripture to indicate the proper gestures.18 In tion was discovered in Egyptian statues and burial art, this tradition, the gestures aided in teaching and memo- particularly in the areas surrounding Giza.14 This form rizing the correct intonation and contour of the scriptur- of musical communication was more than simply an in- al chant with which they corresponded. There is no ev- dication of the beat or dynamics. Rather, the Egyptian idence, however, that this tradition migrated to Europe hand signal system likely communicated both pitch and during the Jewish Diaspora or was used by European melodic contour. Edith Gerson-Kiwi and David Hiley Christians until almost a thousand years later.19 argued that this theory is supported by observing con- The ancient Greeks, great admirers of the Egyptian temporary Coptic and Egyptian cantors who today prac- culture, later incorporated these traditions into their tice similar hand gestures to those found in the ancient own musical cultures: Egyptian artwork15 (Photo 1). Although these theories have been disputed, Hans Hickmann described the great The Greek travelers, already, were impressed eff ort made to determine the validity of these claims: by the extreme serenity and the beauty of the Egyptian melodies. Several testimonies bear The reconstruction of Egyptian music poses witness to this: haven’t the Greek authors re- many problems for the scientist. To solve them, peatedly underlined that their musical art and several paths are off ered to him: the methodi- its theory came down in direct line from the cal study of the instruments discovered in the pharaonic musicians, their masters? In fact, it thousand tombs; the analysis of works of art is scarcely conceivable that modern musicians and pharaonic paintings that represent musical have not taken into account in their works the scenes; and fi nally, the review of the remains of historical evidence which we possess about the ancient music in the folk customs of modern beginnings of musical life in Egypt, the cradle Egypt and Nubia.16 of civilization.20 The physical gestures of the Egyptians had a lasting In Greek musical ensembles, rhythmic ideas were eff ect on many of the cultures surrounding their territo- given by movement of