The Adjudicator’s Viewpoint
By John Pursell Chambersburg, PA
johnpursell@msn.com
type of adjudication on a regular basis. This may be as part of a festival, a band trip or other activity. Certainly, there are many opportunities for adjudication, with numerous commercial companies engaging in organization of these events. The purpose of this article is to offer some viewpoints from the “other side of the po- dium,” the adjudicator him or herself. I do not claim to have the last word
M
on adjudication; indeed, the points I will make are my own opinions that have been formed over many years of adjudicating these events, which have included march- ing, concert and jazz bands and string ensembles. Nor are they necessarily the opinions of the organizations which have engaged me for these events. So, let’s look at a few points from the adjudicator’s side of the podium.
1. The adjudicator is not your adversary! In reality, you are both on the same
side—you both want the ensemble to per- form better. Yet there are students (and often directors) who believe the adjudica- tor is listening pointedly for every little crack or quiver, eager to knock off points. Nothing could be further from the truth. While we certainly hear mistakes, they are not usually the main focus of our listening. I always try to listen to the overall effect of the group and how well they present their music in the broader sense. Certainly, a major mistake, such as a missed entrance or repeat, or consistently playing a rhyth- mic figure incorrectly would be noted, but minor cracked notes are not usually as
TEMPO
ost high school and many middle school
musical ensembles undergo some
important as one might think. Of course, the higher the group’s technical accuracy, the easier it is to focus on the musicality and effect, so a high level of proficiency should be a primary goal. It just shouldn’t be the only goal.
2. The adjudicator only hears what’s played. Remember, we have no idea how you spent on rehearsals;
much time
we have no idea if there are extraneous problems at your school that hinder re- hearsal; we have no idea what went into your preparation; usually we do not know if it is the director’s first year or fortieth year with the band. We only know what we hear. In this way, the adjudication is similar to an audition for a professional position or for college, where the judges hear only what’s presented. In more ba- sic terms, we hear what your audience hears—no more, no less.
3. We hear your music in one place at one time. Your ensemble could sound com- different in a different hall or
pletely
even at a different time in the same hall. It would almost certainly have a differ- ent sound in an empty versus a full hall. Again, this is good training for the future professionals in your group. Learning to be flexible and to play anywhere at any time is essential experience.
4. The adjudicator generally has no ax to grind. Many students and even some
directors do not believe this, but I can assure you, the judges I have worked with have all tried very hard to be fair,
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professional and objective, even when evaluating ensembles led by personal colleagues. The judges are there to help and they take this responsibility very seriously. Their comments are made to assist in the improvement of your ensemble and are never meant to demean or embarrass any player or director. To quote one of my favorite movies, The Godfather, “It’s not personal—it’s just business.” Accept it as business, not as an intentional blow to your pride. Through the years, though, I have noticed that the same weaknesses do seem to appear over and over in any number of ensembles. These are four that, to this author at least, are most common.
1. Poor Intonation. I’ve heard more performances by all types of ensembles weakened by poor intonation than any other reason. Yet, it need not be. Intonation can be practiced, just like any other skill. One way to make a quick improvement is very simple: tune pianissimo. An ensemble that blasts their way through the tuning process will get nowhere. First of all, the individual play- ers can’t hear themselves, and secondly, playing loudly will usually push the pitch higher or lower.
2. Lack of balance. This can be hard, especially if your
group has 12 trumpets, one trombone and three clarinets! And, of course, it is exaggerated by playing in a strange hall. Probably the most important thing that can be done to improve balance is to impress on students that dynamics are relative. Certainly, forté in a Sousa march bears no resemblance to forté in a Mozart
OCTOBER 2014
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