Kindling the Spark - Recognizing and Developing Musical Talent

English | 2014 | 385 Pages | PDF | 19.20 MB
In her book Kindling the Spark: Recognizing and Developing Musical Talent, Joanne Haroutounian takes the reader on a quest to answer some very difficult questions about musical talent. Are certain people born with musical talent? Can anyone have musical talent with proper training? How do we recognize students who have musical potential and have not had formal training? What exactly is musical talent?

Haroutounian explores a wide variety of viewpoints in an attempt to answer these and other questions concerning musical talent. She clearly and understandably distills major research findings and philosophies, which help clarify what musical talent is, how it can be recognized and, once recognized, what can be done to develop the talent. She succinctly presents the major controversies in talent and talent education. Both sides of the issue are presented; the reader is encouraged through direct questioning to think about his or her own views. Haroutounian then articulates her opinions based on years of studio teaching and vast amounts of research.