"I still like to think that we encourage the good rather than discourage the bad."
Why do we have to deal in such emotive and inaccurate terms.
Nobody has ever suggested discouraging anybody; on the contrary, I can think of nothing more discouraging than being thrown in at the deep-end and allowed to make an arsehole of yourself in front of an audience. I believe allowing and even encouraging this to happen is an irresponsible cop-out on the part of club organisers. It is not good for the club, the future of the music and certainly not for the individual concerned - been there, done that and still cringe at the memories.
I have been thinking for some time of putting up some thoughts on teaching, based on what is happening here in Ireland (a little disturbing), and my own experiences in The Critics Group and London Singers Workshop. I am due to be laid up for some time from the middle of next month so might get down to it then; in the meantime, I would appreciate any thoughts and personal experiences on the subject.
Jim Carroll