What Are Master Classes, and should you participate in one?

 

A "master class" can be offered in many different fields, but I suspect it is most common in the field of music.

A master class may be offered by a famous, or at least well-known, musician. Perhaps he or she is in your city for a concert, and they decide to offer a one-time master class. Attendees can participate, or, in some cases, just observe. The idea is that you, as a student of the piano, for example, have a chance to have a famous, top-notch pianist, listen to and evaluate your playing, and give you some pointers or advice. You would also hear the pointers being given to the other particpants (who would be playing different pieces), and potentially benefit from those as well. You would need to come prepared with at least one piece to play, one that you can play at a competent level. True master classes are never meant for beginners; you would have to be somewhat advanced to be allowed to participate.

The amount of time the master spends with each individual participant is probably going to be fairly short, because, of course, there could be a fairly substantial number of participants. They probably won't have you play the whole piece, just sections of it.

Clearly, every participant comes at a different level of ability, and the master is tailoring his comments to your specific playing. It is not a case of giving the same information or advice to everyone.

If you read my post titled Coaching vs. Teaching, you will see that the idea of a master class falls solidly into the coaching category. You have already learned the piece you are playing at the class. You have also developed your "interpretation" of the piece (whether it was intentional or not). You have already developed the level of technical ability to be able to play that piece. So the teacher of the master class is not teaching you new skills; there wouldn't be time for that. Rather, they are just coaching you, you might say "tweaking" your playing of that piece. The teacher might make suggestions regarding dynamics or phrasing or other aspects of interpretation. Perhaps some of these suggestion are quite enlightening; after all, the "master" has far more experience with music and the piano than you do, so one would hope their advice would be valuable. However, "interpretation" is a very personal thing. The master may be giving you his/her interpretation which may not feel right to you. Remember, they are not correcting wrong notes or anything at that level -- it is assumed you can actually play the piece. So it follows that most, if not all, of what they can address during the class is interpretation.

Naturally you are free to take some or all  -- or none -- of their pointers to heart. 

In my view, changing some dynamics or phrasing here and there doesn't fundamentally change how you play. How you play is essentially already "baked in the cake" because of your physical technique. Many people believe that interpretation and expression are like a coat of paint you put on at the end, but I strongly disagree with that idea. Everything you do physically affects the sound you produce, therefore, your physical technique and habits have already largely determined your "interpretation." For example, if you have developed a very finger-oriented technique, which can produce a stiff and mechanical sound, no amount of advice from the master about your phrasing is going to enable you to change that overnight. It would require a whole re-working of your technique, which would require a really great teacher, not a coach.

So-called master classes can be found online. One says it offers "small bites" of advice from famous jazz or classical musicians. However, this is not a master class, if the teacher of it is not even hearing you play. Clearly nothing they say is in response to your particular playing. If it is a one-way street of information flow, then it is really no different from all the other thousands of videos and "classes" you can find online. If you've read some of my earlier posts, you'll see I strongly advise not to try and learn this way. You will almost certainly reach a dead end. The reason for having an in-person teacher is so that they can respond to your playing, and problem-solve your particular issues.

If you are an advanced player and have the opportunity to take a master class from someone whose playing you admire, go ahead and do it if you can. But just remember it won't be a magic wand that will transform your playing.