Scott Price currently serves as Associate Professor of Piano and Piano Pedagogy, Chair of the Piano Area, Coordinator of Group Piano, Coordinator of Piano Pedagogy, and Coordinator of Community Piano Programs at USC. A graduate of the University of Oklahoma, The Cleveland Institute of Music, and Bowling Green State University (OH), his recent engagements have included performances and clinics at the national conventions of the Music Teachers National Association, the National Keyboard Pedagogy Conference, and solo recitals throughout SC, GA, ND, OH, OK, KS, MO, TX, and Washington DC. Dr. Price is creator and editor-in-chief of the on-line piano pedagogy journal "Piano Pedagogy Forum". Dr. Price has recorded 28 compact discs of educational piano music for Alfred Publishing Company, and has published educational compositions with Alfred Publishing Company and the FJH Music Company. He serves as chair of the Committee on Special Needs Students for the National Conference on Keyboard Pedagogy, and served on the planning committee of the 2006 National Group Piano/Piano Pedagogy Forum National Convention. Special teaching interests of Scott Price include teaching students with disabilities, very young children, and teaching keyboard improvisation to piano students ranging from beginning to advanced levels. His work with disabled students has been featured on WISTV (SC) and WLTX (SC), and in The State newspaper (SC), Columbia Metropolitan Magazine, and was featured at the 2005 National Conference on Keyboard Pedagogy. One of Dr. Price's autistic students was recently featured on Dateline NBC, and CNN. Scott Price was awarded the "Best of BGSU Outstanding Graduate" alumnus award from Bowling Green State University in Ohio in 2002, and was invited back to the University of Oklahoma as a “Distinguished Guest Alumnus” in March of 2005 to perform, lecture, and present a piano masterclass. Other recent engagements include performances and masterclasses in Thailand, Singapore, and in Kuala Lumpur and Penang in Malaysia, and lectures at the 2005 Georgia State Music Teachers State Convention. Upcoming appearances include performances, lectures and sessions with the Ohio Music Teachers Association, and the International Collaborative Conference of the Music Teachers National Association/Canadian Federation of Music Teachers/Royal Conservatory of Music in Toronto, Canada.
Scott Price
School of Music
University of South Carolina
Columbia, SC 29208
803.777.1870
sprice@mozart.sc.edu
by Scott Price
I suppose it would be safe to say that everyone in our profession knows Marvin Blickenstaff in one guise or another. He is a fine pianist, inspired teacher, impassioned educator, a prolific writer, keen administrator, sensitive musician, and a guiding light and friend to many of us.
I first came to know Marvin Blickenstaff in my undergraduate pedagogy course. We surveyed Music Pathways as part of our unit on piano methods, and while my young mind had a lot to learn, I could sense that something "just seemed right" about the pedagogical methodology contained in the series of books. I had not yet met the author, but knew that there was something about his ideas that I needed to absorb and remember. I still use many of the ideas from Music Pathways in my teaching and it is one of the central methods that my undergraduate and graduate pedagogy students study in their courses. My comments to them usually take the form of "read it, play it, learn from it". Upon returning to an in-depth look at the books several years ago, I was very humbled (and somewhat chagrined) to find that some of my own "grand and inspired" ideas were actually things I had absorbed and learned many years earlier from Marvin's teaching.
As I (hopefully) grew up and matured in my studies and teaching, I started attending music conferences and got to see "that guy" that I had read about in my pedagogy coursework. Anyone who has attended one of Marvin's sessions or lectures knows that the energy level in the room is ignited the moment he begins to talk. His enthusiasm infuses the room and he is one of the few educators I have encountered who can get an entire room of teachers (many of whom are tired, worn down, and a little jaded) excited and up on their feet and involved in his demonstration of teaching techniques and exercises. That is no mean feat when confronted by a kid like me who had a bit of an attitude problem and was somewhat "too cool for school" at the time. I didn't know it then, but the lessons I absorbed from the sessions were legion - not just about teaching, but about communication, commitment, and the true meaning of service. I continue to marvel at Marvin's ability to impart to minds young and old the complexities of music and piano playing in language that is always caring, inspiring, enthralling, and age-appropriate, human, and understandable in every way. He simply cares about the development of the person and not just the fingers.
Several years ago, I finally got the chance to know Marvin on a more personal level. He was presenting a series of workshops here in Columbia, SC, and one of them was on the Op. 28 Preludes by Frederic Chopin. The lecture was so insightful and comprehensive in a way that provided such a wealth of information not only about the pieces, but also their place in Chopin's entire opus and their influence and place in the culture of the era. And, Marvin's playing was simply beautiful, masterful and refined in every respect. I recall becoming very annoyed that I couldn't just stand up and demand two lectures - one on the works themselves, and also a complete and uninterrupted performance by Marvin. I took home quite a few lessons that day - most notably on tone production, technique, bel canto playing, musical refinement, and personal musical expression.
I have been involved with teaching piano to autistic children and children with other disabilities for many years. Marvin had been so friendly and approachable at our last meeting that I took the chance and wrote him a note to ask if the National Conference on Keyboard Pedagogy would be interested in this subject and interested in including it in their service activities. This area of teaching is still a bit "on the fringe", but Marvin immediately said "yes" and worked some sessions on the subject into the 2005 conference. This was, again, another lesson in the true meaning of what we do as teachers - service not only to our profession, but also to mankind. I have taken that thought to heart over the past few years and continue to marvel at Marvin's generosity to our profession and community in this respect.
I had the pleasure of sitting with Marvin before and during Van Cliburn's address at the 2006 Music Teachers National Association National Convention. While chatting, I was struck by Marvin's genuine interest and concern for me, and my work. Since that time, I have come to know him as someone who genuinely cares about people and one who is always the first to step forward and say "how can I help you?". A great many of us are indebted to Marvin for that generous personal and professional help he has so freely extended to us over the course of our careers.
I think this is the greatest lesson I have learned from Marvin Blickenstaff. It is not enough to be a technically proficient pianist, a knowledgeable teacher, an intellectual writer, an organized administrator, and a fine musician. Marvin embodies every one of these qualities and more. But, all of those things are for naught if one does not develop a deep and personal awareness of the piano and music, and what they mean to people as sustaining, rewarding and life-affirming activities in a world that can be very difficult and mean to so very many people. Marvin has taught me the importance of being a real and caring person to my students, and that we have such a great responsibility not to get, but to give of our gifts to those around us.
For that, Marvin, I thank you, and I aspire to live and work to your example.
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