5 minutes with ... Marvin Blickenstaff.(Professional Resources)(Interview)

Marvin Blickenstaff is internationally renowned for his teaching, lecturing, performing and publishing. He teaches at The College of New Jersey in Ewing and the New School for Music Study in Princeton, and serves as board president of the Frances Clark Center for Keyboard Pedagogy.

When did you know you were destined for the professional piano world? When I was 13, I announced to my parents that I was quitting piano, as my two older brothers had done. My mother did not accept this and contacted Fern Davidson, the outstanding teacher in our small Idaho community. Mrs. Davidson's lessons epitomized commitment and discipline. I was thrilled with the literature, high standards and motivation of competitions and auditions. After a few weeks of lessons, my professional ambition was clear: I would become a pianist!

What was the genesis of the innovative Music Pathways series you coauthored? During an early "sabbatical" in New York City (after several years of college teaching), Carl Fischer publishing company offered me a position and solicited new composer recommendations; I suggested Lynn Freeman Olson. Eventually, the management proposed we collaborate on a "large piano publishing project." We asked Louise Bianchi of Southern Methodist University to join us, and after several years of writing and testing, Music Pathways was born.

You have great ideas for introducing rubato (Keyboard Companion, Autumn 2000); what about the fine line between "rubato" and "rhythmic anarchy"? With younger students, rubato is taught through modeling (students imitating the teacher's timing) and playing teacher-student duets. To avoid rhythmic "anarchy," it is extremely helpful to have the student count aloud. The voice is a modifying element, providing ...