Ensembles
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Kevin Barry, Assistant Professor
DEPARTMENT : Ensemble Department"I teach a contemporary styles ensembles. Over the course of the semester, we play everything from modern pop to straight-ahead jazz and everything in between. In ensemble playing, you need to be generous musically. You need to listen to the other people. You have to play like a team. If you're not playing as much for the other people in the group as for yourself, that's a problem. You have to have musical humility, to think about the song first. The song is the focus, not the guitar solo."
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Marcello Pellitteri, Professor
DEPARTMENT : Ensemble Department"What I find exciting about teaching is the challenge of having people in class with different individual cultures, personalities, backgrounds, needs, and aspirations speak the same language in an ensemble. I stress to my students the importance of developing an awareness of their relationship with the rest of the band. I also help them develop strong rhythmic articulation and interpretation, depending on the style of music they are playing. At any level, they should be able to groove just by playing a few notes in the right way and putting them in the right place. My goal is to broaden their knowledge of diverse styles and to enhance their listening skills so that they can adapt their playing and react accordingly to any kind of musical situation."
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John Pierce, Professor
DEPARTMENT : Ensemble Department"I continually point out the way that ear training relates to other classes. I feel that those correlations are an integral part of the education at Berklee—that the classes all fit together and complement each other. Success in an ear training class will make them far more successful as harmony students, as arranging students, and as performers. In general, ear training will make them a more a literate musician. It will enable them to hear what they see, write what they hear, and play what they hear."
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Carolyn Wilkins, Professor
DEPARTMENT : Ensemble Department"In a Berklee ensemble, you get to play with the same group of people for 15 weeks in a guided situation in which you're continually being monitored and mentored. We all go out and play gigs on our own. I do that myself, and that's one level of learning. But the kind of feedback that you get from being in the ensemble can help you see the things that you do well, don't do well, and how you can improve them. It's an educational experience, not just jamming and getting together."
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George Zonce, Professor
DEPARTMENT : Ensemble Department"I play a lot in my ensembles. It teaches them to react to whatever's going on around them. A lot of them close off their ears. They're not really listening; they're just going through the motions. Then there are some kids that you run into that have big ears. We’ve got some really good kids here at Berklee."
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Ron Mahdi, Associate Professor
DEPARTMENT : Ensemble Department"A great ensemble player comes from different angles. You have several options of doing things so you don’t get bored and so others don’t get bored with your response to what’s coming at you. It’s like saying the same thing over and over when you’re having a conversation."
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Lello Molinari, Professor
DEPARTMENT : Ensemble Department"As a teacher I believe in producing a constant creative environment, where the students can feel free to experiment without the fear of failure. I find that the fear of failure is a common and recurring issue with musicians of all levels of proficiency. But you not only learn from your mistakes, you can use them. I often play examples of the masters, like Coltrane or Miles Davis, playing what you'd technically call 'mistakes,' to show students how quickly they can turn into a musical positive. That can be very liberating."
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David Hollender, Professor
DEPARTMENT : Ensemble Department"I've always appreciated the fact that Berklee accepts students with high potential and the right attitude, not just who's the hottest player. Five-string banjo was my first instrument, but when I decided to apply to Berklee as a student they didn't teach it, so I had to play another instrument. I had recently started playing bass, and it felt like going back to square one as a player, but I was motivated and determined. My teachers recognized that and helped me to make fast progress. Now, as a teacher I enjoy working with students who share those qualities."
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Rebecca Cline, Assistant Professor
DEPARTMENT : Ensemble Department"I teach a broad mix of classes in both the Ensemble Department, which includes the Performance Studies curriculum, and the Piano Department. I teach Intro to Latin Jazz, Rhythm Section Ensemble, Standard Jazz Repertoire 1, Jazz Improvisation Techniques 1, and Basic Keyboards 1. I also have several piano students for Private Instruction. I like to provide a context for any subject that I teach. I teach two labs (Afro-Cuban Piano Montunos and Improv in Cuban Piano), which are ostensibly for developing skills for playing in this style. I give a lot of practical information and transcriptions, but I also talk as much as I can about the historical and cultural context of the music."
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Walter Beasley, Professor
DEPARTMENT : Ensemble Department"I think students come to Berklee for many of the same reasons. They find role models they can identify with. Our job is to provide the fundamental training for young musicians to succeed in the world they live in."
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