MT: When did you first start composing?
PW: From a very early age I had always messed about with writing little pieces for various instruments. At that time my two younger sisters were also showing exceptional musical talent, especially on recorder and piano, and I’d write little duets or piano pieces for us to play together. When I was 10 or 11, I played euphonium in the school band, which I loved. This spurred me on to write a piece for the school band, which must have sounded like exceedingly bad Handel! I studied composition for a short period at Trinity College, but my time was mainly taken up with lessons on French horn, piano and cello. I very quickly realised that the time needed for composition was going to be more than I could possibly fit in, so sadly it had to go.
MT: When did you move into teaching?
PW: When my boys were little, I started my own teaching practice from home – mainly piano, and a few brass pupils. I was still playing the horn professionally, but this seemed to give me a lovely reason to spend more time at home. I have always loved teaching, and I soon had many pupils.
MT: What was it that prompted you to start composing for your pupils?
PW: Finding accessible melodic repertoire for my pupils was a bit of a struggle at the start. Playing the classical repertoire was not always met with enthusiasm, especially during the teenage years. Arrangements of pop songs were always too difficult and nearly always written in ridiculous keys. I now had a reason to start composing again, and all the pupils I needed to try them out. Jazzin’ About for trumpet, clarinet, trombone and saxophone was born. This was followed shortly after by Jazzin’ About for piano.
Luckily, my pupils seemed to love playing the pieces I produced, and they started to practise! The rest is history.
MT: Andrew Eales describes you as ‘one of the top educational composers alive today’. Is there a distinction between a ‘composer’ and an ‘educational composer’?
PW: This is a question I often get asked. I have always been able to write a melody, and because of my teaching experience I was able to create effective tunes and textures that are easily accessible to beginners or more advanced pupils. Surprisingly, the most difficult level of composing is for the early grades, where there are so many boundaries; writing for the more advanced levels gives me much more scope. In the past few years I have produced a few orchestral scores (mini-film scores), and my dream would be to write for film. So in this respect I guess I’m in another category and not considered to be an educational composer.
MT: What are the elements of good compositional writing for those learning an instrument? Is it different depending on whether they are child learners or adult learners?
PW: The most important thing to consider above everything else is to write a melody which they will instantly want to play. This applies to young and old alike. For the younger levels I like to create zappy titles to stimulate their imagination; this also helps me fit the mood and style to the piece. Another thing to remember is never to try to fit too many notes into the scenario, and consider the elementary keys. Writing for adult beginners is a totally different challenge. On the whole, adults take much longer to grasp the fundamentals and they need to go at a much slower pace, with lots of repeated phrases and patterns. But the same principle remains – without a good melody, they will be lost. Of course, there are many adults who are restarting after a lapse of years, and they already have a good base knowledge before they start.
MT: During your years of teaching, the provision of instrumental lessons has changed considerably. What impact has this had?
PW: Since I first started teaching, things have changed dramatically. When I was at primary school, we started the day with 30 minutes of recorder and singing, and we learned to read the notes. This was a fantastic start and if this had not happened, I’m not sure that I would have had the career that I’ve had. It was all down to the importance of learning a musical instrument right from the start. Sadly, this does not feature as normal in a child’s school life today. The advent of technology has at least encouraged pupils to try to write for GCSE, even if they don’t really understand what they are doing. The lack of music teaching in general is appalling and things need to change. Peripatetic music lessons have only become available in most cases to the parents who can afford them. They should be free and available to every child.
MT: Where do you think today’s teachers should focus?
PW: To encourage each pupil, no matter how slowly things are progressing; try to introduce music that they like and want to play; try not to get hooked into ploughing through the grades one after the other – exams have a rightful place, but not to the detriment of experiencing the vast array of musical repertoire on offer, whether classical, pop or jazz repertoire; don’t be afraid to experiment with different styles; don’t let parents rule the progress of their child by insisting on one grade after another; and encourage them to go to live music events, in any form. Music teaching in some schools is amazingly good, but on the whole it’s a tough job to convince the authorities that this subject is just as important as all the key subjects. Training music teachers is now vital for things to improve; let’s hope that the new government will see things for the better.
MT: You’ve written over 200 books. Which are you most proud of, and why?
PW: This is very difficult to answer! I think the most exciting experience was getting my very first series published with Faber Music in 1985. The Jazzin’ About series encompassed a huge selection of music written for many different instruments and provided me with a reputation for providing teaching repertoire with something ‘a bit different’. Writing pieces with a visual aspect was a great and enjoyable experience. And encouraging adults of all ages to play for pleasure, as in It’s Never Too Late to Play Piano, gives me a real buzz.
MT: What changes would you like to see in UK music education over the next decade?
PW: I would like the new government to prioritise the importance of music and the arts by making it accessible to all. Teaching music should begin at the primary level in schools and continue into our secondary schools as a normal progression. If you want to produce well-rounded and interested pupils, encourage them to join an orchestra, play in a band, give them the opportunity to play an instrument. It should not be an elitist-only situation. Then the world might be a better place.
Pam Wedgwood’s music is published by Faber Music: fabermusic.com/we-represent/pam-wedgwood
