Sir, - While I strongly support proposals for the establishment of a centre for the performing arts in Ireland, I believe that Dr John O'Conor's description (The Irish Times, February 10th) of the music courses currently being provided by the universities as "largely academic in focus" and including "little practical input" does a disservice to the educational objectives of the Music Department, University College Cork.
Every music course has to establish a balance between the practical and academic study of music. At UCC we aim to create an equal balance between the two aspects of the subject.
We have a considerable, although not the only, reputation as a centre of excellence for the study of Irish traditional music and world music at undergraduate level in Ireland. We do not believe it is possible for students to understand and experience the essential nature of Irish traditional music as an oral performance tradition through a "largely academic" approach and our courses are designed to offer both practical and academic insights into the tradition.
Similarly, our ethnomusicological courses offer a blend of performance and repertoire studies. Our students learn about the Javanese Gamelan by playing it as well as by listening to and learning about it. Our whole approach is designed to create an interplay between the practical and academic experience of world music.
The same objectives underlie our approach to the study of Western music in both classical and popular traditions. The result is a course in which students are subjected to an exciting and challenging interchange of cultural ideas which at the same time develops both their practical and academic skills.
The study of music is a study of communication through performance, original composition and musicology. The "academic" musicologist has much to contribute to the practical musician both through producing scholarly editions of music and offering insights on stylistic interpretation and authentic performance. It is to be hoped that the founders of our centre for the performing arts do not overlook the contribution such "academic" studies can make to producing a complete musician. - Yours, etc.,
From David Harold Cox
Professor of Music, University College, Cork.