Printer FriendlyEditor's Note: Faculty member Richard Schilling did not have a written text for his presentation. The text that appears below is a brief summary only, prepared from notes taken during this “last lecture”, and. presented here in the third person.
The lecture on which this article is based was presented by Richard Schilling on Tuesday, November 27, 2001, at a series entitled, “If This Were The Last Lecture I Would Give, What Would I Say?”, organized by the Multi-faith Council of the University of Massachusetts Lowell.
Richard Schilling opened his presentation by saying that he was not about to retire, but that this is a milestone year for him – 40 years as a guitar player, 25 years in the Boston area; 20 years as an adjunct professor; 5 years as an adjunct professor at UML. He reflected (in a stream-of-consciousness style) on trends in music – focusing specifically on American music (including jazz and blue grass). "America has these traditions; these have to be preserved in the academy." "Jazz needs state support. The trouble with state support, though, is that grants are awarded to grant writers rather than to talented musicians." He mentioned that "experience really does count" – the number of chords you've played, the number of downbeats taken, etc. He's always had his ear to good singing.
Schilling sees a gradual move back to the aesthetic. "We need beauty", he said, “even if it's a `rough beauty', as in Beethoven.” He reflected a bit on electronic media. To illustrate toward new media, he shared an interchange between John Philip Sousa and Thomas Edison. Sousa to Edison: "Your machines will be the death of music." Edison to Sousa: "No, they are its future." "Yet," Schilling said, "we need live music and musicians – although they are expensive." He spoke some about religious experience and music – for instance, singing Palestrina in Latin (to sing in other languages is to place oneself in another space for a more religious experience). Yet, he mentioned Mozart's concern for opera in the vernacular and said, "I would like to hear contatas in English."
Schilling has felt the warmth of older musicians and hopes he can provide the same warmth for students.
The discussion period following the lecture focused around a question Schilling posed for us: “What was your formative musical experience?” This – and the related question, "What were your formative musical experiences?" – allowed people to speak about experiences that they're probably not often invited to share.
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Richard Schilling is an adjunct faculty member in the Music Department, University of Massachusetts Lowell.