Music Education in Canada, Part I: The Status of Music Education in Canada

Shand discusses the status of music education in Canada. She begins by establishing the governmental structure of music education in schools – that this responsibility belongs to the provinces rather than to the federal government. Thus music education varies widely from province to province. She describes general trends in elementary and secondary school music programs: from teachers’ expertise or lack thereof, to teaching methods, student ensembles, and physical facilities. She comments on the role that published curriculum documents play, and their general lack of teaching philosophy and the widely different understandings of music’s role in education that result from this. Moving outside the school system, her survey turns to music education in conservatories and private studios; this is often the gateway for postsecondary music education, and Shand explores the variety of programs offered. Despite the provincial jurisdiction of music education, a number of national organizations support the field, some of which are government sponsored. Shand discusses the role of the Canada Council, the proposal of Helmut Blume in 1978 to create a national music school at Banff, and the efforts of the National Youth Orchestra, SSHRC, the CBC, and Les Jeunesses Musicales Canada. She lists a number of national organizations involved in sponsoring music festivals, and then discusses the role of voluntary professional organizations, which suffer a lack of funding and serious competition for the membership base which provides the volunteers needed for their publications and administrative work. She concludes by describing the work of national organizations like the Canadian League of Composers and the Canadian Music Centre, which support their own membership and also promote Canadian music in national education and to the world