The question "why do we have to do dictation?" has recently been a topic of discussion in the TTU School of Music. Here are some answers from the faculty:
"Think about studying and teaching foreign languages (music is a language after all). What can you tell about a student's development in a language from having them write down a sentence that they've heard spoken in that language? What might the student learn about the language from such an exercise? Is it fair to say that someone who can't write down a sentence that they've heard spoken (assuming a well-spoken and well-formed sentence) isn't really fluent in the language?
Back in the Dark Ages, when I was in college and studying German and French, I had to listen to cassette tapes all of the time and try to figure out what people were saying in those languages. I learned not just new vocabulary that way, but also how that vocabulary was used in context, and how the sentence structures in those languages worked. Do they still do that? Anyway, I don't see it as being that different than taking dictation in aural skills, and I hope that some of you can also see the similarities, and that the comparsion might help you see the value in it."
--Dr. Santa
"I talk to my class about the jazz greats who would listen to albums over and over again to learn solos and style characteristics. They would write out the solos! My wife has also used the same skills to notate all the parts to a jazz/pop tune for her vocal jazz ensemble to perform (No 8-part score available). These are real skills applicable to the real world of music. It also leads to the ability to look at a line of music and know whether it is being performed correctly. All the people who might ever be in front of a choir or instrumental ensemble have to have these skills to be successful.
On top of all that--as a math major you probably need to know differential calculus, even if you might not apply that as a CPA, a middle-school math teacher, etc.
We learn skills to become educated musicians, even if we struggle with some of them."
--Dr. Fischer
Feel free to post your thoughts and/or questions in the "Comments" section.
"Think about studying and teaching foreign languages (music is a language after all). What can you tell about a student's development in a language from having them write down a sentence that they've heard spoken in that language? What might the student learn about the language from such an exercise? Is it fair to say that someone who can't write down a sentence that they've heard spoken (assuming a well-spoken and well-formed sentence) isn't really fluent in the language?
Back in the Dark Ages, when I was in college and studying German and French, I had to listen to cassette tapes all of the time and try to figure out what people were saying in those languages. I learned not just new vocabulary that way, but also how that vocabulary was used in context, and how the sentence structures in those languages worked. Do they still do that? Anyway, I don't see it as being that different than taking dictation in aural skills, and I hope that some of you can also see the similarities, and that the comparsion might help you see the value in it."
--Dr. Santa
"I talk to my class about the jazz greats who would listen to albums over and over again to learn solos and style characteristics. They would write out the solos! My wife has also used the same skills to notate all the parts to a jazz/pop tune for her vocal jazz ensemble to perform (No 8-part score available). These are real skills applicable to the real world of music. It also leads to the ability to look at a line of music and know whether it is being performed correctly. All the people who might ever be in front of a choir or instrumental ensemble have to have these skills to be successful.
On top of all that--as a math major you probably need to know differential calculus, even if you might not apply that as a CPA, a middle-school math teacher, etc.
We learn skills to become educated musicians, even if we struggle with some of them."
--Dr. Fischer
Feel free to post your thoughts and/or questions in the "Comments" section.