Apprenticeship and empowerment

This chapter considers ways in which pathways to creative performance are supported through one-to-one lessons between a student and a specialist teacher. One-to-one interactions are generally considered central to the development of western classical musicians and traditionally have been conceived in terms of apprenticeship. More recently, however, understanding of the socially constructed nature of learning, including the essential parts played by peer interactions and engagement in communities of practice, has increased. In addition, the importance of collaboration in facilitating and channelling creativity in many fields has become apparent. Taken together, these suggest a need to develop a multifaceted and more nuanced conceptual framework for understanding one-to-one lessons and their relationship to performance. The chapter explores relevant research literature alongside perspectives provided by expert performer–teachers, and it concludes by setting out a provisional model for understanding both the collaborative process between student and teacher in one-to-one lessons and the potential for this context to underpin transformative processes of development for performers.