While planning the annual back-to-school September issue you’re now holding in your hands, I sought out interviewees for April James’ article on hiring agents’ perceptions of advanced degrees. I contacted a well known manager in New York City to ask him to participate. He sent the following response.
“To be honest, I’m amazed that there would be a need for an entire article on this subject. For me, it’s a complete non-issue. In 30 years in this business, this topic has never come up with any general or artistic director.”
Interesting, I thought. Maybe I was off in choosing this topic. Perhaps there wasn’t anything of interest to singers to discuss on the matter.
But then I read on.
“My honest reaction,” he continued, “is that a singer will pursue a DMA if they already have a strong sense that they will not have a rewarding performing career.”
In that last line, he summed up exactly why I wanted to feature a discussion on this topic in CS. I have heard many general directors echo his sentiments over the years. When I share this with singers, however, they often respond with shock and genuine surprise that hiring agents view singers with terminal degrees this way.
These industry perceptions illuminate several flawed aspects of the business.
To pursue an advanced degree, a singer must often put on hold the pursuit of professional performing opportunities outside of school. The singer then emerges with degree in hand often past the optimal age for starting a career. In addition, those interviewed for James’ article agreed that singers who pursue advanced degrees are often viewed as those who either aren’t serious about a stage career or have decided that teaching is preferred over performing. All of these factors limit the degree recipient’s possibilities for a successful singing career.
I think it fair to say that university vocal programs want the best teachers at their institutions. The application process includes reviewing the performing experience and abilities of each applicant. But seemingly most important is that applicants possess that little slip of paper with DMA or PhD stamped across it. Is this requirement helping or hindering universities from finding and hiring the best instructors?
Fort Worth Opera’s general director Darren Keith Woods shared his view with James.
“I think it would be much more beneficial to the entire field to make it possible for people to teach singing [at universities] that do not have terminal degrees,” he said. “Then people could have a fallback plan that doesn’t involve staying in school for too long. This is where our universities are letting us down.”
Such changes to the academic structure won’t likely happen any time soon. So perhaps the first step is to recognize the generalizations that exist around advanced degrees. If singers know how most hiring agents view these degrees, they can better determine whether it is in their best interest. And those who have such degrees can then judge when and how to share that information.
That way, they can ensure that the word “terminal” refers only to their degree progression and not to their singing career.
