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When the COVID-19 began nearly a year ago, Performing Arts students were forced to quickly adapt to a new way of doing things. Carley Gerdes and Gabe Figuracion are music education majors at the UNCG School of Music. Gabe is a Junior while Carley is what she calls “a super Senior” who will be graduating in December 2021. Their unique experiences as Performing Arts have been documented in the form of oral interviews and shared here. While both students were initially shocked by the announcement, they had no idea just how great of an impact COVID was not only going to have on UNCG but on the world. 

When asked why each student chose UNCG for their undergraduate degree, Gabe mentioned the high ranking of the Music Education Program in North Carolina while Carely explained how her music teacher previously went to UNCG and her introduction to the amazing faculty were her main motivators. Initially, many students were shocked by the spread of Covid. Gabe was in Florida for a music conference with other UNCG students, when he received news that the virus was beginning to devastate the country. With Florida being a hotspot for the deadly disease, Gabe was eager to return home. He realized the severity of the situation when a fellow student became sick after returning to Greensboro. Fortunately, they were diagnosed with a cold, but the situation suddenly became “very real” for Gabe. A week later, UNCG transitioned to an online format. For Carely, she was in the middle of a friend’s recital when the audience received the email from the institution stating that the school was shutting down.

The intermission ended up lasting 10 minutes because we were all reading it”. 

–CARLEY GERDES

COVID had a monumental impact on Performing Arts students. For music majors, the experience was different depending on the type of instrument played. Strings players like Gabe and Carley were able to return to campus early while students who played aerosol-producing instruments had to wait longer. For many students, not being able to play together in the same room was extremely frustrating. Even though students and faculty were able to record themselves and share the recordings with one another, it just did not feel the same. Among the many difficulties caused by Covid, Gabe notes hard ear training was for him. “You’d take a piece of paper and sing it back without hearing anything. For someone who’s been playing an instrument their whole life, it’s a bit more difficult” Gabe explains. For a time, all performances were essentially halted. Many were transferred to an online format while others were just canceled. Carley explains that as an underclassman she expected her Senior recital to be very grand, however, the pandemic completely altered her special day.

 “When it came down to it, I only had 20 people in the audience and all of my family was watching online. It was nice to know they were there supporting me but it’d be different if they were in person. It was different having that personal connection versus getting a phone call after”.

Fortunately, the School of Music found innovative ways to solve problems created by the pandemic. For example, to create a more hygienic environment for players who had spit values, plates were used for players to empty into after performances. During performances, players were socially distanced and wore masks that would allow them to play their instruments and remain protected from the virus. 

 

UNCG’s Reponse to COVID

Both students were asked if the pandemic brought about any surprising challenges as a student that they had not expected and if there were any different strategies that could have been implemented? Carley and Gabe highlighted that it was difficult to combat students’ lack of motivation. Orchestra is not a required class in many middle and high schools. When the pandemic hit and classes were transferred online and combined with the other devastating effects of Covid-19, string students, unfortunately, became unmotivated and some stopped coming to class or dropping it altogether. Many music educators were faced with the new challenge of keeping their students motivated and changing their repertoire to keep students engaged. In a way, teachers had to become much more innovative, coming up with new and various ways to teach in a Covid world. Gabe explains, “Seeing the way that the pandemic has forced creativity is a very interesting thing. It’s easy to stay with what’s easy, especially when they [teachers] cycle through a piece every four years, so being able to push someone out of a groove is important. They have had to adapt very quickly”. When observing the way UNCG handled the sudden pandemic, the students commended the institution for their quick actions, especially the School of Music. “I think UNCG has done, at least in the music department, a really good job of social distancing and enforcing masks and even with wind instruments, aerosol producing instruments, we found ways around problems, like bell covers and masks with flaps around them so you can play instruments with a cover around your nose”.  Gabe also mentioned the cleanliness of the floors after Covid and noted that we should all respect our floors a little more going forward!

Although many students and faculty were able to find solutions, many are ready to return to in-person learning. Carley and Gabe already had a couple of years of the normal UNCG experience and explained that going to the normal way of learning would be a relief. They also note the effectiveness of Zoom and how useful the platform will continue to be in the future. The Covid-19 pandemic was an event, unlike anything the world had ever witnessed. Even though it had an overwhelming impact, it encouraged performing arts students and faculty to seek creative solutions to their problems. As Gabe puts it, “Getting really great online learning skills, is something basically no educator came into the field prepared for and it’s something this generation of educators can say: ‘I taught during the COVID 19 pandemic’”. 

Lasting Revelations:

“I think the pandemic has honestly made me more prepared because I have been forced to teach students in a bunch of different ways. Like, having to teach students how to tune without ever touching them. It has made me a more observant teacher because the only way i can evaluate students is by looking and listening. It’s given me a lot of great ways considering I can look at the multiple students all at once so I think going back to in-person learning will be more tuned to individuals in that way”-Carley

Of course, there has also been a large move to diversify music so people are saying that once COVID is over, why not make a different ‘better’ instead of going back to that normal. The school of music faculty has been hosting panel discussions with some really big-name people who know how to make these changes. I’m thankful and hopefully, people won’t strive for an old normal and will set a precedent for a new normal”-Gabe

written by Maguette Seye