BEGIN WITH YOUR OWN MUSICAL JOURNEY

Think back to the first place where you consciously learned music. Perhaps a family member sang a song to you, perhaps you repeated rhythms in kindergarten, sang in church, joined a choir or opened the door of a music school classroom for the first time. Even if there were no grades, examinations or the word “solfeggio” at that time, music education was already taking place: you listened, imitated, memorised and tried to coordinate your voice or movement with others.
Later, learning becomes more deliberate. A student learns to produce a sound correctly, read music notation, recognise rhythm, hear tonality, understand the form of a composition and convey its mood. Yet that first experience never disappears. A professional performer also listens, repeats, remembers and responds to other musicians – only with much greater precision and independence.
The history of music education in Latvia should therefore be viewed as a long journey that began well before the Conservatory was established in 1919. The institution provided a system, but its foundations had already been laid by families, churches, schools, choirs, teachers, song collectors and local communities.

MUSIC EDUCATION BEGAN BEFORE THE CONSERVATORY

For many centuries, musical knowledge in the territory of Latvia was transmitted primarily through practice. People learned folk songs by listening to family members and the community. Songs accompanied work, family rituals, seasonal celebrations, weddings and funerals. Singing developed musical memory, a sense of rhythm, vocal control and the ability to adapt to others, even though these skills were not yet described as learning outcomes within an educational curriculum.
The church and school provided another environment for learning. Singing required performers to begin and end phrases together, maintain the melody, articulate the text clearly and follow a leader. Teachers and clergy passed on hymns, basic literacy and elementary musical knowledge, while printed collections helped disseminate the same repertoire across a wider geographical area. Oral tradition thus began to interact with written sources and organised teaching.
It is important not to describe this early period as equivalent to today’s system of music schools. There was no standardised curriculum, no consistent sequence of educational levels and no professional studies accessible to everyone. Nevertheless, the most important modes of learning were already present: example, repetition, collective performance, memory and guidance from a teacher.

THE EIGHTEENTH CENTURY: HYMNS, LITERACY AND THE ZIŅĢE TRADITION

The ideas of the Enlightenment in the eighteenth century encouraged literacy, book publishing and education in the native language. An important figure in this context was Gotthard Friedrich Stender – a clergyman, teacher, translator and scholar of the Latvian language. His work demonstrates that singing could function not only as a custom or religious practice but also as a consciously applied educational tool.

The collection Jaunas Siņģes, published in 1774, contained original, translated and adapted Latvian texts intended for singing. They helped people learn the language, remember moral and educational ideas and become acquainted with a broader European repertoire. The ziņģe differed from the anonymous folk song in that it more often had a specific printed source, an identified author or translator, and a clearer didactic or secular purpose.

A printed collection did not replace live singing. For a text to become music, someone was needed who knew the melody, could demonstrate how it should be performed and could involve others. The eighteenth-century example therefore reveals an important principle: music education becomes stronger when a written source, a teacher and practical performance come together.

THE NINETEENTH CENTURY: SCHOOL, CHOIR AND THE SONG FESTIVAL

During the nineteenth century, schools, cultural societies and choirs expanded their activities in Latvia. Teachers were often not only instructors of general subjects but also choir conductors, disseminators of repertoire and organisers of local cultural life. Music learning increasingly moved from the family and church environment into regular rehearsals and public concert life.

A gathering of Latvian male choirs was held in Dikļi in 1864, and the first nationwide Latvian Song Festival took place in Riga in 1873. These events were also important for music education. Performing a shared repertoire required singers to learn their parts in advance, sing with accurate intonation, maintain rhythm, follow the conductor and adapt to a large ensemble. The Song Festival became a visible outcome, but its foundation was the long-term work carried out in local choirs.

A distinctive chain thus emerged: a teacher or conductor introduces a work to the choir, singers learn their individual parts, the local ensemble participates in selection processes and eventually joins other choirs. This system did not only help train professionals. It created a broad community of people capable of understanding, performing and appreciating music.

THE CHOIR – A SCHOOL OF MUSIC WITHIN THE COMMUNITY

In Latvia, the choir is not merely an addition to music education but one of its most important forms. A singer learns to control breathing, articulate text, hear and reproduce pitch accurately, maintain the pulse and memorise long musical phrases. In a polyphonic work, the singer must also maintain their own part even while a different melody is sounding alongside it.

Social skills are developed at the same time. A choir singer cannot independently change the tempo or dynamics because such a decision affects the entire group. The singer must watch the conductor, listen to the other voices, respond to the overall sound and prepare responsibly for rehearsals. A choir therefore teaches discipline, cooperation and responsibility for the collective result.

A future professional musician’s path may also begin in a choir. A teacher may notice particular vocal qualities, a strong musical ear or an inclination towards conducting and encourage the student to pursue more advanced studies. However, the value of a choir is not measured solely by how many of its members eventually become musicians. Even a person who chooses another profession retains the ability to read music, listen attentively, perform and help sustain the living tradition of the Song Festivals.

1919: JĀZEPS VĪTOLS AND THE LATVIAN CONSERVATORY

The musicians educated there worked in orchestras and theatres, conducted choirs, composed music, taught others and helped shape a new generation of listeners. The present-day Jāzeps Vītols Latvian Academy of Music continues this tradition of higher music education.

THE PRESENT-DAY SYSTEM

After completing basic education and deciding to pursue a professional career in music, a student may choose a professional secondary music school. This is not an automatic next step for every music school student: admission usually requires an entrance examination, sufficient foundations in performance and theory, and a clearer professional choice.

A student’s progress from one level to another is revealed by the level of repertoire they are able to master, how independently they can read a new musical score, whether they can hear themselves within an ensemble and whether they are able to explain a musical decision. Examinations, auditions and public concerts provide reference points, but everyday progress is created through smaller steps: accurately repeating a rhythm, recognising an intonation error, making a considered choice of fingering or preparing a phrase for the first time without the teacher’s assistance.

JĀZEPS MEDIŅŠ RIGA MUSIC SECONDARY SCHOOL – AN EXAMPLE OF THE PROFESSIONAL SECONDARY LEVEL

Jāzeps Mediņš Riga Music Secondary School is a clear example of the professional secondary level and was one of the institutions visited by the project participants. After basic education, programmes at the school generally last four years. Students can specialise in piano, string, wind or percussion instruments, conducting, vocal music, music theory, jazz and other areas.

At this level, general education is combined with intensive professional training. Alongside lessons in their main specialisation, students study solfeggio, harmony, musical forms, music history and literature and participate in ensembles, orchestras or choirs. Concert and creative practice allows them to test their knowledge in real situations: on stage, they must manage performance anxiety, listen to their partners, adapt to the acoustics and take responsibility for the entire programme.

HIGHER EDUCATION – JĀZEPS VĪTOLS LATVIAN ACADEMY OF MUSIC

At the higher education level, students choose a specific professional direction and take greater responsibility for their own progress. The Academy trains performers, composers, conductors, music educators and specialists in other fields. Individual lessons in the main specialisation remain important, but they are complemented by studies in music history and theory, ensembles, orchestras, choirs, pedagogical practice and stage practice.

At this level, simply performing the notes with technical accuracy is no longer sufficient. A future professional must be able to justify interpretative decisions, understand the style and historical context of a composition, plan independent work, respond to criticism and collaborate with others. A performer needs stage experience, a teacher must be able to explain and select appropriate teaching methods, a conductor must hear the whole, and a composer must be able to manage musical material and communicate it clearly to performers.

The Academy is therefore not a place where learning comes to an end. Rather, it prepares a person for a profession in which learning must continue throughout life: preparing new repertoire, taking part in auditions, improving methods, developing projects and responding to a changing musical environment.

FROM THE CLASSROOM TO A PROFESSIONAL CAREER ON STAGE

A stage professional is shaped neither by a single institution nor by talent alone. What is required is long-term, regular practice, good teachers, opportunities to make music with others and tasks that gradually become more demanding. At first, a student may perform a short composition in the classroom; later, they may participate in a school concert, ensemble, competition or combined choir. At the professional secondary and higher education levels, students prepare substantial programmes and learn to work according to professional standards.

Professionalism does not simply mean playing with virtuosity or singing beautifully. A musician must prepare for rehearsals on time, understand the instructions of a conductor or director, correct mistakes quickly, take care of the body and voice and know how to plan their work. Reliability is essential on stage: an orchestra member is responsible for their own part, an accompanist follows the soloist, a choir singer maintains the overall balance of voices, and a teacher is able to explain a complex matter to another person. Education therefore encompasses not only musical works but also habits of professional conduct.

The teacher is particularly important. At an early stage, the teacher helps the student develop correct technique and a productive learning routine; later, the teacher encourages the student to hear mistakes independently, search for their own interpretation and evaluate their own progress. A good teacher does not create a performer who remains dependent on them – they gradually develop an independent musician. The continuity of the Latvian system therefore depends not only on school programmes but also on professionals who pass their experience on to the next generation.

Each stage passes on not only a student but also musical culture. A graduate of the Academy may return to a music school as a teacher, conduct a choir, perform in an orchestra or compose works for students. Their students may later become performers, listeners or teachers themselves. In this way, the system functions as a circle: early musical experience leads towards a profession, while professionals return their knowledge to the community.

STUDENT VIDEOS: LISTEN AND ENTER THE MISSING WORDS

VIDEO 1 | PAULINA SIPAVIČIŪTĖ: FROM EVERYDAY SINGING TO MUSIC EDUCATION

VIDEO 2 | NIDA ARDZEVIČIŪTĖ: THE CHOIR AS A SCHOOL OF MUSIC

VIDEO 3 | RUGILĖ DIRŽIŪTĖ: JĀZEPS VĪTOLS AND THE LATVIAN CONSERVATORY

VIDEO 4 | NEDA RIŠEVIČIŪTĖ: A CONTINUOUS MUSIC EDUCATION PATHWAY

WHAT HAVE WE LEARNED TODAY?

ACTIVITY 1 | THE MUSIC EDUCATION PATHWAY AND SKILLS

ACTIVITY 2 | MINI-ESSAY “FROM THE FIRST SOUND TO A STAGE PROFESSIONAL”

WHAT IS MOST IMPORTANT TO REMEMBER?

• Music education in Latvia began long before the Conservatory was established.
• The first musical skills were developed in the family, community, church and school.
• In the eighteenth century, singing also became a means of developing language, literacy and education.
• Choral singing develops intonation, rhythm, listening skills, musical memory, discipline and cooperation.
• In 1919, Jāzeps Vītols founded the Latvian Conservatory and laid the foundations for the systematic training of professional musicians.
• A music school provides foundations in instrumental performance, singing, solfeggio and ensemble performance.
• A professional secondary music school combines general education with intensive study of a chosen musical specialisation.
• Jāzeps Mediņš Riga Music Secondary School is one example of the professional secondary level, but it is not the only possible institution within Latvia’s music education system.
• The Jāzeps Vītols Latvian Academy of Music prepares musicians for independent professional activity.
• A stage professional needs not only talent but also long-term practice, responsibility, independence and the ability to work with others.
• The music education system functions as a circle: professional musicians return to the community as teachers, conductors, performers and creators.

END-OF-LESSON REFLECTION

Finish these sentences:

• Before this lesson, I thought that music education begins…
• Now I understand that the path towards a professional career on stage consists of…

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