Well, I can easily say I'm in a similar situation- there are about 400 music majors here, of those, 20-30 are piano majors, and of those, only a handful are proficient enough to accompany.
At my previous school, I had an accompanying assistantship and I'm actually working on my 2nd Masters right now, in collaborative piano(the fancy term for accompanying). Just like you, anytime I mention that, people go nuts. :-P
I have a few years of coaching on accompanying, so here is what I can tell you......
The best way to be a good accompanist, is to have a very well-rounded knowledge of music and how each instrument handles. You have to deal w/every voice and instrument (unless you just want to specialize in one area, like a vocal coach), so the more you know about how they work/play, the easier it is to collaborate. If you get the chance to take an Orchestration class, I highly recommend it.
Then, you need to be familar with the "staple repertoire" of each instrument/voice. For example, E-V-E-R-Y French horn player studies at least one of the Mozart horn concerti, or the Strauss. It never fails. Every instrument has rep. like that, so once you learn it, you'll always have it and can plan it whenever you need to.
Lastly, when dealing w/orchestral reductions, if you can't play all the notes, then don't! You're not a 100 piece orchestra. If you can simplify a piece, so that you can perform it w/o anyone realizing you're having a hard time, then go for it. Its a "reduction" after all. I've never played all the notes in Handel's "Messiah," and if I did, I'd go insane. lol
Anyways, those are just some pointers. If you're really serious about going this route, you really need someone who can coach you on accompanying. Good Luck!
At my previous school, I had an accompanying assistantship and I'm actually working on my 2nd Masters right now, in collaborative piano(the fancy term for accompanying). Just like you, anytime I mention that, people go nuts.
:-P
I have a few years of coaching on accompanying, so here is what I can tell you......
The best way to be a good accompanist, is to have a very well-rounded knowledge of music and how each instrument handles. You have to deal w/every voice and instrument (unless you just want to specialize in one area, like a vocal coach), so the more you know about how they work/play, the easier it is to collaborate. If you get the chance to take an Orchestration class, I highly recommend it.
Then, you need to be familar with the "staple repertoire" of each instrument/voice. For example, E-V-E-R-Y French horn player studies at least one of the Mozart horn concerti, or the Strauss. It never fails. Every instrument has rep. like that, so once you learn it, you'll always have it and can plan it whenever you need to.
Lastly, when dealing w/orchestral reductions, if you can't play all the notes, then don't! You're not a 100 piece orchestra. If you can simplify a piece, so that you can perform it w/o anyone realizing you're having a hard time, then go for it. Its a "reduction" after all. I've never played all the notes in Handel's "Messiah," and if I did, I'd go insane. lol
Anyways, those are just some pointers. If you're really serious about going this route, you really need someone who can coach you on accompanying. Good Luck!
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