The keys to teaching

"I believe that if I impart a love and passion for the musical and creative arts then I have achieved my mission in life,” says pianist Roxana Anklesaria Doctor. Establishing the Academy of Music, a professional music studio environment at Koregaon Park, Poona, has brought to fruition her dream to bring to India a level of musical education on par with international standards. The objective of the Academy is to inculcate a love and interest in music that students can carry with them throughout their life. The immaculately furnished Academy overlooking a river offers a conducive environment for unleashing the creative energies of her students. The resonant vibrations of the two Yamaha grand pianos is a musical experience that brings them back to the Academy weekly with a sense of pride.

With a primary interest in pedagogy (the art of music teaching), she ensures that she attends the World Piano Pedagogy Conferences to enable her students to benefit from the most updated musical materials, techniques and environment. Besides piano she also teaches peripheral written subjects such as musical history, harmony and pedagogy. Her students range in age from six to 60 with a broad spectrum of cultural and educational backgrounds. What is common is an interest that is nurtured and encouraged. "I am aware that very few of my students would take up music as their primary career,” she realizes.

They are encouraged to perform as often as possible, in studio performance classes, master classes by visiting pianists organized by the Poona Music Society and the Mehli Mehta Music Foundation. They have been highly successful in examinations and were finalists and winners at the All India Piano Competition held in Bombay recently. The highlight of the year is the annual recital where every student performs at least one solo and one ensemble item to a very supportive and appreciative audience of parents, family and friends. The event concludes the academic year with much fanfare."The beaming smiles on the faces of parents as they watch their progeny perform is indeed a heartening experience,” recounts Doctor.

Inspired by visiting artistes and attending concerts during her formative years, Doctor’s greatest star of her youth and even today is maestro Zubin Mehta. Her mentor is Mary Tickner, today her closest friend. A photograph of Tickner is proudly displayed on the grand piano of the Academy. Tickner has visited India on several occasions and it was a proud moment for Doctor when she conducted master classes at the Academy during her last visit.

Doctor hopes to build a pedagogically sound and competent team of teachers who are trained in international standards and can spread the awareness of music throughout the country. "I believe that music thrives in an environment where students can perform, interact and benefit from adjudications and master classes with leading musical luminaries. The Indian student is equally if not more talented than those from across the world — it is just that they have limited exposure to quality and innovative teaching techniques, performance opportunities and the lack of high quality artistes performing in the country. There are exceptions which are few and far between such as the periodic concerts featuring Zubin Mehta and world class orchestras,” she opines.

Forty-six-year-old Doctor considers herself fortunate to have attended workshops and master classes by visiting artistes and has been a delegate at two National Piano Pedagogy Conferences and six World Piano Pedagogy Conferences held annually in the USA since 1994. This year she will be on the jury of the Confe­rence’s first Piano Vision International Competition in Atlanta, USA. An accredited teaching member of the Music Teachers’ National Association (MTNA) of USA and the British Columbia Registered Music Tea-chers Association (BCRMTA — Vancouver branch), she was the founder and convener of the BCRMTA annual international piano master class and workshop series. "I was also active as an adjudicator for music festivals in the Vancouver area and in British Columbia,” adds Doctor.

In the 1990s Doctor represented India on the international jury panel at the Valentino Bucchi Piano Competition in Rome (Italy). She also presented a paper entitled "Nature and Arts on the threshold of the year 2000” at the Italian Parliament Buildings.

"Not hailing from a musically trained family, my musical inclination may have been inherited from my maternal grandfather who was a talented violinist,” says Doctor. An only child, her parents Diana and Dinshaw Anklesaria (Dinshaw runs a successful transportation/logistics business out of Poona and Bombay while Diana is a homemaker) identified their daughter’s musical abilities when they found her playing tunes by ear at the piano when she was all of three and sent her for piano lessons. She maintains that she is the musician that she is today, principally due to the support and encouragement of her parents and late maternal aunt Sheroo Framroz who had been a nurturing and vital influence in her life, having lived with the family through Doctor’s formative years and well into her adulthood.

Her initial musical training was in Poona with Enid Roberts and in Bombay with Tehmie Gazdar and Farida Dubash working towards the international examinations of the Trinity College of Music (London). In 1985 she received her Bachelor of Music degree from the University of British Columbia, Vancouver (Canada). "I have performed in several Indian cities in solo-lecture and piano duet recitals, as a vocal accompanist and conducted piano master classes. Actively involved in the local and national musical scene, I served as the honorary secretary of the Poona Music Society, creating an impresario network for Indian tours of visiting foreign artistes,” says the pianist.

Doctor promoted local and national talent by founding and organizing student musicals and a Young Talent concert series. She was also the founder and convener of two very successful All India Piano Festivals/Competitions, being the only national level event in the country.

Top: Roxana with husband Porus and (above, from left) wth aunt Sheroo and parents Diana and Dinshaw

She met her husband, Porus Doctor during a holiday in Singapore in 2000. They were introduced through common friends and after 18 months were married in India. Porus is a partner heading internal audit in India at Deloitte. His career has taken him to various international destinations having worked with three of the "Big Four” accounting firms in the Middle East, UK, Europe and Singapore.

They share a common love of music — albeit in different musical gen­res and eras. "Porus is a die-hard rock music fan who enjoys playing his guitar. I am a classical aficionado. Our musical paths meet somewhat perilously when he attends a concert at my urging and conversely when I listen to his music in the car. I am apparently worried at my newly developed ability to be able to recognize the newest pop and rock numbers. This could not possibly be part of my musical development,” she laughs.

Besides music, Doctor’s hobbies include traveling, flower arrangement, home décor and gourmet cuisine. She immensely enjoyed designing the interiors of the Academy of Music and her residences in India and Canada. "Among my favorite holiday destinations are Alaska, the Mediterranean especially the French Riviera and my favorite is New York — a city, I believe, exemplifies culture... be it art, architecture, drama, Broadway and most importantly music,” she says, adding, "perhaps my most interesting travel experience has been Iran, a place every Zoroastrian should visit at least once in their lifetime, being the motherland of the Zoroastrian faith. I also have a special place in my heart for Singapore where I met Porus.”