Mr. Gefter as Claude Watson Band Majors Teacher

I had Mr. Gefter in grade 9’s band class at Earl Haig Secondary. I won awards in middle school and joined his class feeling great about my skills. I left his class never wanting to touch another musical instrument in my life; it’s been 20+ years now and I never did touch another instrument. Mr. Gefter was extremely harsh and uncharitable with his comments. He found joy humiliating his students and I still remember Mr. Gefter driving other kids in my class to tears on several occasions. I had always attended his classes with anxiety, in fear that I would be his next target. He may be a good flute player (who often showed off his skills in the middle of class for no reason other than to feed his own ego) but he is a terrible teacher. I am glad to hear something eventually did happen to him at Haig, he was a ticking time bomb. I will always remember Mr Gefter, as he is someone who had ruined the joy of music for me forever.

I was looking to send Mr. Gefter a message at Earl Haig and I notice he is not there anymore. I came across this petition. I gather he was let go? Why? How did this happen? It is very difficult to lose your job in the public school board sector, so this comes as a real surprise!

I'm curious what were the results of this ipetition? Was Mr. Gefter re-instated? I have a unique perspective to share, since I am most likely the oldest former student of his. To put things in perspective, my sister was his first private student ever in Canada. Subsequently, I took private lessons with him from 1994-1996, prior to his arrival to the Haig. Being a former Claude Watson Major myself (circa 1996-1999), I entered the Claude Watson program the year Mr. Gefter arrived at Earl Haig S.S. I will always remember the proud look on his face when I auditioned in front of him and the other esteemed members of the panel. He was instrumental in coaching me for my audition, which consequently changed the entire course of my life. Suffice it to say, I know the man well. Believe me, controversy has always followed Mr. Gefter. His methods were strict, but it came from a good place. There is nobody I know of in any field of teaching, past or present, who has brought more passion to their craft than this man. I am proud to say that I was a student of his. No one of his ilk is likely to ever come again. Mr. Gefter, wherever you are, I hope you one day read these comments and realize just how many people respect and care for you as a teacher and more importantly, as a human being. Proudly and sincerely yours, Chris W

Mr. Gefter is one of the most passionate teachers I have met. His dedication towards his students and his love for music was what inspired many of his students, including me, to pursue a career in music. Mr. Gefter was the kind of teacher that genuinely cared for his students. He constantly pushed his students to play better only because he believed in their abilities and potential. He was always thinking of how he could inspire his students to play better, and he was never short of new ideas. In his time at Earl Haig teaching in the Claude Watson music program, he has brought the level of musicianship to new heights and Earl Haig’s Symphonic Band and wind ensembles have received many awards. How much musical talent Mr. Gefter brought out from his students is evident in the videos of Earl Haig’s Symphonic Band performances on youtube. It is such a shame that such a fantastic teacher cannot continue to teach students in the Claude Watson music program.

He was an excellent teacher, this is really unfair

Mr. Gefter is an outstanding teacher. He is sometimes misunderstood by students due to a slight cultural barrier, but he does not deserve any of the recent treatment he has received. He pushed us all to be the best musicians we could be and I know that we all will continue to appreciate him for a long time.

Mr. Gefter shouldn't be penalized for such a small matter

I believe that Mr.Gefter is the best teacher I have ever had. He, not only improved my playing greatly.but he encouraged me to continue on the musical path. There is no reason to switch such an amazing music teacher. Although he seems quite mean and scary, but it is all for us. He pushes us constantly to do our best and practice. And because of that, we have all improved greatly and won many awards for being a great band. I can not stand him not being our teacher. He needs to come back and teach us even more important things about music. He must come back.

I have not been taught by Mr. Gefter before however, throughout grade 9, I watched my friends, who were in his class ,grow as a musician. They were motivated by him and practiced everyday, allowing them to improve. By the end of the year, they sounded like professional musicians because of the encouragement and help that Mr. Gefter provided. They grew not only as musicians, but matured as well because they learned how to deal with constructive criticism. Mr. Gefter is a very professional and caring musician who will be able to push our band so that we, as musicians, are even better than what we thought we were capable of. He is the type of teacher that we need back in our band program.

Personally, Mr. Gefter changed my life completely. At first I thought of him as the "mean, aggresive, weird" teacher because I've never had such a teacher like that before in my life but that was only the beginning of gr. 9 when I first met him. It's sad to know that because of rumours and stories about him, and also because of his aggressive personality, Mr. Gefter is easily mistaken by a lot of people that he is a mean, unfriendly teacher. I can say with full confidence that this is not true at all. As a matter of fact, Mr. Gefter is the total opposite of what people think he is like. Not only does he have amazing talents as a musician and as a conductor, he is able to lead and teach his students with great leadership and patience. There is a difference between being "mean" and being "charismatic". Mr. Gefter not only is charismatic but he is also extremely passionate about teaching music and conducting. And because he has a strong educational background in playing a wind instrument, he can easily communicate and teach the technical and the emotional parts of being a wind player. I believe that as a student of band majors, and a member of the Symphonic Band, we still have so much to learn from Mr. Gefter and it is a shame that we won't be able to learn from him anymore. Taking Mr. Gefter away from teaching the band majors not only affected the students, but it also affected Mr. Gefter himself. For more than 16 years, Mr. Gefter has been teaching the band majors at Earl Haig with undying passion and enthusiasm. I only lived 16 years and I cannot imagine having to give up on something that I've been doing all my life. Also, the fact that the Symphonic Band has been successful in winning the first place award in Ontario in the Kiwanis Music Festival with honours and scholarship proves how much time and effort we all put in and most importantly, how dedicated we, the students, and Mr. Gefter was in making this possible. If there was nothing majorly wrong in whatever

Mr Gefter is really a good teacher, he has becoming one of the most important person of changing my life, he taught me really a lot of things within one year only for in the school band. At very beginning, I thought he was a very aggressive teacher, I was so scared during the period that is his class, but that all because I have never understand him, but until now, I know the everything he did on me that is hoping me getting better and better. Mr Gefter is a very emotional and passionate musician and teacher, I really want him back. I will be so sad for Mr Gefter away from teaching band in my last year study in here. I have never attend a band as amazing as this one, I can really learn something from it and from Mr Gefter! Mr Gefter needs to come back!

Last January, when I first auditioned for the music program at Claude Watson for piano, I was really nervous and I wanted to join the program to make my piano teacher, my parents and even myself proud. When I got placed in the waiting list, I was angry but I realized later on that Mr.Gefter needed a clarinet player in his band so this is how I am in the program today. At first, I was definitely not excited about playing the clarinet as it was not my first instrument and all I had was a few years of practice in school; I didn't take any private lessons and I felt very intimidated. At my second Claude audition as a clarinetist, Mr.Gefter was quite the person I was not expecting. He was arrogant and rude and told me that I was a beginner, comparing me to the talented music band majors. I soon created a deep hatred for this teacher as days passed, but then I realized that he was right. I was really a beginner and what I needed was to practice with a supportive clarinet teacher and just strive for the best. Mr.Gefter really pushed me in an indirect way with his harsh words but I soon began to ignore them and understand them as constructive criticism. If it wasn't for him, I wouldn't be playing in this brilliant band with amazing musical individuals. This is only my first year at Earl Haig, but I am disappointed in the fact that Mr.Gefter cannot conduct our band for years to come. I strongly feel that what we as musicians need is an experienced, wise, passionate conductor like Mr.Gefter.

My opinion is that, mr.Gefter is a phenomenal and excellent teacher and a very inspirational conductor. I see absolutely no reason for him to be switched from the Claude Watson Program. Many might argue that he is mean, and makes us work too hard. But it is his duty to urge us to work hard and he is not mean, but strict; and he is strict only because he cares for us. Mr. Gefter is strict, because he is only trying to urge us to to our best and shine the brightest out of all. His results are unquestionable; we won the Kiwanis, and we got perfect scores for the showcase. In conclusion, I believe Mr. Gefter is a great teacher, and we shouldn't see him as being mean, but him as a great leader that cares for our best.

MY OPEN LETTER TO DEPUTY MINISTER OF EDUCATION

MY OPEN LETTER TO DEPUTY MINISTER OF EDUCATIONDear Mr Zegarac, My name is Vivien Kong and I am a graduate music major of the Claude Watson Arts Program at Earl Haig Secondary School. I am writing you this letter about my high school music teacher Mr. Gennady Gefter. At the beginning of this past September, I have heard that Mr. Gefter could no longer be directing Earl Haig Symphonic Band or the Band Major Class. Three weeks ago, it had also come to my attention that Mr.Gefter was suspended for three days. I would like to report to you a few things that I have experienced. These experiences have brought me great amount of concern about the real intention of the Earl Haig administration for dealing with Mr. Gefter’s case. In the spring of 2011, I was aware that there was an investigation happening at school about Mr. Gefter’s behavior towards students. However, the principal only investigated a few selective students who were either doing extremely poorly or constantly having difficulties in obeying basic school rules. I along with many others who were hard-working and showing initiative in class never got a chance to be interviewed. In May 2011, Mr. Gefter got suspended and did not come back until the next school year. I went to the principal office and told the principal Renata Gonsalves that the information she gathered from those selective students were biased. However, she told me “I am not supposed to share with you anything about his case. It’s business between teachers, you shouldn’t get involved”. After my voice being completely neglected by her, I decided to write a petition and emailed it to the school superintendent Ms Sue Pfeffer. The next morning, without receiving any reply from the superintendent, I was called down to principal’s office. Ms Gonsalves said to me in an unpleasantly serious manner, “I heard that you emailed Ms Pfeffer. Instead of contacting her, I would appreciate you talking to me about wha

He is an inspiring teacher who is dedicated to his students. He goes above and beyond his duties as a teacher. Sure, there are some rough edges with diplomacy but it is because he cares. I owe a lot of respect and gratitude to this man.

Unlike many teachers, Mr.Gefter has a huge impact on the lives of his students. He makes school, a place many students despise, worth coming to - an environment that is enjoyable. Continuously putting in effort and care, he not only believes that we have potential , but that we must work hard to achieve that greatness. Mr.Gefter has taught us a great deal of true artistry. I have learnt from him that playing music is about supporting each other and creating something wonderful. This lesson will benefit me for the rest of my life; a reminder or hope that everyone contributes beauty to the world and everyone combined can make a positive difference. Mr.Gefter is a treasure to our school and to his students.

Great teacher; great person.

Mr. Gefter is a great teacher an amazing musician. Although he demands a lot from his students, he truly cares about them and wants them to be successful by pushing them to exceed their muscial potential. Best teacher I had in Earl Haig.

Mr. Gefter is brilliant. His knowledge, insight, and passion for music deserves recognition. He has taught incredible musical and life lessons with true passion.