By Alyssa Cowell Every once in awhile, a student will ask me a question that seems like it should be easy to answer, but isn’t. Recently, I had a young vocalist ask me who my favorite singer is. The follow-up question: “Why are they the best?” got me thinking a little bit more. The student in question is fairly young, and while it is flattering to think...
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One of the things that I think is so important as a music teacher, is to understand the end goal of the majority of our students. Most parents don’t enroll their students in lessons because they think they have the next Mozart on their hands (though you may end up having a few concert pianists in your bunch!) — they enroll them in lessons for the many benefits of learning a musical instrument, not the least of which is a richer and fuller life.
Keeping this in mind, it is important to inspire our students and help foster a love and appreciation for music. In order to do this, it’s vital to create a positive studio atmosphere. While you may have students who dread practicing (don’t we all?!), we want them to look forward to their time in the studio and be proud of what they accomplished.
By Patrick Fritz Each year, I try to re-read “Nurtured by Love” by Dr. Shinichi Suzuki. Over a decade ago, his short book helped shape the direction of my teaching career… “When love is deep, much can be accomplished.” “Teaching music is not my main purpose. I want to make good citizens. If children hear fine music from the day of their birth and learn to play it,...
Read MoreBy Julia Kossuth As my personal studio of students has expanded and changed, I've had the wonderful opportunity to change and hone my teaching style to match each student's level and goals. Although I'm personally a music reader and not as strong an improviser, that certainly doesn't describe all students. One thing I've enjoyed exploring with my students is learning to play chords with a written melody....
Read MoreBy Julia Kossuth As the fall semester approaches, I and the rest of the Studio of Sarah Strout have been considering how to change up our motivational system in the wake of so many new students. Past systems of everyone receiving a prize is simply no longer practical. And more importantly, it would be a disservice to our students if the goal of lessons was merely...
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