WHY A NEW APPROACH?

The Need for an Alternative: From Fantasy to Reality
• Joey’s First Concert
• A Musical Sleepover
• Danny and Lisa
• The Abyss

Tales of Woe

Traditional Lessons

Myths
• Musicians/ Non-Musicians
• Tone Deaf/ a Tin Ear/ Carrying a Tune
• Note-reading
• The “Empty Vessel” Theory/The Lazy Child

The Need for an Alternative: From Fantasy to Reality

A Musical Sleepover

Laura and Ellen are best friends. They have play dates at least twice a week and tell each other their most precious secrets. When Laura comes over to Ellen’s house there are always special cookies for snack – Ellen’s dad is a baker. But most of all, Ellen looks forward to sleepovers at Laura’s house.

That’s when the girls make a tent out of their sheets and whisper long after the lights go out. When they are too tired to keep their eyes open, they drift off to sleep listening to beautiful music. Sometimes it’s from the stereo, but other times people are actually playing musical instruments, right there in the living room!

Laura’s mother is a professional violinist in an orchestra. Musicians from the orchestra frequently come over and play chamber music. Laura’s dad is a bassoonist in the same orchestra. Two huge bassoons looking like gangly aliens sit side by side on stands. Everyone seems to be used to these strange creatures; they’re part of the family. Ellen thinks Laura is lucky to have all that music in her house. Laura thinks it’s no big deal.

Laura has been taking piano lessons for five years and plays beautifully. She likes playing the piano for Ellen, who always has something nice to say: “It sounds like the piano is singing its own song.” Ellen loves watching Laura’s fingers glide over the keys. “So beautiful … It’s like magic!” Ellen wistfully imagines her own fingers knowing just where to go, all over the keys, making the piano sing.

When Ellen goes home she describes Laura’s musical house to her parents. “It’s like living in a music castle! She’s so lucky.” Ellen’s parents never thought about music lessons for their daughter. No one in the family has ever played an instrument or shown any sign of talent. It’s a realm that’s foreign to them. Anyway, Ellen already has so much homework in second grade that her parents can’t imagine her taking on another thing.

But after several months of listening to her stories, Ellen’s dad calls Laura’s mom. He finds her enthusiasm catching. “Oh, Laura just loves the piano. We don’t even need to remind her to practice!”  He asks about the teacher. “Mrs. Wright? She’s quite strict but one of the best around. Mention our name and I’m sure she’ll find a slot for you.” Ellen’s dad writes down the teacher’s number and a few days later he makes the call. Ellen can’t believe it – She is finally going to start piano lessons!

From Castle to Prison
Ellen’s first lesson with Mrs. Wright is not quite what she pictured. Not that she had a clear idea what the lesson would be like, but Ellen feels a bit disappointed. She was more excited before the lesson than after it. Mrs. Wright teaches her how to position her hand correctly over the piano keys and play a few notes. She learns how to read a note and play it with the right finger. Nothing happens during the forty minute session that reminds Ellen of real music, none of that feeling of bathing in beautiful, rich sounds that she has come to love at Laura’s house. However, she shakes off the feeling and continues. After all, there is a sense of accomplishment in learning how to do something step by step.

For several weeks Ellen dutifully practices her exercises, learning the notes one by one. She is now playing a few songs, not with any of the luscious harmonies that she remembers from Laura’s living room, of course. That will come later, says her teacher. It’s getting harder for Ellen to recall why she wanted to do this in the first place, and harder to concentrate on what Mrs. Wright is saying at the lessons. Ellen’s mind wanders and she is beginning to wish she were elsewhere doing something other than music lessons.

After four months, feeling bored, frustrated, trapped and ready to explode, Ellen tells her parents how she feels. She knows what their reaction will be. Her mother looks at her father with an “I told you so” expression and her dad shakes his head. Talking to each other later that night after their daughter is asleep, they blame Ellen and the world. 

“I don’t know what’s with kids these days. They don’t understand the value of hard work anymore. They want everything to come easily,” muses her father. “Kids are getting lazier and lazier.”

“It’s the society,” sighs her mother. “”Things aren’t the way they used to be.”

Ellen’s parents persuade her to stick with lessons for one more month, but after several arguments, tears and some slamming of doors (even the dog is upset), decide to release her from her obligation. The cell door closes behind her and Ellen walks away, never looking back.

Conclusion: Ellen did not come from a background of holistic musical exposure that would have helped her make an informed choice of which instrument to choose. Had she already achieved a level of musical comfort through informal experiences, she might have been ready for the “tunnel” of learning specific skills on a specific instrument. As it turned out, her lessons were no match for the musical atmosphere at Laura’s house – the only image she knew.