Confessions of a Private Teacher.

It is hard to not take it personally when students don't practice. I know it's never an act of malice toward anything, but a lack of ambition. 

Don't get me wrong. I love my students. I want to see them succeed. 

Thus, my dilemma. 

I've found that kids don't have the drive they used to. Granted I am quite young still to be talking about this, but it's true. Work ethic in recent years has plummeted. I don't have a reason or solution for right now. These are simply my thoughts on the matter. 

If I taught lessons just to make money, my conscience would be free from worry. If I taught lessons just because it pays more than my coffee-slinging job, I wouldn't care about the well being of these kids. If I just wanted a job where I can be my own boss, I wouldn't walk out to my car shoulders slumped after every lesson day. 

It is discouraging. 

It makes me wonder, if these kids don't want my help in musical things, how can I make a bigger impact on their little lives?

Because that is, after all, my goal. 

I do not want to be just someone they go practice with for half an hour a week. I want to stand beside them through the highs and lows of life, cheering them on and helping them reach goals. 

These kids matter to me. 

By no means am I saying that I have seen no progress during lessons. There of course is the inevitable skyrocketing in the amount of practice time with solo festival approaching. And that makes me glad. It shows drive to do well and "wow" the judge with their dazzling and God-given talents. 

I enjoy this. 

But sadly, it fades. And everything goes back to how it was. 

Teaching isn't about me. Never has been and never will be. I'm dedicated to having a very small role in bringing up the next generation of musicians. I want to see them soar and grow their talents more than they could ever imagine. 

This is why lack of practice concerns me. So many kids want to do big things and change the world but there is little to show for their passion. I want to help them reach that goal and it is discouraging to face that rejection that they will never want my help. I can tell that most weeks they are only there because mom and dad paid for the lesson already and they didn't have an excuse to miss. I get that. I have days like that. But to see it develop into apathy and bitterness toward music hurts me. 

Again, I have no solution. This is just the trend I have noticed, in my own words, from my own point of view. I know I'm not the only teacher who feels this way. 

I love my job. And as annoying as I might be to these kids, I will never stop pushing and encouraging them to be as good as they can be. 

After all, do we really need more apathetic teachers?

The Importance of Scales

I spend the first 10-15 minutes of a thirty minute lesson working on scales. We then move onto the étude (exercise) and then a solo the student is working on. 

But why so much time on the pain-stakingness and redundancy of scales? 

Why am I so picky about scales?

Because scales are the ultimate foundation of music. All music is built off of scales. Scales and the keys they represent are what separate music and melody from noise and chaos. 

By playing scales and working on precision, a student can train him or herself to play in tune at all times. It not only trains the fingers and creates muscle memory, it also trains the ears to hear when pitch is off. 

If a runner aspires to run a marathon, they do not show up on that day and simply run the entire distance. There is training to be done. They have to know themself and their body and how it works in order to do their best. In the same way, a musician cannot hope to be a professional without first putting forth the effort to know the basic fundamentals of music. 

I'm not talking about knowing all 12 major scales plus all the scary minor and pentatonic and whatever scales. But basic scales to help the student excel at learning music and playing what is put in front of them. 

Don't underestimate the power of scales. They are helpful and beneficial to players at all skill levels. To put it bluntly, if you're pursuing music as a future, you cannot even hope to get far if you do not know your scales. 

So be diligent! Trudge through the muck and boringness of scales and you will emerge with a skill set and beautiful tone you couldn't have gotten any other way. 

Happy practicing! Stay tuned!

Welcome!

Hello, and welcome to my blog!

Here I will post all things music related that I find interesting, funny, or helpful for my students. If I can figure out all the cool things that Blogger has to offer, I might even upload files or a calendar or something. Once I learn how to work the internet the possibilities are endless!

So for now, here is a cat (because I love cats) with an invisible violin.

Feel free to email me with any questions you might have!

ashley.elizabeth.music@gmail.com

Thanks! Stay tuned!
Ashley