Even a Little Bit Helps

The following quotation was printed in an article entitled, “China orchestrates a renaissance: Classical music, fading in the West, finds new life in the East,” which appeared on the front page of the International Herald Tribune last week (April 3, 2007).

“Fewer young American listeners find their way to classical music, largely because of the lack of music education, which was widespread in public schools two generations ago. As a result, many orchestras and opera houses are struggling. China [on the other hand], with an estimated 30 million piano students and 10 million violin students is on the opposite trajectory.”

After reading this article I felt mostly bad about the American educational system (not that China’s system is perfect, see “For Chinese schools a creative spark” IHT, April 2, 2007), but from that bad feeling, I felt something good. Here’s where I’m going with this… 

Because many public schools in the US no longer teach music, there is a sweeping decline in music appreciation in the US. Classical music sales have dropped considerably; Americans aren’t listening to classical music or participating in its performance. This is a shame for our youth; and it gives what could have been their opportunities for admission to prestigious arts universities and seats on symphony orchestras to the young people from other countries (like China) where music education is booming. What are American kids doing with their free time now since they aren’t practicing the piano—playing video games you say? I agree.

Anyway, here’s the good part: two generations ago when students did learn about classical music in public schools, they grew up to participate in the arts and to buy classical music records or to reserve tickets to performances. To me, this means that even a little bit of Arts education works. I’m assuming here, but when Music was taught in school, it most likely wasn’t part of the daily curriculum—what was it taught, once a week, maybe twice? But those students learned the notes or how to play the trombone or what classical music meant both historically and culturally. Therefore, just a day or so a week of Arts education has a major impact on the taste of society.

This is exactly why programs like Into the Outside work. Supplementing the public school curriculum with even a small amount of outside influence can have a profound impact on students. Whether it’s music or art or culinary appreciation or anything that schools can no longer (or maybe never could) afford to teach, by exposing young people to these things, they will learn. And from this learning will come an appreciation: whether it’s the boy who buys one classical music CD in a lifetime or the girl who decides that the trombone is her life’s passion, whatever it is, I have to say it’s much better than wasting every hour playing “Gears of War” on Xbox.

Comments

[ANP]

Great post. I'd love to get your ideas for how public schools can do a better job of exposing students to classical music:

http://section-aight.blogspot.com/2008/03/classical-music.html

[Gretchen Robbins]

I believe the best way to incorporate music into a public school curriculum (where music is not taught as an individual course) is to carve it into English and History Curriculum. When teaching about a certain period in history, discuss cultural aspects of that time period (not just wars and leaders) but music and art that was popular or forming during that time. Same with English, discuss composers who were contemporaries of the playwright or author you are studying. Play the music you discuss. Also, maybe just playing music when students are coming in and settling into the classroom can be a good way to expose students to music.