Today’s Task

Today’s Task – January 25, 2012

Great music teachers are master storytellers. They awaken the mind by connecting musical thoughts and ideas to things in everyday life; they paint vivid, imaginative, mental images to which students can immediately relate. They know that minds working in concert, or performing together by thinking together, is fundamental to truly superior performances.

As a music educator, I believe we should be more musically inclined than mechanically inclined. Ours is a process of creation, not mindless repetition. It is not about notes and rhythms (facts and figures), but about shape, color, phrasing and nuance (practical application). H. Robert Reynolds supports this view with a unique analogy: “Too many teachers are teaching young students to follow the marks…Following the marks is like painting by the numbers, and one is not having any artistic experience through that kind of painting.”

Today, no every day, I encourage you to consider whether your learning is based on information overload, often filled with so much irrelevant information you are unable to have any “artistic experience.” As a young boy, I remember painting by the numbers and at the conclusion of the experience, I was left with a lifeless picture, divorced of the shadings and nuances that bring interest to it…and to me. Since that time, I have found it difficult to paint by the numbers. Heck, I can’t even color inside the lines!

Have a great day!

Mr R

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