Music students just want to enjoy playing music. But the approach of setting performance pieces far exceeding their capabilities is detrimental to advancement.
A feasible and more fulfilling approach:
- equips students with essential skills
- sets pieces within established means
- encourages recognition of the implemented skills
- firmly consolidates the standard with many pieces at the same level
- advances by repeating steps 1.- 4. at a slightly higher standard.
This is a first language approach to learning music. A first language is spoken fluently and automatically because of the utilzation of a relatively small number of familar words from a much larger vocabulary. Thus by:
- building technical skills beyond those required
- equipping students with rhythmic, melodic and harmonic vocabulary exceeding that in the works studied, and by
- setting pieces within the capabilities
the way is paved for effortless progress and confident performances.
At Insight Music Education, this 'first language' approach to learning music is cultivated.
