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My kids both play the recorder. One has been in classes two years, the other one, one year. The little one is just starting to read music. We can no longer go to the old teacher for logistical reasons and I'm wondering where to go from here.
My goal as a parent is to have them exercising their musical mind consistently, to learn to read music well, and to appreciate what constitutes musicianship. Both are talented but neither are "gifted" in terms of passion or single-mindedness.
If you have experience with music education, I'd love your opinion on the following:
The little one is too small for her top choices (alto sax and trumpet). Should I force her to finish a year of recorder to learn to read music? I don't know what her next choice is but she leans towards exotic. I'm afraid she will choose the balalaika or something she can't do in school.
Group lessons are available for guitar, ukelele, piano and violin only. They aren't much cheaper but we aren't rich either. What are your thoughts? For a 7/8 and 5 year old, are these worth it or should I fork out the extra for individual lessons and let them choose? They are in group lessons now and they are fine in a group setting but they really want to choose their instruments.
I'm really hoping to get them to play a second instrument, or continue the first, with the school band from 5th grade on. I plan to offer them an allowance "bonus" for every elective that is academic (music vs. arts and crafts, elective math vs. helping out in the school office) so cross your fingers that this works for them like it worked for me. Any thoughts on this? Should they continue the first instrument and get better and join all-city, or start a new instrument? In terms of musical education which is preferable? I am asking because the school doesn't offer parts for every instrument, e.g. ukelele, which is a popular child's instrument.
Supposing they choose guitar, how can I find a teacher that will teach them to read music, not tablature? I figure they can always learn tablature in the garage if they want. But reading music is more transferable and abstract so I'd really like them to have that.
Teach you kids to work around the house and earn money ,
then match what they earn toward music lessons . Now that have something invested and more likely stick with the investment. if you are catering all the time they have no sense of value nor loss.
Children and adults that are handed things generally not grateful ,and superficial.
My children do chores for things they want, not for things they need.
I believe that every child should have a free education, and that music, sport and language is an integral part of that education. If it were up to me there would be musical instrument training in every school in the country, as well as PE and foreign language from grade 1, but it's not up to me. I can only do it for my own children.
My kids both play the recorder. One has been in classes two years, the other one, one year. The little one is just starting to read music. We can no longer go to the old teacher for logistical reasons and I'm wondering where to go from here.
My goal as a parent is to have them exercising their musical mind consistently, to learn to read music well, and to appreciate what constitutes musicianship. Both are talented but neither are "gifted" in terms of passion or single-mindedness.
If you have experience with music education, I'd love your opinion on the following:
The little one is too small for her top choices (alto sax and trumpet). Should I force her to finish a year of recorder to learn to read music? I don't know what her next choice is but she leans towards exotic. I'm afraid she will choose the balalaika or something she can't do in school.
Group lessons are available for guitar, ukelele, piano and violin only. They aren't much cheaper but we aren't rich either. What are your thoughts? For a 7/8 and 5 year old, are these worth it or should I fork out the extra for individual lessons and let them choose? They are in group lessons now and they are fine in a group setting but they really want to choose their instruments.
I'm really hoping to get them to play a second instrument, or continue the first, with the school band from 5th grade on. I plan to offer them an allowance "bonus" for every elective that is academic (music vs. arts and crafts, elective math vs. helping out in the school office) so cross your fingers that this works for them like it worked for me. Any thoughts on this? Should they continue the first instrument and get better and join all-city, or start a new instrument? In terms of musical education which is preferable? I am asking because the school doesn't offer parts for every instrument, e.g. ukelele, which is a popular child's instrument.
Supposing they choose guitar, how can I find a teacher that will teach them to read music, not tablature? I figure they can always learn tablature in the garage if they want. But reading music is more transferable and abstract so I'd really like them to have that.
I like piano for young ones. You don't need to buy an expensive piano. A keyboard with weighted keys will do. Just make sure it has at least 80 keys (a regular piano has 88). If you want to spend a bit more a digital piano is perfect. In addition, the keyboard is visual so it really promotes an understanding of the relationship between the notes. That is helpful when they transition to a second instrument. Any decent piano teacher will make sure the student learns to read music.
I like private lessons for very young kids.
My middle son started piano at 7, clarinet at 10, saxophone at 12 and eventually transitioned to percussion. Piano was a great starting instrument for him and he still loves to play piano.
My children do chores for things they want, not for things they need.
I believe that every child should have a free education, and that music, sport and language is an integral part of that education. If it were up to me there would be musical instrument training in every school in the country, as well as PE and foreign language from grade 1, but it's not up to me. I can only do it for my own children.
I agree 100%. Especially about musical training in schools.
I like piano for young ones. You don't need to buy an expensive piano. A keyboard with weighted keys will do. Just make sure it has at least 80 keys (a regular piano has 88). If you want to spend a bit more a digital piano is perfect. In addition, the keyboard is visual so it really promotes an understanding of the relationship between the notes. That is helpful when they transition to a second instrument. Any decent piano teacher will make sure the student learns to read music.
I like private lessons for very young kids.
My middle son started piano at 7, clarinet at 10, saxophone at 12 and eventually transitioned to percussion. Piano was a great starting instrument for him and he still loves to play piano.
We do have a piano, actually. Two people are taking lessons on it already! Do your children still enjoy piano?
DC would have liked to play trombone at 5 (impossible) so we started Suzuki violin lessons - weekly individual with monthly group included. Four years later DC was fluent enough to join our upper school orchestra as a lower schooler and now has a first chair spot with Houston Youth Symphony, despite not being particularly motivated or passionate about it. Entering middle school this fall DC will start playing the saxophone in band (but still play violin with both orchestras) and eventually should DC continue with strings, we've discussed a switch to viola when grown enough to play a full-size one (viola better suits DC's personality).
Obviously I don't know yet how things will turn out with the different instruments but I think a strong and early music education gives terrific flexibility later on, like learning different dialects of a language you already know.
At this age the particular instrument is less important than the general study of music and sight reading, but consider that there is a much broader range of learning repertoire in terms of both style and technique for certain instruments (like piano and strings) that makes the skills learned playing those instruments more translatable later, as Momma Bear points out above.
Also, for what it's worth we don't have incentives for DC to play, it is more or less required like school. Our younger child doesn't play a musical instrument at all but instead attends school in a second language and also has outside tutoring. Music is our older child's second language.
Thanks! I'm out of rep for today but I appreciate your input, fnh.
Re: bonuses:
I am worried about the kids asking to choose art over music in middle school. That would have me continuing to pay for private lessons if I wanted them to play an instrument throughout high school. So the bribery is more like, "If you save me money by doing this through the school, I will pass that on, because you're doing your job--education--more efficiently."
That seems fair to me.
Hopefully they will just be jumping at the chance for more free time after school and will beg to join orchestra and it won't come up.
We do have a piano, actually. Two people are taking lessons on it already! Do your children still enjoy piano?
My middle son is heading off to college to study music this fall. He is pretty talented. He started piano at around age 7 and still plays piano regularly even though percussion is his primary instrument. He recently turned 18.
My oldest played piano for about a year when he was in high school. He doesn't play anymore. He also played trumpet for about 6 years but stopped after his first year of high school. He is 20.
My youngest is 15 and never played piano. He played guitar for about a year and string bass for 3 years in middle school. He stopped playing after middle school because he just can't stand the orchestra teacher at his school. He was not very talented in music so I was glad that he learned a little bit about it.
I don't fully understand the whole middle school schedule and art vs music thing, must just be the way things are delivered there, but that's okay, I don't need to understand.
I'd say, since you have a piano, that piano woul dbe a great choice at this point. It will give them the mental exercise you're looking for and teach them transferrable skills. I'm hoping mine take piano long enough to be able to sit down and play something for someone. That ability to share and hopefully create is something that will be valuable to them if they can get past the rudiments and get past their own fears about what they do being good enough. Part of my view on that is my own regrets for having quit piano too early.
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