“What is Excellent Musical Teaching?”
I am looking forward to attending the Suzuki Association of the Americas (SAA) national conference in March. It is always an inspiration to hear students who play so beautifully that one cannot help but recognize that behind that student is a lot of hard work, an excellent teacher, supportive parent(s) and a little bit of luck that circumstances have allowed these elements to come together. In the Suzuki community, we believe everyone is always learning--including and especially the Suzuki teachers!
Our faculty as well as Suzuki teachers from all over the Americas attend the national Suzuki Association of the Americas' conferences every two years. This March will be the first in-person conference since 2018. We all come together to learn more and to see our colleagues and friends. It is an important moment to renew our energy. What do we learn at these conferences?
We attend in order to learn how we can better teach different skills. It can be about better vibrato, better shifting, reading skills, group class topics, parent education, etc. and to learn about new programs such as Suzuki trumpet or updates on pedagogy research. There have been many innovations in neuroscience that have been validating Dr. Suzuki's intuitive approach to developing his "talent education." (https://www.nccih.nih.gov/news/events/music-as-medicine-the-science-and-clinical-practice) Most of all, we are inspired by the performances by the students who are presented at these conferences. Suzuki teachers learn better teaching techniques but also we gain the emotional support that builds our stamina and sense of mission to nurture the next generation of human beings.
The strength of the Suzuki method of learning is in the emphasis on "listening" which leads to the excellent standards of our Suzuki School. Suzuki methodology is based upon listening to the Suzuki repertoire and listening to the teacher demonstrate. We learn by imitation. Why is this listening so important? As musicians we need to use our ears. Excellent musical technique also means that we have strong musical intent. The musician needs to explore and decide what musical expression they wish to project. This requires listening to oneself and listening to others. By learning from the master virtuosi through recordings or live performances, an environment of excellence is created as a model. Listening to our teachers demonstrations develops students' sensitivity to various nuances in the physical technique. Listening to our fellow students allows for more practice in analyzing what is working and what still needs to be improved. Telling someone to do something, is not the same as showing the student and letting them hear, see, and feel the difference. Learning through listening is without pressure and can be in any musical genre. Being surrounded by music is like being immersed in a foreign language. One develops the fluency and the expanded vocabulary by being surrounded by others.
What is excellent musical technique? It is the ability to use one's body and physiology in a natural and efficient manner towards producing the best musical tone and expression.
This can only be done by developing the student's technique step-by-step, developing the ear, nurturing the heart of the student so that their spirit and emotions can be transmitted through the music, and surrounding the musician with an environment where the ongoing process and growth continues to be nurtured. The pedagogy training Suzuki teachers receive has specific teaching points at every level, emphasizing small steps and repetition, but also an accumulative attitude towards skills and repertoire. Similar to vocabulary in any language, we reuse our repertoire over and over building more advanced control and technique and leading us to what appears to be "effortless" playing.
“Musical Technique is the ability of instrumental and vocal musicians to exert optimal control of their instruments or vocal cords in order to produce the precise musical effects they desire" (https://www.google.com/search?q=music+technique&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&hl=en-us&client=safari)
Excellent music teaching can be achieved with different approaches. With the Suzuki approach our environment emphasizes the process and many opportunities for performances including those in which we share our music and engage in the community. In this way, the musician's journey is always a work in progress. They can be mentally as well as physically healthy and benefit from lifelong learning and lifelong enjoyment of music making. For me, excellent musical teaching is this lifelong connection to others through music and and the mutually beneficial connection with my students.