On Switches and Timing

by Steve Katzenmoyer

We’re all back in the middle of another school year, full of wide-eyed students and busy schedules and the like. We care so deeply about our teaching that we often become emotionally involved in the successes and failures of our programs. Whether it is general music, band, chorus, or orchestra, I believe music teachers share in the highs and lows of our students’ endeavors more than in any other discipline.

It’s because of this passion, our collective drive to succeed, that we sometimes let student failures wear on us. I’ve been there, maybe you have too. We feel sick when a student quits being a part of an elective music ensemble. We fret when music theory students repeatedly mislabel the French 6th chord. And that first grader who just cannot seem to match pitch no matter how hard she tries? My goodness! We think and plan and devise methods to help that struggling child to succeed. Such instances can be emotionally exhausting. These kinds of experiences are the foundation of superior teaching. After all, if we don’t strive to help our students achieve success, why should they be motivated to succeed?

I believe that virtually every student wants to succeed. I also believe that very few students intentionally try to make mistakes. I hope you share my beliefs. If you believe as I do-that students strive to succeed-then you should not get so upset that the clarinets keep forgetting to play F sharp: That they forget that Bach came before Mozart: That they forget that forte does not mean to increase the tempo: And perhaps most importantly, those students might not be “ready” to comprehend what we are trying to teach them.

This leads me to a favorite topic: recruitment and retention in elective music ensembles. I have found that there are many reasons that students become involved in elective music ensembles. Nothing makes me sadder than when a student quits being a member of one of the bands that I teach. Why do they quit? It could be for any number of reasons. It might be you, but in all likelihood, it’s probably someone or something else that is the motivator prompting the decision.

I am in my fourteenth year as an elementary band teacher. The students from my first few years of teaching are now graduating from college and entering the workforce, or have already been part of the workforce for a few years. I recently had lunch with a former student who is now an elementary education student teacher serving in my building! I frequently see students in my community, and most seem willing to talk to me. I’m always glad to talk to them, (even if I don’t remember each one’s name!), and am genuinely interested in what they are doing. Perhaps you have had similar experiences.

I am even more fascinated by the former students who did not continue playing their instrument, yet many tell me how much music is a part of their lives. Sure, most twentysomethings are consumers of music. But it’s those who tell me that they are now playing guitar in a band, or are active in their church youth music ministry, or bought themselves recording equipment, or have any other number of involvements in music, that most interest me. Perhaps it’s a way of reassuring me that “it wasn’t me” as the reason they quit being a part of the school band years ago. They had the interest and desire to make music, but for any number of reasons, age nine or ten was not the right time for them to realize their potential in music. The switch was not ready to be turned to the “on” position.

Sometimes the timing of public school planned courses is not in sync with each child. As the cliché goes, “timing is everything”. So if that student in your seventh grade chorus cannot seem to blend with the people on either side of her, remember she enrolled in the chorus for a reason. The second year violist whose bow never seems to be moving in the same direction as his section mates? He wanted to learn to play the viola, and I’ll bet he is trying to correct his mistakes. Do you think he really wants to not be in unison with the other violists? And that trombonist who just cannot seem to stay in step? You owe it to him to help him try to stay in step, even if it is for the nineteenth time that day.

Are these examples excuses for not expecting quality from your students? Of course not. Is “just trying” good enough? Absolutely not. Should we grant students high grades solely on the basis of “Aw shucks, he’s such a nice kid?” No no no! Demand quality! Expect sincere effort! Strive for excellence! But remember, not every student is ready to meet your expectations, and if you expect your students to be lifelong learners in music, you must continue to be patient, to persist, and to do everything in your power to help that student achieve success. Sometimes it takes longer than you would like for the switch to be flicked. So remember, the next time that the bass drummer plays on 2 and 4 instead of 1 and 3, she wanted to make music in the first place. Tolerance, patience, and perseverance are what she demands of you, and you owe it to her to teach accordingly. What would each of us be without patient music teachers?

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