Where would this world be without music?

Editor:
Have what I’ve been doing for most of my life been for naught? I have to ask myself that, at a time when music is being pushed out of curriculums because of budgets. But it’s not only because of budget cuts; it’s because of priorities. Music is not a priority. It is thought of as a “frill.” Unnecessary. Not important.

So, then I have to ask myself: Have I spent most of my life teaching something that really hasn’t mattered to anyone but me? Have I spent a lifetime wasting my time; not doing any good?

I know the majority of my students will not be musicians, but in the time they spent learning music, they have learned how to create and express themselves. Music inspires creativity; develops the right side of the brain. That is a fact, not fiction. So, whether developing creativity is to create music, science projects, inventions, paintings, design buildings, technology or even finding cures for diseases, it inspires people to think “outside the box.” It puts people to sleep at night; wakes them up in the morning. It makes them want to move; to dance.

Over the years, my students have had to memorize, perform in front of audiences, learn the history of music, how to read lyrics, follow a musical score, play keyboards, recorders, bells and develop the eye-hand coordination to do so. They have sung folk songs and they have sung rock ‘n’ roll. They have learned how to perform in front of audiences, play instruments and create sound pieces and short melodies. I have seen children with no self esteem excel after being in a musical. I have seen children with behavior problems find themselves in music. I find people from every walk of life convey to me how music has always been an important part of their life.

So I could say things like, “You study all the history you want, but if you really want to know about history, look at how the people were feeling at that time. Look at their music and art and it will reveal an inside story much better and more revealing than memorizing dates and time lines.”

Or, I could say that test scores of children who study music are significantly higher than those who don’t. But I won’t drag all those facts out, because music does not need to be justified. It is what it is.

So, will developing only the left side of the brain instead of the whole brain pay off in the end? I guess we will know in a few years. When musicals are gone, when the band stops playing, when there is no more song in their lives, let’s hope our children will survive and not drop out because school has become too stressful to continue.

No, I have not wasted my time. At a time when being a music teacher is seen as insignificant, it is not because of me. It is because our culture is becoming blind to what really makes students excel. Without creativity, we would not have many of the things we enjoy today. Music inspires creativity. Music touches a person’s soul. I am glad that I have had a lifetime of music. I am sorry that many people will be growing up without it.

Susan Gentile
General music teacher at Springville Elementary School