In our culture today, education focuses on mathematics and science. The popular STEM system teaches the basic subjects of science, technology, engineering and mathematics. Our forefront science is developing robotics and AI. Our society’s march toward the future highlights philosophers who believe more in machine more than man, in Transhumanism, while communication is more easily accepted through our cellphones than person to person interaction. We seem to have lost what it means to be human.
Perhaps one of the most important subjects of human culture is how to have successful relationships. Interacting with others is the foundation of every marriage, family, business or social endeavor. And yet failures are ubiquitous. It seems that our social fabric is crumbling all around us. Government leaders continue to disappoint us. Mega-churches fall. There seems to be a dearth of heroes. Even those in sports or music we admire, the closer we look, become only a shell of external performance with little inner character.
It seems we may be on the verge of losing Western culture and the hope it has given for centuries for a free and prosperous society.
What does studying music have to do with any of this? At our music school in Midland, Texas we believe music is much more than sound, it is relationships. You cannot participate in any aspect of music-making without interaction of some kind.
It has become commonplace for artists to create music in their homes, using their DAWs (Digital Audio Workstations) and making truly beautiful and powerful audio creations. Yet, sharing it online is the ultimate goal. Perhaps, it will rise to the top of the most powerful social media platforms and bring the artist fame for a moment. There can be online collaboration, yet the artist still remains separated from physical community.
Contrast this current-day model of music making with musical expression over centuries where, in order to make a loud enough sound to reach a large audience, numerous people had to gather together. 100-voice choirs and 80-piece orchestras came together under qualified leadership, with a detailed plan (through written scores and parts) spending time rehearsing with one another until they had gained proficiency on the material.
Such events took a great deal of leadership, planning, and a willingness to participate in community. Not only did this require individual preparation prior to the group being assembled, but it also took a good measure of patience and long-suffering between the participants. In order to produce any results, successful confrontation and resolution was not just a preference, but a requirement. (The value of physical proximity is that accountability is not optional. An online relationship can be terminated at the click of a mouse, while being physically present necessitates successful relationships.)
These concert gatherings were not only a part of the historical evolution of music, but also served as a model, put front and center, for how all of society could work together. It was a metaphor for how each member of society, unique and important, fit into the whole. It showed a conductor (leader) who had no physical control over the group, brought people together with only vision, influence, and inspiration. The gathering revealed how sections of players (all playing the same part) were unified, yet still fit into a composite whole with multiple other sections. At our music school in Midland, Texas we offer ensemble playing to help develop in these areas.
Listening skills were required. First, the player had to hold himself accountable to playing his own part well. After this, his next responsibility was to listen to what his stand-partner was playing, endeavoring to join sounds with him rather than compete against him. (The idea is always to gather together and unify rather than fight against one another.) The player had to be aware of his entire section, playing as a whole. After these things, the player had to be aware of the conductor’s subtle influences of shaping phrases and dynamics, helping all sections of the ensemble combine in a successful way. It was not produced and post-edited, but all happening in real time. Moment by moment adjustments were made for the ensemble to stay together. We teach students at our music school in Midland, Texas how to play under the direction of a conductor, as well as the techniques of conducting.
These were much more than timing adjustments. That was certainly part of it, but each player’s tone-quality, dynamic range and miniscule variations of phrasing created an undulating combined effect of the entire presentation.
The value of studying foundational, historical expressions of music and the arts in our culture is underestimated. When a student focusses on the core competencies of learning to participate in musical ensembles, they also grow in aptitudes that are intangibles. The value of making music with others requires the musician to not only prepare and play his own part well, but also to stay aware of the other players. This kind of three-dimensional perception develops empathy, teamwork, intuitive and reflexive agility (knowing how to change and adapt to circumstantial variances with speed), and what I call 3-Dimensional awareness.
Parents at our music school in Midland, Texas value the influence music has had on their children’s academic performance, noting a tangible difference in their aptitude.
This kind of thinking is glaringly absent from today’s developmental processes of learning. The value of coaching in these areas cannot be overstated.
Perhaps, one of the most important life-lessons that can be acquired through participating in music empathy.
We teach students in our music school in Midland, Texas how to listen critically, first to themselves, then to the larger ensemble.
Teamwork, a word usually associated with sports, can be used in this scenario; however, there is a distinct difference between sports and music. Participation in sporting events necessitates competition. However, in music the goal is to gather. Music seeks to complete, rather than compete.
To successfully function in a musical environment, merging one’s own contribution with that of others, requires an awareness of those around you. That awareness is based on the understanding that the rest of the individuals who are participating are valuable. The discipline of holding one’s own part while simultaneously adapting to other musicians develops an intuitive sensitivity for the contribution of others. This empathetic development is crucial in all relationships. Learning to value someone else’s thoughts, contributions and efforts, instead of being ego-centric, is the first step towards functional relationships and successful leadership. Learning to listen to others first, rather than speaking, is the door that opens new and lasting relationships.
As we head into a future of more technological advancements, perhaps we should seek to maintain (and expand) that which is truly human.
Music is much more than sound, it is relationships. If there is anything our world needs right now, it is meaningful and authentic relationships based on trust. If we lose the ability to trust one another through empathetic communication, we will have lost it all.
Our music school in Midland, Texas exists to not only help students develop in their musical skills, but also, and most importantly, in their ability to succeed in life.