Music provides a number of valuable and dynamic opportunities for teacher-student interaction.  While my primary focus as a music teacher is to impart musical knowledge to students, many other extra-musical goals present themselves readily during lessons and rehearsals.

An important role as professor is to maintain the highest standard of performance and professionalism among faculty and students.  Because actions can be much more powerful than words, leading by a positive example re-enforces advice given in lessons and rehearsals with relative ease.  Music students should know how to act responsibly and how to interact with others in a pleasant and respectful way.  It is also important to model that greatness comes from their hard work and it is ultimately their responsibility to earn grades based on assignments outlined by the teacher.

When we think about music, we realize it is many things.  It is the communication of abstract ideas and emotions; it involves physics and mathematics; it relates to literature, psychology as well as the fine arts.  Therefore it’s not only advantageous, but essential to transfer knowledge and relate music to everyday life and other fields of study to fully appreciate the music’s potential.

While there are many components to a great performance, some of the most basic and most important are commonly overlooked for superficial effects such as playing fast or using extreme ranges of the instrument.  A professor should cultivate a highly-developed sense of intonation, rhythm and tone production.  These musical topics are essential to becoming an employable musician.  In addition, students should attain a high level of mastery of his or her instrument, including proficiency in scales, etudes, and solo literature and orchestral/band excerpts.

Emphasis of fundamentals in music performance, however, does not equal artistic development.  It is therefore the instructor’s responsibility to find balance with the technical issues of performance, the artistic sensitivity to phrasing, and musical styles.  Furthermore a strong basis in music theory, knowing how musical phrases work, as well as developing a student’s awareness of their role in the ensemble provides perspicacity to an otherwise abstract and often elusive topic.

Each student is a valuable human being and is unique.  Thus, it is my goal to provide each student with the tools to become aware of his or her learning styles, how he or she responds to adversity and high pressure situations like auditions and recital performances.  When students discover these elements they can make the first steps toward becoming their own teacher, to think independently and ultimately teach the next generation of musicians.