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Issues for parents

We love to see a new generation discovering the magical, inclusive world of music.

James Judd, Musical Director, NZSO

Several important issues in music education were discussed by parents attending the Te Papa showcase.

School music schemes

Exposure to all kinds of music was seen as an important part of their children's learning. The parents wanted their children to have numerous opportunities to explore music, participate in it, and grow their knowledge of music.

In many schools, Out of Hours School Music classes provide opportunities for children to learn an instrument – opportunities that classroom teachers often cannot provide. This scheme has nurtured hundreds of thousands of performers and composers over many years.

These government-funded classes were considered by parents to be important within many communities because they:

  • teach musical literacy, which is often not covered in much detail in schools
  • offer affordable tuition on a wide range of instruments
  • allow children to learn in a group setting, developing them socially and allowing families to connect through music making
  • provide the opportunity to explore different instruments without families making a huge financial commitment in the early years
  • are flexible, with many schemes offering weekend classes, which means they don't compete with other after-school activities.

Motivation

Parents at Te Papa expressed the desire for their children to become musically literate. They wanted them to be able to listen to music with some knowledge about how it is made. "We'd like to see itinerant music teachers working at the primary and intermediate level of the school," explained one parent.

Most felt that it was desirable for their children to be able to play something, but that it was up to each individual to decide what they liked to play. For example, one mother said of her daughter, "She loves the sound of the flute, so it is never a problem getting her to practice".

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Making up for the past

Parents frequently made reference to a lack of musical opportunities in their own childhood. This regret fuelled their desire not to repeat this mistake with their own children.

Social aspects

The social aspects of playing instruments together were also highly valued. Tutors remarked that children don't always understand the importance of developing group skills, such as listening to each other, if they only play individually.

Group music skills also have benefits for inter-generational socialising. "Music is one of the activities that different generations of a whole family can have fun with together," pointed out tutor Bernard Wells.

Exposure to music

Tutors explained that, while people have many different motives for learning music, a vital way of motivating children is to expose them to many types of music, and to give them opportunities to explore and have fun with sounds. As a result of listening to different kinds of music, we want to play and create music 'like that' – we want to repeat the enjoyable experience.

"It is very important to develop active listening skills," explained percussion tutor Andreas Lepper. "I encourage children to listen very carefully to the music they hear all around. I ask them to make links between particular sounds they hear and what they experience playing percussion in my classes.

"Children need the opportunity to try out lots of instruments, and then – when they are making choices about what to learn – they can listen to what their heart says"

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