I, for one, would like to see strings instruction introduced into more schools. I know some “elite” schools have it, but the vast majority don’t offer it. I think the response from students would be tremendous if they were afforded opportunities to play instruments they consider “cool”, AND they could get school credit for doing so.

I paid for my son to have private lessons on piano for about 7 years, and then gave him guitar lessons myself for 3 years after that. Even though he went to private school thru his freshman year, he was never given the chance to perform on either at school. His 3 years of public school were even worse.

The schools want brass and bass drums or tom toms. The kids want to play and hear guitars, pianos or synths and drum sets.

If schools were to teach the instruments that kids want to play, I think enrollment in music courses would explode. The kids would even willingly compete with each other for a spot on a band they actually thought was “cool”, (or “kewl”)! These bands could easily be incorporated into sports, and they would be a helluva lot more popular than the standard high school band.

Instead, schools insist on teaching them to play instruments they hate and that they’ll never even touch or own after high school, (with extremely rare exceptions). Teach them to play something they think is “cool” like guitar and piano, and there’s at least a chance they’ll continue to play, or at least dabble in it for the rest of their lives. (No flaming from brass players please!)

Bob
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http://soundcloud.com/bobcflatpicke/music-in-the-mountains