Philosophy

Eric Whitacre once said, “It's not about having a great voice. It is about adding your true voice to others to make a GREAT voice.” I believe that music is a discipline in which all people can engage in, as we all have a voice inside to share. In teaching music, I intend to celebrate the diversity of the human experience and provide learning experiences for musicians, both professional and amateur. As a music educator, it is my goal to share the passion for music that I was fortunate enough to grow up engaging in with people from all backgrounds. Teaching young students music from an early age sets up a lifetime of love for music, no matter what field they choose to pursue a career in. However, it is never too late to learn to love music. Working with adults holds the same merit as teaching young students. Music is a discipline in which any person, regardless of background or experience, can learn to improve their comprehension of a piece of music and deepen their experience with a personal connection to the work.

I wish to teach and continue teaching music because, like any academic discipline, there is no limit to which we can discover and learn about this field. Music is unique in the regard that it inherently touches upon the human experience. Although it is true that many disciplines may explore different aspects of the human experience, there are few disciplines that can simultaneously provide insight into both personal and intrapersonal experiences while also taking influences from other disciplines. I believe that the byproducts of teaching students music serve to prepare them to be productive members of society regardless of what career or field of study they engage in, as well as expanding their sense of self and improving their quality of life.

Teaching music is synonymous with teaching empathy for our fellow human beings, teaching people to think creatively, teaching cooperation and collaboration, and teaching self-reflection to imbue one’s own experience into the expression of music. Almost every human culture in the world has some form of music, making it a universal language to which any person can learn to relate to. Teaching music in this regard, therefore, teaches people to relate to and understand cultures outside of their own, encouraging a sense of diversity and inclusion among people. Music’s complex nature prevents it from being only taken at face value. Through its layers of meaning and interpretations, music teaches people to be creative and consider different perspectives in regard to the meaning and significance of musical works.

Music does not exist in a vacuum, it is almost always shared among peers. This encourages cooperation and collaboration in order to make meaningful music, building connections between people that otherwise might not be there. On a physical level, music develops aural skills and specialized listening through the nature of music as an auditory art, encourages the practice of memory skills, improves pattern recognition, improves motor skills, as well as serves as an efficient stress reliever. As students engage with different forms of music, their ears will become attuned to the intricacies of music and they will develop preferences of their own. There is always some degree of memorization in performing, even when using sheet music, as it requires musicians to memorize music being played while processing music about to be played. This is partially made easier through the various patterns present within music, of which musicians learn to recognize over time. Music performance requires musicians to practice good posture and tunes up motor skills such as balance, coordination, and reaction times. The cathartic nature of music also provides musicians with an outlet for the stressors within their lives. Music, with its many benefits, must then be properly taught in order for people to reap the benefits of the art sufficiently.

This begs the question, how should music be taught? I believe that first and foremost music must be accessible to all people. This means that no one group of people should feel omitted from the process of learning about music due to their learning abilities, gender, sexuality, religion, ethnicity, and race. I intend to utilize a diverse set of activities and careful consideration of students’ needs in order to ensure that their dignity is respected and that all people are included in the benefits of musicianship. This includes programming music that encompasses a wide range of composers, themes, experiences, and styles in order to reflect the diversity and interests of the ensemble and the local community. In regards to ensembles, I believe that auditions should be utilized as a tool to determine the skill level of musicians, but should not be used to exclude any person from engaging with music if they so wish. As such, I intend to have multiple ensembles in which more experienced musicians would serve as mentors to novices. I believe that this structure in which ensembles are separated by skill but still intermingle with each other helps build a community of musicians in which the common strand is a love of music. After all, I believe the core of my role as a music educator is to deepen musicians' love for the art.

- Joshua-Benjamin Lightcaster Marrald