Give Them Music First
Give Them Lessons Later
Zion Academy was founded by my father, and has been in existence since 1997. I came up in the program and began teaching in 2008. In my nearly 16 years of teaching music, the question I get most often from prospective parents is “how old do you recommend starting private lessons?” Usually the question is asked because the parent has a child who is between the ages of two and four years-old.
Over the years, my answer has evolved to what I want to share now.
In my experience, my best students were those who already had exposure to music before taking lessons; whether that is going to concerts, or simply watching YouTube videos. There is music in their house, and they want to take lessons to be able to play what they hear. There is a frame of reference for them, and they already have goals coming in, even if they don’t know what they are until you ask.
The students that I’ve had who have struggled the most were the ones who came into piano lessons cold. In our first meeting, when I ask them what their favorite song is, or what music they like listening to, or what songs they’d really like to be able to play, they don’t know how to answer. If I manage to squeeze an answer out of them, and they name a song that I know, I’ll play it for them by memory. If they already have a foundation of music, they get excited. If they do not, they’ll just sit there.
This isn’t every student to a person, but by and large, this has been my teaching experience. This is why I’ve come to the conclusion that it really isn’t about age, so much as it is about exposure and freedom. If a child is to take piano lessons at three years-old, it’s not impossible, but the teacher must understand that three year-old hands cannot, and should not be working as hard as eight year-old hands. The child needs to be free to express, to play by ear, to absorb, etc. And all of it is possible if music is a central part of their development outside of formal lessons.
If you see an early gifting of music in your child, that doesn’t necessarily mean they need lessons right away. Get them some instruments. Play music everyday and see what they do while it’s playing. If there’s a guitar in the house, play videos with guitar players (jazz, classical, rock, etc.) and see if/how they mimic. If there’s a piano in the house, sit them down at the piano and let them make stuff up. If you can’t play an instrument, take out some spoons or a shaker or something and play along with them. What you’re doing is monumental in their development, and much more valuable at that stage than a teacher like myself or anyone else. That’s the freedom they need to grow, and even have preferences.
If you must send them to a teacher, send them to someone who understands this concept. Too much structure too early can cause them to hate their instrument rather than love music.
I say this as a music teacher, and the director of a music school. Music existed before music pedagogy did. It existed before sheet music, music teachers, and music academies did. All of those other things are vastly important, which is why we have the Zion Academy of Music and Arts. Formal lessons are an important step to bettering oneself in music.
But none of those things are nearly as effective without this first step.
Let them be.