Tools Not Tunes

I’m wrapping up lessons for the semester at Grand Rapids Community College, and I’m reflecting with each student on goals and what they’re carrying forward.

At the heart of all my teaching is this: tools not tunes.

I’d rather my students learn one fewer new tune in a semester, but spend that time developing the tools to learn new tunes on their own for the rest of their life. We spend lessons talking about concepts that can be applicable beyond the song we’re actively working on, and I try to always draw attention away from the specifics of the song and towards the bigger ideas.

It’s a variation on the old “give a man a fish” analogy, but I think it’s applicable. It’s my hope that my students continue to succeed, to grow and develop, because of the tools I’ve helped them develop. And that continuation is worth way more than ending the semester with one more song in the repertoire book.