The Importance of Music Education in Northumberland Boarding Schools

Posted by Cindy on July 15, 2009

Unfortunately the under-estimation of the importance of musical education in public schools today is prevalent.  Some institutions, such as the United Kingdom and Northumberland boarding schools are aware, that music and art education, as well as the teachers of those subjects, is and are important.  In higher education systems such as universities and colleges, one of the largest and most dense of programs is in the music department.  What is required of the professors and the teachers is immense, including technique, psychology and general education and knowledge of not just one instrument, but of all of them.  History, composition, music theory, as well as the repair of instruments and the different methodologies of teaching is required.  They must have knowledge of past and current trends and the repertoire contained in those trends and traditions.  And for the students coming from public and private schools where the funding has been cut for art programs, once they reach university, the have a lot to learn.

The history of music is taught throughout their years at school, as well as the different styles and the way in which music has developed over time.  Many of the ‘old school’ techniques are used by the composers, the jazz and rock musicians and even those that score music for television commercials, today.   The social events that surround a given moment in history, influence the music being created at the time, such in the early days of Bob Dylan and Joan Baez.  Music is sometimes commissioned by the wealthy and sometimes written for the poor, by the poor.  Centuries of cultures have been absorbed in the practice and the appreciation of music, for centuries and centuries.  The study of the rhythms and the division, multiplication and the keeping of the count have all shown to increase the capabilities of those children in their science and math classes as well.  Science and technology are utilized in the world of music, when one is discovering simply, what sounds good.  Through the study of music, one also gains knowledge in the study of language.  The act of translating a given ancient piece, sheds light on the meaning of the words for one thing, and the poetry of the time.  Music programs should not be cut from school curriculum’s, and many are fighting to see that that does not happen.