Music lessons

An interesting article here. Mr. Tucker laments the fact that most of our society is musically illiterate since they never stuck with their piano/violin/etc. lessons when they were younger. He places a good bit of the blame on the parents. Good read.

One of my colleagues told me once that he had three non-negotiables for his 4 sons; 1) You go to church on Sunday, 2) You do your homework, and 3) You play the piano. The third is clearly the one that most parents (and children) bristle at, and I was a little taken aback at first as well. Nonetheless, think of it this way: How many people do you know (maybe yourself) that have said, "Now that I'm older, I really wish I had stuck with my piano/violin/etc. lessons when I was younger."? I know lots. Now, how many people have ever said to you, "Gosh, now that I'm older and play the piano well, I sure wish I hadn't wasted all that time with lessons."? Probably no one.

As one who did stick it out (though with a five-year hiatus from ages 11-16), I must say that I derive tremendous joy from my musical prowess, and, looking back, I don't regret a second of my formation. Sure, there were lots of times that I would have rather been playing video games instead of practicing, but clearly the time put in with the piano has done me much more good than the time I put in with Double Dragon.

So what's the plan for our children? Well, there's no question that all my children will study the piano, learn to read music, sing, and possibly play another instrument of their choice (finances will play a role in how all this plays out). I'm sure there will be some resistance at certain times, but there will also be resistance to eating vegetables; we won't give in on either!