Looking for Inspiration

Yesterday my husband and I took a nice long drive to Kona's "Beach 69" for some R&R and a little bit of work (for him). Along the drive we listened to an interview between Ron Dawson, host of F-Stop Beyond podcast, and Jesh De Rox, a self-proclaimed "professional kid" who photographs weddings for a living. (My husband, who is a photographer himself, discovered this amazing artist a while ago and has been fascinated by his work. Thus, he is the one who primarily was interested in this interview.) So I listened to the two 20-minute interviews with him and, although I am not a photographer by trade, I too found much inspiration from this man. His perpective on life and the arts is fascinating. He gets much of his inspiration from kids and the way kids view the world. According to Mr. De Rox, everything to them is without labels, their minds are full of imagination, and that is what sets them apart from adults. They are able to see things in many different perspectives and even remain in awe of a simple object such as a fork. They are more intrigued with the kinds of feelings the object gives them than what it really is.

So what does this have to do with music? Well, Mr. De Rox's perspective on the arts has influenced me to change my way of thinking when I teach music to others. Instead of teaching music purely on the technical side of the spectrum (i.e., dynamics, articulation, fingering, etc.) -- as many of my previous instructors have done -- I should be teaching music how it really should be taught, which is to help the player be able to express the moods and feelings inside his/herself. I've had one piano professor who taught music in this manner: Dr. Peter Coraggio. He used a lot of imagery terms alongside technical terms and it really changed the way I played music. It made the music less mechanical, more human, and more emotional -- exactly the way any art form should be portrayed.

Thank you Mr. De Rox for the inspiration. I am looking forward to seeking inpiration from other great artists, whether or not they are musicians.