CEP882 - IB Music Module

I am now more convinced than ever before that compelling experiences are extremely personal.  Try to critique someone's music or musical genre and it is likely to turn ugly very quickly.  Fortunately all of our group members in our Facebook discussion stayed civil, but convincing one another of why a particular song was good or bad?  Not going to happen :)

I've actually studied music for a long time.  I started taking piano lessons when I was 7 years old. I stopped when I was 9.  I participated in five musicals, the first when I was just 5 years old.  I participated in choir for 6 years, show choir for 3 years, and sang in a trio with two of my classmates for 3 years.  I thoroughly enjoyed the music theory class I took, as well as the World Music class I took my first semester of undergrad soooo many years ago.  In Bolivia, I taught choir, handchimes, and piano.

I've always liked a wide variety of music, from classical, chorale pieces, and Broadway hits, to the top 40 records that you could hear on the radio every Sunday morning.  I enjoyed singing hymns in church and also dancing to club music at school dances hosted every week.  I listened to music at home, at work, and in the car.  I admit to singing in the shower.  Over the years, my tastes in music have changed.  I lived in a foreign country for 6 years.  The club scene really isn't me anymore, though sometimes I dance in my bedroom or my living room:)  But, at the end of the day, it is me who choose what music I like.  Others simply don't influence me.  Sometimes a simple "I like that," or "I don't like that" is all that is needed to keep listening or to turn it off.  Maybe it's a great song.  Maybe it's even a Grammy award winning song.  Maybe millions of people think it is just wonderful.  That doesn't mean that I will or that I have to.

In our classrooms, sometimes we can have a great hook, a technically good lesson, and all the right pieces to make an experience compelling. But some students just won't be compelled by it because it just doesn't speak to their souls. I think sometimes it really is that simple.