I have been asking myself WHY NOT every day this week.  I have another thought for you.  As we look at our "traditional" ensembles in school music, are we tackling the bigger issue of whether or not this truly serves the goal of creating life-long music makers in those ensembles, or are we perpetuating the cycle of dead-end learning?  Let's face it, the number of symphony orchestras in this country is dwindling at best.  To teach to that end seems like dead-end learning.

I refuse to buy into the argument that we are creating an audience of future symphony patrons.  If we stopped and really thought about that, we must admit that is a somewhat self-serving and somewhat economic goal.  Do I want people to enjoy Beethoven symphonies? Yes.  Do I want that to be the limit of their experience?  No.

I want students to be able to PLAY music.  To EXPERIENCE it fully.  I would venture to guess that none of my students enter my class so that some day they can play in a symphony orchestra.  I wonder why students join orchestra in the first place?

Let's chew on that idea this week.  I'm going to ask all of my students why they joined, starting with my Facebook peeps.  More on this later.

Along those lines, Yo-Yo Ma and friends have recently recorded a new album.  Is it a concerto?  Is it a Brahms quartet?  Is it a symphony?  Look at this, folks.  This idea needs to be a part of the WHY NOT in the school music equation!