AKA Musical Insensitivity
“Ah, music,” he said, wiping his eyes. “A magic beyond all we do here!”
Dumbledore, J.K. Rowling, Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone
What is music making for if we don’t listen to it? I guess we could consider it a mild cardiovascular exercise regimen, a practice in discipline, or maybe a way to improve our intelligence (no, I’m not going to cite any studies or infographics on this). I think we can all agree that music is supposed to be listened to. What a shame then when our students treat it as a series of motions translated from the page to the fingers, bypassing the ears completely.
Getting to experience one's own playing and understand music in a new way through the process of getting inside the notes is one of the greatest pleasures of piano playing. It’s what keeps many young piano students coming back to the instrument again and again. It can help your students stay on the bench too – if you can only open their ears in the first place.