Playing Along With Your Students

When I was a young violin student my teacher would arrive at my house empty-handed.  He never picked up an instrument to show me how something might be played, and I never had the chance to play duets with him, or hear what the accompaniment might be on a piece we were learning.  He occasionally said something like, "That's out of tune," but I was left to figure out for myself where the center of the pitch actually resided. 

As I talk with my fellow string-playing professionals there is almost a unanimous concurrence with this experience.  We all slogged through, frustrated and unhappy, trying to pluck some semblance of good intonation out of the ether. 

Now, as  teacher myself, I find it absolutely necessary to play right alongside my students.  If they're out of tune with me they immediately hear it and can correct it.  They have something against which to compare their own pitch, and it saves a great deal of lesson time and unnecessary talking.  We play duets sometimes, too, and our studio winter recital is completely given over to the performance of duo music.  It's only by playing with others that we learn the importance of pitch, of counting, of dynamics, and that we discover the joy of making music as part of the whole. 

When my students have prepared their pieces and feel confident that they can play them alone we move to the piano, where I accompany them.  This is another step in learning the music, finding where our part fits with the piano or the orchestra.  How many unfortunate students have faced a performance of a well-rehearsed piece only to be thrown by an unfamiliar accompaniment?  We generally don't play in a vaccuum, and although there are wonderful unaccompanied pieces which we also learn as a matter of course, the vast majority of our musical experience occurs in conjunction with other musicians in orchestras, string quartets, small chamber groups, or playing sonatas with a pianist. 

There is also a secondary joy, one that is seldom mentioned, of playing with a student whom you have actually brought along to the point where duet playing is possible, where you are giving each other the incredible gift of making music together.  Whether this happens with the most advanced person in your studio, or a young beginner, the joint effort of creating something pleasant to hear is sweet and gratifying.  Mind you, this takes more physical exertion on the part of the teacher, often far more than many teachers are willing to invest, but it is well worth it in terms of superior performance skills and general enjoyment for the students. 

Over the years many of my students have gone on to win festivals, competitions, scholarships, and such, and others have simply learned a skill that they enjoy.  No matter what the ultimate goal of the student, however, I have learned that music must be enjoyable and must exist in the context of creating something meaningful with and for another.  I will continue to play alongside my students and urge other teachers coming up through the ranks to consider this method when they are building private studios of their own and hopefully adding budding young string players to our community.