Should Music Teachers Yell?
A fascinating thing popped into my Instagram feed this past week. A violin teacher was yelling from the couch at her very dedicated student as they played the Tchaikovsky Violin Concerto. It was a memorable clip that resonated deeply with my own music education experience. I’d imagine a lot of viewers of that clip would think, “Wow, that’s hardcore.”
Obviously it depends on what is being yelled… but if we consistently align yelling with “hardcore” and “dedicated,” I think we need to look deeper at why someone yells as a way of educating.
In a way it is hardcore, and, in another way, it is toxic. I’ll say more in the future about why I think yelling in lessons as a general rule is toxic, but, for now, here are a few things that I personally think should be ground rules for music lessons:
Music lessons shouldn’t be yelling lessons.
Teachers shouldn’t interrupt everything a student says- and a student should be given the space to speak and be heard.
Respect goes two ways. The student respects the teacher. The teacher respects the student.
Lack of preparation on the student’s part does NOT justify a teacher being immature, rude, or mean.
If someone is having a bad day, acknowledge it. Don’t take it out on the student or the teacher or the music.
Yelling over someone’s playing could be helpful for some… but mostly seems chaotic and disorganized. What about writing down thoughts while you hear the student, and then sharing them afterwards? (Does any of us really learn much that sticks if it’s just being yelled at us while we are trying to do the thing?)
If your teacher is most effective when yelling, I’d like you to reconsider the efficacy of your teacher.
