I walk in a commercial area by some strip malls for businesses. One is the Suzuki Music Institute of Dallas. I took piano lessons every week for about four years as a child. I liked going to Mrs. Campbell’s house and playing the music I had practiced the week before. Mrs. Campbell usually gave you three or four pieces of music, and by each one she would write the number of times you were to practice it that week. I usually did what she asked. In my last year, I won an award for most improved, a mustard seed necklace. Guess I decided I was good enough and did not need any more practice, because I quit taking piano lessons shortly after I won the award. I know there are some interesting education philosophies about teaching music. Let’s learn about one of the educators, Dr. Shinichi Suzuki.
According to Wikipedia, Shinichi Suzuki (October 17, 1898 – January 26, 1998) was a Japanese musician, philosopher and educator and the founder of the international Suzuki method of music education and developed a philosophy for educating people of all ages and abilities. Considered an influential pedagogue in music education of children, he often spoke of the ability of all children to learn things well, especially in the right environment, and of developing the heart and building the character of music students through their music education. Before his time, it was rare for children to be formally taught classical instruments from an early age and even more rare for children to be accepted by a music teacher without an audition or entrance examination. Not only did he endeavor to teach children the violin from early childhood and then infancy, his school in Matsumoto did not screen applicants for their ability upon entrance. Suzuki was also responsible for the early training of some of the earliest Japanese violinists to be successfully appointed to prominent Western classical music organizations. During his lifetime, he received several honorary doctorates in music including from the New England Conservatory of Music in 1956 and the Oberlin College Conservatory of Music. He was proclaimed a Living National Treasure of Japan and was nominated for the Nobel Peace prize.
Biography
Born in Nagoya, Japan in 1898, as one of twelve children, Shinichi spent his childhood working at his father's violin factory — current Suzuki Violin Co. Ltd. — putting up violin soundposts. A family friend encouraged Shinichi to study Western culture, but his father felt that it was beneath Suzuki to be a performer. However, he began to teach himself how to play the violin in 1916, after being inspired by a recording of Mischa Elman. Without access to professional instruction, he listened to recordings and tried to imitate what he heard.
At the age of 26, the Marquis Tokugawa — a friend of Suzuki — persuaded his father to allow him to study in Germany, where he studied under Karl Klingler. In Germany, he claimed to have spent time under the guardianship of Albert Einstein. He also met and married his wife, Waltraud Prange (1905–2000). Upon his return to Japan, he formed a string quartet with his brothers and began teaching at the Imperial School of Music and at the Kunitachi Music School in Tokyo and started to take interest in developing the music education of young students in violin. During World War II, his father's violin factory was converted into a factory to construct seaplane floats. Consequently, it was bombed by American war planes, and one of his brothers died as a result. During this time, he and his wife finally evacuated to separate locations when conditions became too unsafe for her as an ex-German citizen, and the factory was struggling to operate due to lack of wood supply. Suzuki left with other family members for a rural mountainous region to secure wood from a geta — a form of traditional Japanese footwear resembling flip-flops — factory, and his wife had to move to a "German village" where other Germans and ex-Germans were sequestered. Once the war was over, he was invited to teach at a new music school being formed and agreed to the position with the condition he would be allowed to develop teaching music to children from infancy and early childhood. He adopted into his family and continued the music education of one of his pre-wartime students, Koji, once he learned he was a wartime orphan. He and his wife were eventually reunited and moved to Matsumoto where he continued to teach.
He was a National Patron of Delta Omicron, an international professional music fraternity.
Shinichi Suzuki died at his home in Matsumoto, Japan on January 26, 1998 at age 99.
Contributions to pedagogy
Shinichi Suzuki's experiences as an adult beginner and the philosophies that he held during his life were recapitulated in the lessons he developed to teach his students. Schools of early childhood education have combined his philosophies and approaches with pedagogues such as Orff, Kodály, Montessori, Dalcroze and Doman.
"First, to set the record straight, this is not a 'teaching method.' You cannot buy ten volumes of Suzuki books and become a 'Suzuki Teacher.' Dr. Suzuki has developed a philosophy which, when understood to the fullest, can be a philosophy for living. He is not trying to create the world of violinists. His major aim is to open a world of beauty to young children everywhere that they might have greater enjoyment in their lives through the God-given sounds of music" (Hermann, 1971).[
Suzuki developed his ideas through a strong belief in the ideas of "Talent Education," a philosophy of instruction that is based on the premise that talent — musical or otherwise — is something that can be developed in any child. At the 1958 National Festival, Suzuki said (Kendall, 1966),
"Though still in an experimental stage, Talent Education has realized that all children in the world show their splendid capacities by speaking and understanding their mother language, thus displaying the original power of the human mind. Is it not probable that this mother language method holds the key to human development? Talent Education has applied this method to the teaching of music: children — taken without previous aptitude or intelligence test of any kind — have almost without exception made great progress. This is not to say that everyone can reach the same level of achievement. However, each individual can certainly achieve the equivalent of his language proficiently in other fields."
Suzuki also collaborated with other thinkers of his time, like Glenn Dorman, founder of The Institutes for the Achievement of Human Potential, an organization that studies neurological development in young children. Suzuki and Doman agreed on the premise that all young children had great potential, and Suzuki interviewed Doman for his book “Where Love is Deep.”
Suzuki employed the following ideas of Talent Education in his music pedagogy schools:
1. The human being is a product of his environment.
2. The earlier, the better — with not only music, but all learning.
3. Repetition of experiences is important for learning.
4. Teachers and parents — adult human environment — must be at a high level and continue to grow to provide a better learning situation for the child.
5. The system or method must involve illustrations for the child based on the teacher's understanding of when, what, and how (Kendall, 1966).
The epistemological learning aspect or as Suzuki called it, the "mother tongue" philosophy, is that in which children learn through their own observation of their environment, especially in the learning of their first language. The worldwide Suzuki movement continues to use the theories that Suzuki himself put forward in the mid-1940s and has been continuously developed to this day, stemming from his encouragement of others to continue to develop and research the education of children throughout his lifetime.
Suzuki philosophy
Suzuki Talent Education or the Suzuki Method combines a music teaching method with a philosophy that embraces the total development of the child. Suzuki's guiding principle was "character first, ability second" and that any child can learn.
According to the website of the Suzuki Music Institute of Dallas, below are its teaching philosophies.
Every Child Can Learn Dr. Suzuki believed that every child can be educated and that every child has the potential to reach a high level of skill. Daily practicing and listening are the keys to a child’s musical success.
The “Mother Tongue” Approach The “Mother Tongue” approach is based on Dr. Suzuki’s belief that all children can learn when given the opportunity. Every child is expected to speak. Children are lovingly and patiently taught their native language by absorbing what they hear around them. They repeat the sounds they hear as they slowly and constantly build their own vocabulary. Listening, imitation and repetition are also the key building blocks in learning to play an instrument. Encouraging an Early Start We are never too old to learn, but it is more natural and more effective when the child gets an early start. A three-year-old child can begin his or her instrument-specific music education via the Suzuki Method. Parent Involvement is Crucial The involved parent is the “practice partner” at home. The parent attends every lesson, takes notes on assignments and directs home practice with the teacher’s guidance and supervision. The teacher has great trust in the parent as the teacher guides the parent through every step. Daily Listening Students listen to their current pieces daily and repeatedly, just as they do when learning a language. They listen to familiarize themselves with what they will be learning, and they maintain and build their skill base. Learning by Repetition Students constantly review and refine the pieces that they have learned. This, in turn, strengthens memory, solidifies technique and develops musical expression. Step-by-Step Mastery Each skill and piece of music is broken down into the most basic units, which are carefully mastered before continuing. This insures a child’s ease of playing and ultimate success in performance. Positive Reinforcement Promotes Success Enjoyment is an important part of the learning process. The teacher and parent praise the child’s progress. They find supportive and creative ways to work towards further improvement. Weekly Individual and Group Lessons Individual lessons provide the parent and child with the tools they need to work together at home. Group lessons provide an opportunity for a student to practice those skills with others, review the materials from the private lesson and gain confidence and inspiration from other students. Parent-Teacher-Child Triangle The responsibility of the child’s progress lies with the parents and the teacher. They work together to nurture ability. They are the base that hold up the child at the top of this triangle. They not only instill a music education, but also they work together to develop the whole child.
“Kodomo” is the Japanese word for "children." Suzuki Music Institute of Dallas Kodomo Music is a weekly class for children ages 18 months to 4 years old that combines the use of the Suzuki repertoire with musical awareness, pitch, rhythm and movement activities.
Kodomo Music is an excellent preparation for instrument study and helps the child to respond in a group situation, follow musical instructions and enjoy music with family and friends. Live piano accompaniment provides a dramatic and spontaneous backdrop for the exploration of musical skills. Improvisation and free expression encourages children to use their whole bodies to experience musical concepts like high and low, soft and loud and slow and fast.
- Kodomo Music does not emphasize performance.
- Everyone is invited to join in the fun or watch quietly from a parent’s lap.
- The goal is to create a joyous environment where families can create and share musical fun.
This course can be taken multiple times as it becomes more beneficial as the child develops. Each semester features its own new content and songs. Many of the younger students — infants and toddlers — start with the unique Kodomo program. Kodomo is the Suzuki Music Institute of Dallas’s proprietary introduction-to-music program for young children not quite ready to handle an instrument. It’s a great way for new families to have fun with their children in a group setting and begin to learn more about the SMID program. Kodomo children are often well-prepared to begin instrument lessons and a lifetime of music appreciation.
Kodomo is $231 per 50-minute session plus a $15 registration fee per session. There is a maximum of 12 students in each class.
Student Program
The Suzuki Music Institute of Dallas currently offers instruction in violin, viola, cello, bass, guitar, harp, piano and organ.
Suzuki music education — a holistic and inclusive method — encourages and enables the parent to spend time with their child, communicating and thinking with creativity, clarity and precision while having fun during the learning process. The Teacher-Parent-Child triangle is a cornerstone of the Suzuki method and is essential for the mother-tongue approach. With no previous musical education necessary, the parent’s role of attending lessons and practicing daily with the child creates a strong bond between parent and child, while fostering communication, creativity and fun. Teachers guide a student’s musical and technical development during the lesson while helping the parent understand how to reinforce the child’s progress during home practice. Students participate fully in their lessons and home practice, communicating with both their parents and teachers to ensure they are fully supported in their efforts. In addition to musical skills, Suzuki students develop important character traits including perseverance, discipline, flexibility, ability to both lead and follow others and the ability to enjoy challenges. Students gain self-esteem and confidence through setting achievable goals and celebrating their success with parents, teachers and the school community. Every student has three classes per week:
- One private lesson.
- One group class.
- One theory class.
Group lessons: Group classes are organized by instrument and level. These classes enhance the learning process, reinforce the private lesson and broaden the student’s musical expression. They are important for the student’s motivation and provide a wonderful social element to instrument study. Theory class: Group theory classes are organized primarily by level. These classes use the Theory Time curriculum, while incorporating elements of the Music Mind Games and other activities. Theory classes can usually be scheduled around a student’s private lesson or group class time. Tuition includes 38 weeks of private lessons and 33 weeks of group class and theory class. 30-minute lessons are $2,489; 45-minute lessons are $3,419. 60-minute lessons are $4,293; 80-minute lessons are $5,572. Ensembles: String orchestras, chamber groups and groups for special events create a learning environment for the development of ensemble skills. Performance Opportunities 1) Achievement Week: The purpose of Achievement Week is to celebrate the dedication and accomplishments of the students, families and faculty at the Suzuki Music Institute of Dallas. In addition, it provides an opportunity for the faculty to observe each other’s work and to evaluate their collective effectiveness in providing an excellent musical education for all students enrolled. This experience is a unique performance opportunity for all our students. Each participating faculty member will write comments, which will later be shared with the private teacher, parent and student. Comments from the faculty will include positive aspects, as well as helpful suggestions for the performer. At the completion of Achievement Week, each performer will receive a certificate of participation.
2) The Strings Workshop is offered every other year. Past workshops have offered the following:
- Master Classes with superior Suzuki Instructors from all over the United States.
- Dalcroze: Dalcroze™ Education is a unique, exciting and powerful way of knowing music through the body. The Dalcroze™ approach explores musical concepts through social and interactive methods that invite students to trust their ideas and develop their own intuitions.
- Group Classes: Children learn from and are motivated by each other.
- Improvisation: Improvisation classes are designed for students Book 2 and above and are designed to enhance creativity and joy in developing a unique voice and sound on the students.
3) Piano Workshop This workshop will be in master class format. During a master class each student performs a polished piece for the teacher and the other students in the class. The teacher then gives advice on tone, phrasing and other musical and technical aspects of the piece.
The student should perform a polished piece so that the teacher can focus on these aspects. The observing students will also benefit from the teacher’s suggestions and from watching other students perform. All students must stay for their assigned hour and are also encouraged to observe other master classes. Children are scheduled in 1-hour time blocks:
Level 1: Twinklers – Book 1, 10 minutes each
Level 2: Book 2 – Book 3, 20 minutes each
Level 3: Book 4 & Up, 30 minutes each
4) Trophy Festival The Suzuki Music Institute of Dallas is proud to host the North Texas Suzuki Association’s annual Trophy Festival. Over 300 students participated in last year’s event! This event’s purpose is to provide an opportunity for students to perform for a clinician/adjudicator and receive positive comments or suggestions as well as a trophy — tangible evidence of their efforts and accomplishments. This event serves as a terrific readiness for elementary students who will later perform in solo/ensemble festivals and take region and youth orchestra auditions; it is also perfect for more advanced or older students who need additional performing experience in a low pressure and supportive environment. Proceeds from the Trophy Festival largely fund the NTSA’s scholarship fund, which provides financial support for outstanding students to attend summer Suzuki Institutes. 5) Outreach Concerts Every so often, there are wonderful opportunities to reach out and give back to our communities. Past performances have been at senior centers, retirement homes, fundraising events for other nonprofit organizations and Whole Foods. We are always on the lookout for opportunities to play in the communities that we represent. Outreach performances can occur during the day, on the weekends or in the evenings during the week.
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