The Importance of School Music Programs

Not only do music programs teach discipline, but they also inspire teamwork in children. In an online radio public service announcement series titled Why Music?, Peter Nero says, “A young person who studies music reinforces teamwork, communication skills, self-discipline, and creativity – all qualities kids need to be successful in their other schoolwork.” A child learns teamwork in a music program through learning to play with other people. A perfect example to illustrate how teamwork is enforced is an ensemble. An ensemble forces people to play all of their instruments together and work cooperatively to achieve playing a piece of music. Children learn teamwork by playing in the same tempo, allowing other children to play solos, and following the same music as everyone else. Teamwork is a vital skill to know in life. A child needs to learn teamwork for his or her future career and personal relationships. In the work force, people are forced to work on a team to meet the goal set by their employer. A marriage and other personal relationships are based entirely on teamwork. If the ability to work with other people is not learned while still young, most people will struggle as adults with all other areas of their lives. A strong music program would be an exceptional way for a school to teach teamwork.

In addition to producing discipline and teamwork, school music programs also create an appreciation for many art forms. When a child learns music, he or she realizes how much labor and dedication other musicians and artists put into their work. It is important for one to realize the devotion artists have toward their work because of today’s rapid technology growth. Music

today can be produced from a computer, generating sounds unable to be produced from any instrument. Art can be formed on a computer screen canvas. Society needs not to forget traditional instruments and artwork. Without music programs in schools, future generations of children will be swept up into the technological music and artwork that is surpassing the long-established and well-loved arts of the past. In her doctorate dissertation, Julia Drummond explains that “Since the beginning of recorded history, the arts were an integral part of the lives of civilizations, providing a voice, an expression of that creative urge that is an integral presence in every human” (1). New generations today must value the arts in order to create their “voice” for future generations. Music programs will instill in children a pure love for the arts, arousing in them a desire to preserve the arts.

Educators today need to realize the necessity of school music programs. Music programs train children in discipline, teamwork, and also build a love for the arts. The psalmist David says in Psalm 98:4 “Shout for joy to the Lord, all the earth, burst into jubilant song with music”. How are people to praise the Lord with music if they do not respect music or know how to play an instrument? Susan V. Gallagher and Roger Lundin explain why the sciences have overpowered the arts in their book Literature through the Eyes of Faith. They state, “For several centuries, the sciences have set the standards of truth for Western culture, and their undeniable usefulness in helping us to organize, analyze, and manipulate facts has given them an unprecedented importance in modern societies” (xiv). Their statement is very true in America; the arts have fallen to the supremacy of science. The only way for music and others forms of art to be reborn in today’s society is to train children to appreciate the arts. School music programs spark the children’s interest in the arts, and continue to hold their attention throughout their time in school. Music programs are desperately needed in schools not only for today’s children, but also for future generations of people.