expanding awareness in recent years

Business leaders take note! There are significant benefits of past music training in prospective employees. I have been delighted to see an expanding awareness (research, studies, press reports, and anecdotal evidence) on how the study music helps develop so many universal and highly sought-after skills. In fact, that awareness has grown to such an extent in some places in the world that significant action at the national level was taken.

around the world

In 2009, the Australian government decided to include the arts in the national curriculum. According to a press release in the same year by Peter Garrett, Australian Minister for the Environment, Heritage, and the Arts, “Australian children are guaranteed an arts-rich education…” Further in the announcement he goes on to say, “Creativity, interpretation, innovation, and cultural understanding are all sought-after skills for new and emerging industries in the 21st century. Arts education provides students with the tools to develop these skills.” How refreshing and exciting to see music recognized for doing what we all have known for so long! Unfortunately, that reality is far from gaining the necessary traction in America to follow Australia’s example of including arts in the national curriculum.

non-music professionals relate their success

Meanwhile, there is plenty of fodder to help your own argument in support of music education, such as: the numerous feature articles which have been popping up about people who attribute their prior music study to their success in non-music fields. What about Thomas Südhof, the 2013 Nobel Prizewinner in the Physiology of Medicine? He’s widely quoted as saying he owes it all to his bassoon teacher. Wonderful!  Other famous examples include: Condoleezza Rice, former Secretary of State, trained to be a concert pianist; Alan Greenspan, former chairman of the Federal Reserve, was a professional clarinet and saxophone player; the hedge fund billionaire Bruce Kovner is a pianist who took classes at Juilliard.

There are so many career leaders who recognize the benefits of past music training in their professional success. Here are a few folks I know (who aren’t famous) but who have done exceedingly well: past fellow UNC Charlotte colleague David Binkley, PhD, who studied jazz piano all through his formative years, is now a senior level electrical engineer for Siemens Corp.; Victor Hymes, a past fellow music student at the Oberlin Conservatory, is now CEO of Legato Capital Management, a billion-dollar global equity firm; Doug Huffmyer, another past fellow Oberlin Conservatory student, currently VP/Creative Director at Elizabeth Arden and has held major positions at Lancôme, L’Oreal, and Giorgio Armani fragrances. There are many more such examples – many of you may know some (and I’d love to hear about them).

music study goes well beyond entertainment

Ultimately, examples such as these can be used in all sorts of positive ways such as, creating a growing awareness in the general populace that music study has importance and dimension beyond entertainment. They can also be used as evidence when pressing elected officials to include music (and arts) as a necessary educational program for our schools.

gaining universal skills for the non-music career

I have created a universal skills teaching method for music teachers, a whole new music lesson for music students, lecture-demonstrations and workshops for business and industry, un-recital performances for everyone. Interested? Learn more about what I can offer you.