“I Do This for a Living”!

Hearing about something for the first time while people around you “do it for a living” can feel a bit uneasy! It’s no surprise to find yourself in those awkward situations here at the Sydney Con. Australia is doing great in music, education, and music education! And USYD has recently been ranked 1st in Australia and 26th in the world for music!

How amazing!

And here I am: a boy from a small town in northeastern Iran, at the most prestigious music school in the Southern Hemisphere! To me, it still feels as big as it sounds. For locals (more locals?), it might be just another stage in their lives. But I’ve often learned the most when I’ve put myself in those awkward situations! For me, the way to learn is actually to be among people who “do it for a living”!

Among the things I’ve recently learnt are many valuable ideas about lesson planning. This might sound obvious, but, for example, James Humberstone’s idea that “great lessons are driven by great repertoire and great resources” was particularly striking to me. Similarly, the idea of “differentiation” in teaching has made me rethink many assumptions. Sharon Green’s “Structuring Music Lessons…” in David Bray’s Creating a Musical School (2009) was also a very informative piece of writing I recently read. I would recommend it to anyone interested, and to my future self, as something worth revisiting from time to time.

I’m hoping to apply these ideas to make sure my teaching does not leave behind those who do not “do it for a living”!