Many of us have read articles citing studies regarding the benefits of music education in children. Besides accelerating brain development and helping with academic success, learning an instrument can help children with motor skills, focus, socialization and what I’d like to discuss in this blog, TEAMWORK!
As a child, I didn’t partake in many team sports. I played soccer and baseball a bit, but by the time I entered middle school, I quit them both. At 13 years old I picked up a bass guitar that my brother’s friend left at our house and fell in love with it instantly. Soon after, my parents bought me a very inexpensive instrument, I started practicing and quickly realized that music was about much more than playing the correct notes.
By the time I was 14 years old, I was consistently playing with bands, making new friends and feeling the comradery of the musician “tribe”. This local tribe or group consisted of musicians from my school, the high school, adjacent towns and more. As I developed my skills in high school, this group got larger and more diverse. We all spoke the same musical language and regardless of our differences, our passion for this art created a bond.
Much is written about the team-building skills learned in sports, but not many people talk about the teamwork involved in making music. If you’re on stage, playing in a band or in an orchestra, you are part of a whole. Every musician on that stage has a part to play and relies on each other just as much as a football team on a field. If one member faulters, the others will be listening and attempt cover for the mistake. If the setting is improvisational, each musician is listening intently to the others and feeding off of their creativity in real time. If everyone is linked on stage, this will translate to the audience and the music will be magical.
The benefits of learning music at a young age are numerous and I wouldn’t be the person I am today without having started this journey many years ago. The beauty of being a musician is that we can actively perform with others for much longer than most athletes. For instance, the legendary jazz drummer, Roy Haynes was still performing live at 94 years old. I don’t think that many 94 year old’s can still play baseball, soccer or football, but music can be enjoyed either solo or with a group for as long as we are on this earth.