Listen, Listen, Listen!

          If listening is the heart of Suzuki...shouldn’t we put more heart into it?

          If someone told you a way to greatly increase your child’s progress at the violin, with little or no effort on your part, would you sit up and take notice?  If you found that by following their instructions practice would go easier and lessons would go smoother with less effort from you, or pulling from the teacher, would you be inclined to try it?  What if there was an easy way for your child to even correct notes and rhythm?  What if it would help your child develop beautiful tone and sensitivity?  What if it would help him love music more, and enjoy practice more, and develop skills more easily?  Wouldn’t it be the most exciting thing you could think of? Wouldn’t you try hard to follow their suggestions?

          If this sounds like a fairy tale to you, you haven’t caught the vision of what is possible with proper listening.  I am convinced that few students are getting enough listening.  If practice is a struggle, chances are you are not getting enough listening.  If progress is slow and you are having to show them each step of the way, you are probably not getting enough listening.  Many teachers require 3 hours of listening daily as a minimum.  Others simply say to play the tape all the time.  If you have been satisfied with an hour or less, it simply isn’t enough.  If listening is the magic that makes Suzuki work, isn’t it worth your best effort?  If you think you haven’t got time to listen more, think again.  Listening doesn’t really take any time.  How much time does it take to push a button?  If it bothers you to have the tape on so much, try playing it softer.  The tape can be played so softly as to be barely heard, and still be effective.

          If listening is the heart of Suzuki...isn’t it time we put more heart into it?  Make it a goal to double your listening time, starting today.  Put your heart into it!