The Importance of Music Education in Schools

As education becomes increasingly more difficult to fund, many school districts have been cutting corners by getting rid of activities that bring in less revenue or are seen as less important. As a result, visual and performing arts are often the first programs to be cut from district budgets, as opposed to departments such as athletics and the sciences.

While music may not be calculus or chemistry, is it really as unimportant as school districts seem to believe it to be? After all, music can in fact be scientific, mathematical, linguistic, and most notably, artistic.

In order to become a successful musician, one must have an understanding of acoustics; this is a common concept taught in physics classes. Try attending a concert where the acoustics are awful—you will hear the brass section, and maybe the piano. However, that is all. A composer familiar with the study of acoustics and music theory (the theoretical elements of music; major and minor scales, chord progressions, etc.) will know the perfect way to arrange an orchestra; often with the quietest instruments (i.e. violin, viola, cello, bass) in the front and the loudest in the back (i.e. tuba, trombone, French horn). An architect must take acoustics into consideration when planning wall treatments for auditoriums as well. In addition to this, those who build instruments must use the exact measurements and materials to ensure the highest quality sound possible.

Mathematics also plays a key role in music. Have you ever met a talented pianist who is also extremely talented in pre-calculus? The correlation is likely due to both studies having one major thing in common: problem-solving. Being a musician takes much more than simply memorizing notes; it follows very specific time signatures which often must be figured out on the spot and divided into fractions—which, once again—must be figured out without spending enormous amounts of time figuring it out on paper! Musicians eventually get used to it, however; a ¾ time signature is as easy for a musician to understand as the ¾ fraction is for those familiar with arithmetic—just as ¾ translates to “Three-fourths” or “.75” in math, a piece with a ¾ time signature is a waltz. However, a ¾ time signature is not the same as 6/8, even though mathematically the two are synonymous. Once again, this is where music theory comes in handy, and one of many examples of how logical and precise music can be.

However, at the end of the day, music is still an art, and it is universal. You may be familiar with the following terms: staccato, soprano, contralto, tenor, coloratura, largo, misterioso, and lastly, piano. While these are all Italian words, you may have found yourself to have already been familiar with at least one or two of the terms. This is because music notation is often written in Italian, German, and French. It is rarely written in English, which prompts students to explore other cultures and languages. Classical and operatic singers are expected to perform in Latin, Italian, German, and French—and that’s only to be accepted into college! Many music students go on to study and perform in Spain, Italy, Germany, and many other countries as well. You are likely already aware of the treble and bass staffs, sharps, flats, and naturals, and of quarter and whole notes. Music in itself is a language of symbols and numbers, and one unique thing about it is that it is the same in every nation and in every dialect.

Music teaches us about our history. “Swing Low, Sweet Chariot” reminds us of the pain that African-American slaves endured, Earth, Wind & Fire’s “September” takes listeners back to the late 1970s with its combination of disco-style and the studio effects that led music into the 1980s, and Ludwig van Beethoven’s unforgettable Symphony no. 9 was completed nearly 200 years ago. Although the aforementioned songs came out anywhere from 30 to 200 years ago, we still listen to them. Music says a lot about our culture and our values, and is more than purely sounding good.

So, why is music education important? Music helps form more involved and understanding citizens of the world. It inspires people to leave their comfort zones and seek adventure. It teaches students that no matter where they come from, they can always find security and liveliness in their instrument or voice. It is a set of rules that can easily be broken and yet still make a piece sound ever so beautiful. It is a world where there are no wrong answers. It is the fact that there are millions of songs in the world, and not one is the same as the other. It is the beauty in more than a thousand chords that not one human can name every single one. It is the environment where students can feel comfortable asking questions. Most importantly, music continues to change and save lives every day, giving the will to live to millions of people continuously.

Without music, there is no beauty in sound. Without music, many students attend school without being truly engaged in their studies. Without music, many students go throughout their academic careers believing that they are inferior to their STEM-oriented peers. Without music, we lose the voice of an entire nation. Musicians may not make the most money, but they have the life skills that everyone should desire in their career path: passion, curiosity, and dedication.