Today was one of those teaching days when everything seemed to go well.  And just when I thought things were going swimmingly, my second Theory 2 class surprises me and makes the day even better.  We were reviewing for their exam that’s coming up on Friday by doing some longer part-writing examples (rather than just isolated chords/resolutions).  I guide the class through the example.  After its completion, I’m standing at the piano, playing pairs of voices together so that they can hear the various counterpoint combinations and one of the students shouts out, “Can we sing it?”  I was so taken aback by the request that I had to pause for just a moment to process what I just heard.  Normally, asking an Aural Skills class to sing anything is like pulling teeth: the students are there to sing, but are reluctant to do so for a number of reasons.  The hesitation is only magnified in Theory class because, well, it’s not Aural Skills, so many of them are of the mindset that the singing should be confined to Aural Skills and left out of the Theory classroom.  What I try to do is help them make the transfer from Theory to Aural Skills: because the two classes are inexorably linked, there should be as much mention of Aural Skills in Theory (and vice versa) as possible.

The fact that one of my students voluntarily suggested singing through a part-writing example–and the fact that the rest of the class actually got excited about doing so–flabbergasted me, in the best way possible.  The way I see it, they’re starting to make the transfers on their own.  Connections are being made between classes, thereby making the experience of studying music are more complete and more enjoyable.  For all parties involved.  I’m always proud to be a music teacher.  But today, I’m walking just a little taller than usual, and my smile is just a little wider, thanks to my students.