Posted by Winton on August 11, 2000 at 18:32:01:
The biggest experience of an anti-music ed. major
This was a part of my e-mail to Chuck Koontz, a graduate of Biola University, really good tuba player. But I wanted to share this experience to more people. Hope you enjoy it as much as I did.
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For the past two months I've been helping out the tuba players of this Japanese highschool, Zushi highschool. They are pretty good, but both tuba players are basically beginners. And the I volunteered to help them out. I've been training them on how to practice (because know one was there to help them out with that) and the two pieces they were playing for this competition. One's a Japanese song and the other is Toccata and Fugue in D minor. This was my first year ever to teach anyone, and all my teaching skills was only from how my tuba teacher taught me from my last college. And just to let you know me, I totally was a 100% against teaching or getting a music ed. major when I was a senior in highschool and a freshmen in college. But I think I know how to teach and point out what they should fix. But the thing that made it so easy and encouraging to teach them was that they were serious.
This competition they were playing for can be thought as an All-County Competition. The day came for the All-County, I went the that concert, and they were one of three highschool band that won! And they were so happy. One of the tuba players, Nozomu, was crying like crazy. Of course you expect to see the girl clarinet and flute players to cry, but here you see this guy tuba player crying his eyes out (you know how guys usually are trying to be macho). And he was very happy and thanked me for teaching me and stuff. The reason why he was so happy was because he didn't expect to win the All-County because he though himself as not good and that this was the first time for his highschool to win! So I was glad for that. But that's not the emotional part.
Just yesterday, I went to the Yokohama Concert Hall, where they were having the All-Prefecture Competition. Kind of like All-State. The next one after that is All-Country which is so big and so competitive. To get off track, I saw a documentary on the highschool band that won the All-Country last year. It's this school on the west side (west side in Japan is like west coast in America; more loose, more friendly, but in Japan, almost all west side people are known to be funny). And they were so good that they could've been a professional wind ensemble traveling around the world. They sound TOO GOOD. I'll tell you about that later. Anyways, I went to the All-Prefecture Competition yesterday. There were 25 bands total that were competeing. I arrived there around 2pm (the thing starts at 9am) and it was just in time for me to see Zushi perform. As I was sitting down and watching it with my brother, all the band that were playing were very good. And I knew that they wouldn't make it to the All-Country. I mean, it was their first time to even make it to this one.
The long concert ended at 5:30pm, and they came out with the results as to who's representing our prefecture for the All-Country. In the hall outside of the stage, the people there brought out a white board with the lists of the highschool names. Nine highschools made it in. They recieved a gold. Zushi higschool got a sliver, but the teacher, he even said that they were even lucky to recieve a sliver. I thought the same too kind of, but it was ok with me and the Zushi band teacher because all we cared about was that the students in his band had fun and that they tried their best. What the Zushi band kids do after a concert, they get in a group outside, the president of their band speaks a little and she has the seniors step up and say a speech. It took really a long time because most of them were crying while talking and it took forever for them to say what they want to say. I was wondering why they were crying. I know for a fact that it was because they didn't make it to the finals. I asked one of the students why, and he said that the way the Japanese system goes, is that usually the seniors have to quit their activities, whether they're in the baseball club, band club, basketball club, etc. So it was a long, but very emotional time for them. And right then and there that I realized that they had experienced something I haven't in highschool that made them cry. They practiced, they all were serious, and most of all...........they put in the effort, so much effort, in their time in band; and they had to give that all up. I understand why they were crying, and I understood why I kind of envied them for being able to have that experience.
Well, the whole thing was over and everyone's finishing their crying; getting in their own groups and joking around. Me, just standing there watching everyone. When I turned to my left, I saw Nozomu with his group. I walked over to where he was. And as I was walking towards him, he noticed me and quickly came to me and thanked me for all the times that I helped him out. I said "no problem" and he was telling me how he felt before the performance and the thing that he wasn't crying this time. Well, I after it got kind of quiet. I told him about what I saw and how I felt while the group wasn't doing their speeches previously.
But I also said, "Nozomu, I want to thank you as well. Before teaching you guys, I didn't like the whole thing with teaching. I dreaded to become a music ed. major. Probably because I saw my band teacher's job and said to myself that I didn't want to do this. She looked really stressed out and busy and all that. Then when I came back from college last year, I decided to help out the 'tuba players' because one of them just changed from trombone and the other from trumpet. And as I told you about my highschool, they aren't serious at all and don't practice. But they were willing to learn when I came during they're band time because I was cool with them and I was helping them out. So that was cool. But then I came to know you guys, and decided to help. And you guys were so serious and eager to learn that it made teaching really fun for me. Especially when you told me that the practice routine music I made you guys that you practiced, and you told me that you can see a difference already after a week or so. You would call me up just for that. And you guys always listened to what I say. Yeah, so you guys helped to enjoy teaching. So thank you. You guys made me enjoy teaching, something that I would never imagine."
After I told him that, he started getting really teary eyed and he just started speaking to me. To keep it short, he said that he started the tuba last year and knew abolutely nothing about music. He joined the band club because so did his two older siblings. But started to become serious about playing and enjoyed it, but there was no one to teach him. Once in a while a teacher came to help them out, but that was that and it's like they gave up and left. So he had no where to go in his playing and it was as if you were leaving a blind man without a stick or any knowledge of how he should survive. But then I came along and helped him out. He looked forward to my lessons and wanted to learn more, waiting to see what I was going to teach them next time. So he would practice and try really hard. And even though he said that his playing was bad, that I would always encourage him and at the same time be critical so he knows what he should fix. He said before me there was no one to help him out and because of me he was able to learn and get better. He was crying. Man, I was crying already. I didn't even notice it. I went and hugged him because I couldn't take it anymore and said thank you again.......
Some music teachers get their thank you's from their whole band after a concert, some get an award in front of an audience during a highschool assembly from all their painstaking working that they have done from spending days and nights in the bandroom, maybe some get thank you's and congradulations from the parents or the teachers from their good work that they do. But nothing is better, more personal, more emotional, and more better......than the thank you that I have recieved from Nozomu yesterday. I could care less about a public recognition on a stage with a plaque handed over to me, or a TV documentary on me (as if that would ever happen). What Nozomu said to me last night and award that probably every music teacher have ever wanted, I have recieved it. Now thinking that, I kind of feel that maybe I don't deserve it, when there are many music teachers out there that works really hard and they deserve it as well. But I'm not going to downgrade the gift that Nozomu gave to me, the gift every TEACHER would want from their job; a personal thank you from their student. That is the HEAVIEST and the BEST thing any teacher would want. And I, just a volunteer, that did so little compared to the unbusiest music teacher, got this "award". Why did I get it?..........maybe because I made a big impact on this young tuba player's life that was so personal, and he got what he wanted for a long time. And I am so thankful, VERY thankful for this experience that God had provided me. And I promised myself that will never be teacher? Well, maybe there's a chance. :.)