If you are contemplating the idea of taking music lessons in Toronto, you should know that taking lessons with a music teacher provides the personal instruction to take you from beginner to confident performer. While self-teaching mediums such as books and videos abound, only a live teacher sitting next to the pupil can impart the comprehensive education that is necessary toward becoming a performing artist. From the fundamentals of music theory to instrumental technique, nothing beats having a music instructor to impart his or her expertise for you to apply in practice so that you may progress as far as you dream of going. Here are some of the reasons why taking music lessons with a music teacher will be far more beneficial than attempting to teach yourself.
Posture Correction
Correct posture and hand placement will ultimately enable easier play as techniques becomes more advanced, and it will also reduce the risk of injury or future painful conditions. Books depict an image of a generic individual holding the instrument, but devote little explanation to proper positioning. If you teach yourself to play an instrument, you will naturally adopt the position that seems most comfortable. Often, this is not the correct posture, and you will slip into these poor positional habits from the onset. A music teacher will demonstrate the proper stance as he or she explains the finer points of exactly how to hold your instrument. The position may seem awkward at first, and the tendency will be to slip toward one that feels more natural. Throughout your music lessons, your teacher will correct your posture until it becomes second nature every time you pick up your instrument.
Disciplined Progress
A drawback of trying to teach yourself a musical instrument is the tendency to skip over the details that seem tedious or those that you may be struggling with. Music lessons follow a progression of skills and techniques that must be acquired to play the next level of difficulty. A music teacher will keep you on track. He or she will expect you to perform the finger exercises that you should have practiced all week, so shirking that lesson will not be as easy. Only when you have proven an acceptable level of proficiency will you be advanced to the next new skill.
Encourage Confidence to Perform
Book and videos often make lofty promises that you will become a stage-ready virtuoso, but there is no opportunity to perform. You may be able to teach yourself to plunk out a piece or two on the piano, but playing those selections for forgiving family members or friends in your living room does not hold a candle to the recital opportunities that a music teacher can organize for you. As you progress through music lessons, your teacher will assign a piece for you to learn and practice with the goal of performing it for a group of your peers. The instructor will provide input for perfecting style, technique and deliverance so that you can present your new performance art form with pride and confidence.
Demonstration of Techniques
A book provides a written definition for you to teach yourself what it means to crescendo, but you are left to figure out how to seamlessly generate that volume nuance from your instrument. You may find a way that is not the correct way. Bad habits may seem helpful initially, but they will inhibit advanced playing later. For every technique introduced in your music lessons, a teacher will demonstrate how it should sound and how to achieve it. Instead of observing text in a book’s definition, you will observe the technique at work as your music teacher explains and demonstrates it. He or she will also correct any bad habits as they surface.
Analysis for Advancement
A book or video that boasts the ability for you to teach yourself an instrument does not offer communication. As your music lessons progress, your music teacher gets to know your unique abilities and interests. He or she provides feedback to let you know what needs improvement as well as to nurture your strong points and advance you to the next level by offering pieces that challenge and enable you to grow as a musician. Conversations with your teacher result in providing the most comprehensive and supportive music education to hone and cultivate your abilities for peak performance. Elite Music Academy is a music school in Toronto providing music lessons with several distinguished and unique music teachers.
