Deseret evening news. [volume] (Great Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1867-1920, 1909-07-29
MUSIC IN SCHOOLS.

=
are not favorahly Impressed WITH TN s'ile
ATTEMPTS made in American schools to
teach vocal music to al the pupils
III Il, +, we'll known fact that there
are many pupils who cannot sine NE
necially among the boys there y are not
a few to whom music Is both 9 m ysst 'ef
and burden.
1,be argument OF the supervisors ot.
music is that those With no apti fLl
f,,..ss ms c can be taught "the mechanic
ii na,,t of it, to use the phrase adopt
Sed blythe school s,1peri ntendents. But
va believe this to be a. very lnsuhiclee,ti..3
reason for requiring those without ~ sln 1'
steal ability to learn TO read the scisie'
h q, $enfleayor to comprehend the mean
< ing of the notes or to acquire otner III
formation about the mere, ,ns FORMS O.
printed sheet music. Is; 1t a TACT thf 4tt
sucl, knowledge will have any effect N 2.
causing the untnuscal to appreciate
good nusc2 We suspect that such 81 s4l M a
I school exercise will have no such tend
ency.
555Bon this point the Saturday flNe1 illlit@
Post takes occasion to observe th tstt . q
person with no aptitude for music may ma
learn to know and enjoy good music
in listening repeatedly to excellent 3ex-
I; a,nples OF titus as without a natural
taste for graphic art, he may learn 7il y: 70
appreciate painting BY often v s ilfiiils
the galleries. But it denies that "a THIS
. appre citation Will be attained by teeecfl-9
~ ,g children the mechanical part" OF
4 music in school lessons It argues that
setting child Ito humping out the ne
scale on piano, or to scroaklng 20,
re. me I, Will not educate him muslcaliy.
You might as well take q person With WITH
no literary inclination and drill MIN m
on the rules of prosod for the y p ''1
pose Of making him appreciate sha ke-s
Fspcare. ~
We are inclined to believe the fore
going argument. For alth ough singing
is taught In most Of our public schools
d majority OF the pupils fail to learn arm
Ia ssinr. AS the Post expresses IT.,
most Of these pupils will never never IN
their lives be able to sing anywhere
~ y.cer,t 5,,t n Chinese funeral without
sjncurrfng risk OF assault and battery;
ana making the unmusical ones I ry 70
sing does not educate them unsteady
Recently, music in the public schools OILS
has been criticized because, all too OF e
en-, the pupils are permitted 70 :, sing
(, !, M 81, nelodies, instead of songs
which have a higher musical value, but
ara more difficult to render, Ihat Is
the same as to take a pupil who ma, mas
no inclination to read poetry ana s s'i
him to composing auatratns
@ The conclusion reached by the pape ger
Il Jus taquoted is that in 81 public school en- %
the unmusica1 pupils should pc COM COM
PEELED, not to sing, but to keep Still
.ha chance, !, it injuries, have they
= of learning to appreciate music y they
arc required to make aSdistressing noise
while the music Is going, OF r..
1t is. but recently that the argument
against the universal and ind scrlm IN
mate teaching OF music in the schools
has been formulated. There has long
been q feeling, amounting almost 70
conviction, In the minds OF many peo-
pie that the requirement that All pupils
shall sing is a detriment to tho pro-.
sress OF musical proficiency in the
community, and that the requirement.
made by certain superintendent that that
all teachers shall be capable of teacli-
Ing this peculiar art. is nothing short
or an educational outrage. 1t is not
infrequently the case that the best ana
strongest teachers are deficient in 1nu-
steal ability; and to eliminate them
from the profession by the music re-
auirement nov coming into vogue
would be a serious loss to the8ct., use OF OF
education.
Music is special art, Few w a a ~. re
qualified to engage in It, II Is moi
like reading which all must learn,
since the large majority of people: get
along Just as We'll without learning It
Special arts should be used With dis
erection, especially in the schools 4
tended by all children. In no s
should they be made requirements g
s Either the pupils on the teachers l'f
NO 50 would seriously cripple itti11le
schools, without in anyway advaneihs
the cause OF good music.
z. 7