058 - Negotiated Spaces: Balancing Formal and Informal Learning in Music

Field Notes on Music Teaching & Learning · Mar 29, 2023 · 16m

"Do you know 'Brave' by Sara Bareilles?" I asked 10-year-old Anthony in a piano lesson one week. "Yeah," he said. "Well, I read recently that 'Brave' and [Katy Perry's] 'Roar' have a lot of things in common. What do you think?" "Huh. I've never really thought about it!" he said. We listened to both songs a few times and made a list of musical characteristics on the whiteboard. I let Anthony take the lead on what we were listening for—accompaniment style, key, tempo, vocal register, and contour—stepping in to guide the conversation, as needed. Anthony sat at a keyboard in the room, picking out…