I’ve had a long term. And there have been SOOOOOO many performances. And afterwards I’m often mobbed by the kids who just performed. And they are all on a huge high. They are telling me what they did, and how good they were (forgetting that I was kneeling in front of them. But that’s fine. I agree with them. They were excellent!).  And then audience members talk to me about how much they loved it – perhaps a particular song, or piece, or even just the walking on and off.

Now – just step aside from all this post-performance chaos. There’s a big push by parts of the school system to ‘teach every child music’. And that’s a GREAT thing. I applaud it. But often, it’s a one-size-fits-all program. Or it’s teaching kids music things that don’t excite them. Not every child WANTS to learn a violin. Especially not in a group.

Back to the post-performance chaos. Some one who I respect HUGELY turned to me and said… “Rach, it’s not enough to just teach kids music, is it? You have to excite them. Make them want to learn it.”

That person is totally right. Because then they will love music for the rest of their lives. And the magic will keep happening. This musical craziness.