A few months ago I had an interesting exchange with a young student. I asked him a question I’ve asked hundreds of times before “Why do you want to learn the trumpet?”. Usual responses include “I don’t know”, “because my parents say I have to”, “I want to be in the school band”. Rarely I’m treated with “I love the music of Louis Armstrong”.

This one student’s response stopped me in my tracks: “I just want to learn the trumpet to make lots of money, then I’m going to quit”.

Wait, what? How did I miss out on this trumpet player windfall?

As a business, music is cruel. You will never get out of the music business in money what you put into it.

 

So why learn music in the first place?

Music is universal. Every culture on the planet has created art for our ears. You can’t go anywhere without encountering music. Buskers are on the streets and subways. Music plays in restaurants & stores. We hear it in advertisements. Music enhances the emotional impact of television and movies. Music is everywhere. Religious institutions have been using the power of music to enhance prayer for thousands of years. We listen to music in our cars and wander the streets with headphones on. Music is, simply, everywhere.

We too often answer this question with music’s ancillary benefits: Music helps us learn math, science, etc. Students who study music tend to graduate and go to college. Joining band or orchestra keeps kids out of trouble.

 

Still, why study music?

1. Music makes us smarter!

   The human brain is like a muscle in that the more it is used, the stronger it becomes. An engaged mind will become smarter while the disengaged atrophies. With increased interest and understand, every musical can become a mental workout.

2. Become better consumers!

   Noone wants to listen to bad music, but like a bad burrito many people don’t realize that it was bad music until they don’t feel quite right on the way home. Casual listeners often lack the vocabulary and ears to know what they want. A little bit of education can help us to value music.

3. Free our society from the social network!

   Music has long been a group activity. Before the 20th century brought us radios, records, tapes, CD’s, mp3s and streaming, you had to go to concerts or make music for yourself. Families could form string quartets, bluegrass bands & choirs just for the joy of making music! While I’m a big fan of keeping our (musical) history alive, I’m more interested in continuing this trend into the 21st century. Make use of live DJ equipment, electric guitars, even internet based collaboration to make music for the sake of making music!

 

Ultimately we play music because we love it. We love listening to music. We love making music. Those of us fortunately to make a living as musicians didn’t get into this racket for the money.