Why the Recorder?
I love my son. I love music. I love that my son is learning music. I loathe the recorder.
Learning to play an instrument hones many skills—memorization, discipline, patience, perseverance, and the more concrete fractions. All of these are beyond valuable to a developing mind, body and spirit.
But the recorder? Holy Hell! Why does it have to have the same pitch as dying kittens?
I definitely learned the recorder in 5th grade and I specifically remember being a recorder playing minstrel for the 1988ish Reiley Middle School Medieval Festival. I’m pretty sure Allison Williams talked me into that hot mess and we played a lot of Hot Cross Buns and Mary Had a Little Lamb. I can’t believe I put my family through those extra hours practice as I prepared for that event. Sorry Mom, Dad, and Jeremy.
All this thinking about the recorder inspired me to do a little research. I found this fun little video about why American school children learn to play the recorder:
And how about a Vivaldi Recorder Concerto?
Who knew? That a recorder performance could actually be enjoyable.
While I’m pretty sure Ollie is not going to be the next professional recorder player, I think I have a new-found respect for the instrument. And beyond the recorder, I have a deeper respect for the music teachers who taught me over the years. They clearly had far more patience than I do. To Mrs. Cabrera, Mr. Fisk, Mr. Whitford. and Mr. Williams, I’m sorry.
