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GOOD EDUCATION
W
•^Xr7"hether
vr... live
'•'•- on
~ a - farm,
'
hether you
in a small
town or in a great metropolitan city,
the chances are that your child's school is now
offering music lessons cither as a part of the
regular program, or as an available extra activity.
If this is not now the case, you can be reason-
ably certain that it will become so in the not-
too-distant future.
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you
Stony
Why? The principal reason why more and more
schools are adding music lessons to their regular
courses is that modern educators are learning
that children who play the piano are better, hap-
pier students because of the mental training
they get from their music studies. As a result,
piano students usually get better grades in all
their courses.
No other "subject" taught in school can com-
pare with piano lessons simply because no other
study teaches a child so many different skills
and abilities, while at the same time giving him
so many rewards and returns on his efforts.
COORDINATION
This
booklets produced by Story & Clark
for the benefit of the entire indus-
try. Dozens of dealers all over the
country have told us that it has
helped them sell pianos.
As pioneers in the movement to
create piano sales by promoting
music's benefits to children, we
thoroughly believe that "What's
Good For The Industry Is Good
For Story & Clark".
Even if you do not carry our instru-
ments, we will send you copies,
without cost, providing there is
no Story & Clark dealer in your
territory.
Write for an actual sample of the
folder illustrated, and other mate-
rials we have produced for you.
PIANO COMPANY
6 4 East Jackson Boulevard, Chicago
INSTRUMENTS OF QUALITY—BY
First of all, piano training involves a far greater
amount of coordination than any other subject. Think
of the faculties involved: eyes, ears, fingers, feet —
all must be synchronized to achieve a harmonious
pattern. Even the youngest beginner can soon make
remarkable progress in this feat of coordination— yet
no matter how skilled the student may become, there
are always new and rewarding fields to conquer, which
encourage more and better coordination. These "new
fields" always stand as a challenge, beckoning the pupil
on to greater and greater achievements. . . .
Now coordination is not something that applies only
to the piano (or dancing or swimming); it is a
fundamental principle of learning applicable for in-
stance to learning how to walk, to write, to sing, to
talk, or to think. The surgeon performing an operation
must have it in both his hand and his brain. So must
the pilot of an airplane. In its most subtle form (and
perhaps most important) there is coordination in all
forms of action and thinking —the relating of hun-
dreds of isolated bits of "knowledge" into a new unit
of thought. Thus if taking piano lessons did nothing
except develop and improve the student's coordination,
and to train him instinctively to translate knowledge
into action, it would be worth the time and money
invested. Actually, however, studying the piano does
far more. . . .
,
SPEED
,
Much like the aspect of coordination is the factor of
speed. By this, we don"t mean the twentieth century
conception of speed in our supersonic aircraft, etc.
Once again, we're referring to a fundamental prin-
ciple of learning: quickness of the mental process.
The most basic test of intelligence, the so-called I.J
tests, really measure just two things: first, ability an
knowledge, and second, the speed with which a persd
can draw upon this knowledge. To what extent doJ
learning to play the piano develop this ability fl
act and think quickly? Well, here is an amazing an
enlightening fact: when a nine-year-old child is play
ing a simple composition, it has been proved that uj
to sixty distinct and separate mental operations ar
required in one second. It is unlikely that any othej
form of human activity can match this emphasis upon
quickness and the effect it has upon the training oJ
the mind—yet piano lessons quickly and easily develop]
that ability, and yield real pleasure at the same time!
ANALYSIS, CONCENTRATION
AND MEMORY
Of course piano lessons develop many other fundamen-
tal qualities besides coordination and speed. Three of
the more obvious ones arc the ability to concentrate,
to analyze, and to remember.
Piano playing is unusual in that it is a complex proc-
ess; and yet for the beginner it can be presented in
such a way that even very young children can master
the fundamentals, and enjoy doing it. This requires
concentration, and the more advanced the pupil be-
comes, the more he must concentrate in order to have
the speed and coordination mentioned earlier.
With increasing ability to play, there is also a corres-
ponding improved ability to analyze. Piano playing
is something like reading a foreign language (one
made up of notes, bars, and measures) and then
immediately translating these signs into an intricate
pattern of action —the striking of the proper keys.
This whole process requires a trigger-like analysis of
•what is being read and what specific movements must
be made in response. Once again, then, a fundamental
principle of learning is stimulated and developed when
a child takes piano lessons.
Finally, the ability to remember is constantly being
trained as the months and years of playing roll by. A
greater and greater fund of knowledge is stored up,
and the piano player learns how to remember what he
has learned and how to recall it whenever necessary.
What could be better memory training than this?
CONCLUSION
So the next time you're considering piano lessons for
your son or daughter, think of these educational
features. They're important. If you fear that your
child "isn't talented," just remember that the lessons
themselves will increase your child's natural talents
and abilities. If you think your child "won't practice,"
remind yourself that very few children learn even to
read or write without work, and that it's worth real
•ffort to have the child practice. If you think piano
lessons are "nothing but a social pastime," remember
what a wonderful contribution they can make to the
child's all-around educational development, and how
greatly they can improve his chances for future security
and happiness.