What I found interesting was the fact that the concept of studio teaching, or one-on-one teaching, has been around for a very long time. The fact that the idea that of teaching a single student and progressing at their pace has been deeply rooted in human history shows that it could very well be in our DNA to teach in this way. I also found it interesting that being in a private learning environment creates a stronger association between student and teacher, and how students are more likely to associate themselves with the teacher rather than other parts of the institution. My assumption that private teaching had historically helped with the development of coherent pedagogies was challenged, my initial thoughts being that progress was based on the student’s need and not based on a scheduled curriculum in which students could potentially fall behind. What surprised me is the concept of private teaching being strictly being attributed to classical music and in some cases jazz music, as in my earlier years I had taken private lessons with a bluegrass and folk musician and had learned quite a few bluegrass and folk songs during my time with him. What frustrates me is that the concept of private teaching being considered strictly as classical music is going to stick for a long time, creating this stigma that private teaching is an elitist concept, instead of understanding that private teaching can branch out into many more genres of music, as opposed to being composed entirely of classical and occasionally the jazz approved by music conservatories. What I would like to say to the author of the article is that private teaching isn’t strictly teacher-dominated. My lessons with the bluegrass/folk musician were quite laid back, and the teacher made sure not to strictly impart specific knowledge on me. Plenty of times I would ask to learn a specific song or work on something for high school orchestra and he would be more than happy to oblige and help me learn whatever it is I wanted to learn. I feel that people’s view of private lessons should be that the student has plenty of say in what they learn, as it can help to keep them engaged, making what they learn stick better.

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Burwell, K., Carey, G., & Bennett, D. (2017). Isolation in studio music teaching: The secret garden. Arts and Humanities in Higher Education, 18(4), 372–394. doi: 10.1177/1474022217736581