LFP 035 | Parent Child Duo in Learning an Instrument

Welcome back to the Learn Flute Podcast where today we’re going to have a quick discussion about the benefits of learning an instrument as a parent child duo.

Well hi and welcome, welcome to this beautiful day here at Learn Flute Online – or I guess I should say here on the Learn Flute Podcast because this is where I record tips, hints, and tricks that will help you in your flute learning journey. Which is what I am all about. My name is Rebecca Fuller and I am the expert, owner, instructor, and I am here to help you.

In case this is your first time visiting us here on one of these audio podcasts, I’ll let you know that I have been recording these weekly for a while now and I hope you really really like them.

I get content ideas from my online students just like you. So feel free to drop me a message at my email address which is: [email protected]. I read every single message and I have my hands in this business every day. I love to hear from each and every one of you as well.

Now, I occasionally share comments and questions that I receive, and it definitely benefits us all. Today I have a quick message I received from a great guy named Stan. Now Stan says, “I was motivated now, so I went online and tried a few lessons from another internet resource. I couldn’t make a sound for the life of me. I later found your web site and started from Module 1. The satisfaction after so many weeks of trying was so gratifying. I look forward to my graduation from the Gold lessons.”

Well thank you Stan for sending that and I’m excited to watch your progress as well.

Today we’re going to talk about something that is very near and dear to my heart, and that is the subject about learning to play an instrument as a parent-child duo.

I know for a fact that we have more than one grandparent and grandchild learning to play the flute together in my studio. How fun is that?!  I have some amazing parents who are working alongside their kids as well to help them stay focused and checking their skills daily. When done correctly, this is probably the most effective way to work on an instrument. As a pair!

I actually have a ton of experience in this area, but I’m going to keep my thoughts short and brief here so that hopefully it will just start an idea and you and give you something new to think about, and of course enhance your life just a little bit more today.

When my first son turned 4 years old he started begging me for a guitar. I guess I should back up a little bit here and mention that this little boy was definitely born a cowboy through and through. He was always so interested in horses and anything that had to do with wearing a cowboy hat and having a rope.

So one day he asked me when he could have his guitar. I thought this was kind of interesting because I don’t really remember mentioning guitar to him before even though I did play the guitar and had played since I was about nine years old myself.

Since I was already teaching flute adjunct at the University he did see my students often and he knew that I was a musician and flute player. But I hadn’t really talked too much about guitar.

He continued to ask and beg so I decided to go ahead and look into it for kids his age. Boy that was a rabbit hole! There really isn’t much available for children that age- at least not in my area where I lived at the time. I did find a Suzuki Academy for guitar in a city about 2 hours drive away from my home. I wasn’t quite sure I was ready to make that kind of commitment so I proposed to him just see if he would play the flute (and I would teach him) until he was old enough to play the guitar.

He got really excited and said sure! That started an avalanche of awesome awesome things for my family.

Fast forward several years and you would see that my children (all of my children) actually became proficient musicians high level on more than one instrument. In fact, we got so good at learning together at home that my kids can count at least five to seven different instruments each that they can play pick up and play anything at any time.

It’s true!

They not only were able to play instruments for fun and enjoyment, but they were able to do pretty fair amount of touring and traveling as paid stage performers in their own brother band. Little boys who can tell jokes, sing, accompany themselves, and also even yodle in harmony is an attraction, if you can imagine. Haha it was a serious amount of fun for our family.

They are growing up quickly now and two of them have already left home. So it’s been quite a few years. But one of my favorite things is that they always have their music to fall back on and enjoy. They sing, play guitar, flute, and have a grand time expressing themselves anytime they choose.

During all of this we did it together. It was like the most fun thing ever to quote play together each day.

What I mean is that I was in on it – I as the parents was learning and growing and exploring right along with the boys.

I can pick up a fiddle and hold my own on a drum set just as well as the kids can because I – as the parent, was ultimately responsible for breaking down the skills and teaching it to them piece by piece – and then more importantly to practice it to the point where performance on stage is natural and easy. Now, if any of you have ever tried your hand at entertaining groups, you’ll know that the more muscle memory the better because there are a lot of distractions when you’re on stage.

So, why did I choose to talk about this today? Well, the main reason is that I come across a lot of people who want to learn to play an instrument, and they aren’t quite sure what to do with it after they learn it.

So I’m here to testify to you that there are a plethora of groups who just love some great entertainment.- especially proficient musicians who are relaxed and happy on stage.

The older generation especially appreciates this type of entertainment, and if you’ve done any research at all you may have noticed that music is the best therapy of all for all sorts of ages and stages.

So, just to sum up today’s subject, I have to say that learning an instrument as a parent or as a child is not only more motivating, but is also way way more fun when it’s done together. Keep it positive, and remember that there’s no time-limit on learning. It’s all good!

We’ll definitely have to talk about this again on a future episode because I have A LOT to say about it.

Let me know what you think! We would all benefit from your comments, thoughts, and questions. If you’re on the website page listening to this – which is Learn Flute Online dot com forward slash zero three five – because this is episode thirty five, then you’ll see the comment section below here. Or, you may be on the youtube channel or iTunes. Let’s chat about it!

How many of you have learned an instrument with a parent? Or, if you are a parent, have you learned and practiced alongside your child?

There’s so much to think about, but I think we’ll end here for today. Hopefully this was just enough to spark some thoughts in you and get something to happen musically in your household no matter the age or stage!