mathematics-

Pianos used to be common in American households. Many of us had uncles or grandmothers who could sit down at a party and accompany group sing-alongs. Music programs in schools were common when I was growing up, as were private piano lessons in the home. This is not the case any longer.

My evidence for this is more anecdotal than statistical. A friend who rebuilds and tunes pianos in New England reported to me a few years ago that the need for such services is slowly dwindling -- and this in an area that typically places a high value on tradition and culture. The one exception seems to be in Asian American households, where an interest in piano and other music lessons is still widespread.

This mirrors a trend reported in an article in the July 7 & 14 issue of The New Yorker in which Alex Ross reports on the booming interest in China in classical music. "Between thirty million and a hundred million children are said to be learning piano, violin, or both, depending on which source you consult," he writes. By the time this thriving music culture becomes widely rooted in the culture, in about 25 years, China will be well equipped to keep the western classical music culture alive -- much like how China helped keep Buddhism alive as it dwindled away centuries ago in its native India.

With the fading interest in piano lessons in the U.S., symphonies have become largely museums, displaying the art of a vanishing tradition. As symphony attendance continues to decline, interestingly enough, attendance at operas has blossomed, growing 46% between 1982 and 2002, and annual attendance is now roughly the same as for NFL football games ("America's Opera Boom," by Jonathan Leaf, July/August 2007 issue of The American). Of course, millions more watch NFL games on television, but the number is still impressive.

One region still highly values pianos in the home, though. According to the Dallas-based Piano Manufacturers Association, in 2000 the Salt Lake City area had the highest number of pianos sold per capita, with Utahans purchasing pianos at five times the national rate (L.A. Times, 4/14/02).

For the average person, karaoke has replaced old-fashioned sing-alongs. No one needs a musician any longer, not even an amateur musician -- just a machine. Likewise, deejays and turntables since the late 1980s have elbowed aside live bands in many settings. It's natural for culture to evolve and for technological developments to bring change. But sometimes what we lose in the bargain is something that has deep and intrinsic value. A meta-analysis of 15 studies of children ages 3-12 suggests that children provided with music instruction exhibit better spatial-temporal reasoning, which is key in many fields including mathematics, and better verbal abilities ("Can Music Instruction Affect Children's Cognitive Development?" by Frances H. Rauscher, ERIC Digest).

So, as we eliminate music programs in schools, as fewer homes have pianos, as we become increasingly amnesiac about our musical traditions, we may find that we have thrown out the baby with the bathwater.

More music articles at Song of Fire (obergh.net/songoffire)

posted by fdwvsmr55035  # 7:19 PM