Richard Laprise

Maslow Learning Example

Psychology of Music Teaching
The week of the regional band festival has finally arrived and there is a buzz
of excitement in Mr. Al Legro's High School Wind Ensemble rehearsal. Mr. Legro's
wind ensemble looks forward to this festival every year. They request that their
band is not judged but that they still want to participate in the clinic and enjoy the
other bands' performances. Mr. Legro, who received some push-back a few years
earlier from parents and students when he removed the competition aspect from his
band's involvement in the festival, believes that motivation in his ensemble has
increased now that his students are not worried about a performance grade or
rating.
To prepare for the festival, Mr. Legro gave his students an assignment relating
to one of their challenging pieces, "Irish Tune from County Derry" by Grainger. They
are playing all of the correct notes, but they are lacking musical expression. Since
they all know the melody, Mr. Legro asked the students to create lyrics that are
personal to each of them and fit the melody and form of Irish Tune. He hopes this
assignment will promote their creativity and connect them more to the music.
Knowing that some of his students would be shy and nervous to share their lyrics,
Mr. Legro gives his class four minutes to talk within their sections about their
homework. He has found that this helps create a safe environment and gives his
students a stronger sense of belonging. Before collecting the assignment, he allows
a few students to share their lyrics. Mr. Legro never has to worry about lack of
volunteers in his class because of the accepting environment he has created by

being a positive person, being sensitive to his students' feelings, and allowing
students to make mistakes without the risk of being penalized or punished.
Before rehearsing the music, Mr. Legro began a task that would build upon his
students' experiential knowledge. He told the students he was going to play a piece
of music and he wanted them to close their eyes and feel free to move their body to
what they hear. Closing their eyes not only made them feel safer to move and not
be judged by their classmates, but also allowed them to get more involved in the
music without any visual distractions. The piece he played was "Ye Banks and Braes
O' Bonnie Doon," a similar piece to Irish Tune by Grainger. Mr. Legro, keeping his
own eyes opened, watched each student as they expressed themselves, smiling,
because he knew no other class during their day would likely allow them to build
this part of their personality.
As the piece came to a close, he said, in a gentle voice, "Our goal, as
musicians, is to make our audience feel the way you just felt while listening to that
recording. This might seem like a challenging task, so lets start by finding our
favorite moments in the music and I want each of you to make your favorite spot
special- get louder, add weight to your sound, add vibrato, whatever you feel is
right for that moment. Let's try, together!" They ended up playing the entire piece,
not stopping for any rehearsing, because it was the most musical and expressive Mr.
Legro has ever heard this band. Regardless of how they perform at the festival, he
knew that his ensemble just had a very special moment together making music.