People have been telling me to do it for years.
“Josh, have you thought about starting your own music school?”
I started teaching at the Stellenbosch University Conservatory in 2010 when I was a student, and despite teaching hundreds of lessons to people of all ages at various contemporary music schools since then – I barely thought about formalizing it until I started realizing just how much of an impact I was having.
When I left my last teaching job at a famous music school, I noticed that my students instantly became mortified – like hearing the news of my leaving made them see a ghost or something.
You know you’re doing something good in someone’s life when they leave a lesson filled with joy and come away excited about what it is that they’re learning (I feel like I was that kind of student when I was taking lessons – my best teachers got me so pumped about the possibility of playing my instrument well that I couldn’t wait to go home and practice).
I think I must’ve inadvertently turned into a great teacher along the way – who knew! One adult student in his 50s who used to come to me to sing Sting songs and geek out about our mutual favourite artist even told me, “this 45 minute session with you is hands-down the highlight of my week!” – in my mind, I thought we were just jamming and singing.
I really didn’t know what to do with what he told me, until I started hearing variations of it coming from other students of mine. One student – an investment banker, wrote a creative writing piece about her vocal lessons and anonymously entered it into a writing competition. Way after the fact she sent the piece to me. I was unknowingly helping her get through the fallout of her recent divorce – through song.
That’s the power of music when used for one of it’s pure purposes. I had no idea that my role was more than just helping students play their music in a technically correct fashion. I was helping them learn to love music and wield it to get themselves unstuck. That realization lights me up.
That’s why I’ve decided to formally brand my teaching studio as Music Coach. The website (thank God those years of blogging actually can count to something) and socials (Facebook and Instagram) are up as of this week and I’m being more intentional about finding and helping students.
If you know anyone and I mean ANYONE who wants to grab a free lesson with me, send them my way. Even if they’ve never touched an instrument in their lives, send them. Even if they can’t hold a note or just like to sing loudly in the shower, send them! Even if they can’t afford ongoing lessons, just send them – perhaps there’s something tiny that I can leave with them in that free session that could alter the course of their music journey forever.