Happy Birthday, Dr. Suzuki! (10/13/23)
Next Tuesday, October 17th, would have been Dr. Suzuki's125th Birthday. Although he passed away in 1998 just short of his 100th birthday, he was known for his vitality. He committed himself to daily practicing and teaching or attending daily lessons at his Talent Education Institute in Matsumoto, Japan. I went to Matsumoto to study at his school in 1993 and then went back to visit again in 1994. I learned in just a few minutes that Dr. Suzuki respected the humans around him, had a wonderful sense of humor, and had a positive energy that everyone could feel as he entered the room.
Our Suzuki School is based upon his philosophy of raising children to believe in themselves, and that we as adults must nurture our children by love, patience, and a creative environment. He believed that the learning environment created by teachers and the parents together could only make learning positive. He also believed that students should learn together and be part of their community.
In both the Suzuki Preschool and our Music School, we are celebrating "Learning Pyramid" week! The four sides of the pyramid are students, parents, peers, and teachers. We will be reaching out especially to our partners in educating our students--the parents and our peers in group class--who are as important as the teachers and students themselves. We believe that in partnership, we can educate the next generation of noble-hearted individuals. We believe in nurturing an appreciation for beautiful music, accomplishing difficult tasks by working step by step, and creating a learning environment through positive feedback. Rather than pointing out something that was done wrong, he believed in nurturing what was positive and working with best passages of a piece of music to make that better.
Learning the technique of positive feedback is slightly different than our usual habits. Next week, we are seeking out ways in which we can encourage positive practicing habits. We want to nurture better playing by listening to the recordings through our "Listening Challenge" and we will hold a Musicianship Curriculum Night (Wednesday, 10/18 at 7:30 pm) so that parents may learn how to practice our musicianship exercises at home. Please join us in asking questions, in learning more about Dr. Suzuki, and encouraging positive behaviors by nurturing our fellow human beings.
I share in the pain of the many who have lost loved ones in the horrible tragedy and atrocious acts of Hamas in Israel. It is with sadness that we realize we have not yet achieved a more peaceful world through music---but we must never stop trying. We must remember those lost in senseless wars, and grieve for the newly buried. But for the children, we must continue to educate and to bring together all people towards a better future.
Sachiko Isihara
Executive Director
Suzuki School of Newton