Does anyone else ever get asked this question: ‘is that all you ever want to do, teach music?’

Where do I even begin with answering this question. Firstly, what is wrong with ‘just being a music teacher’?! I don’t think that the individuals asking this question understand how many hours, days, weeks, months an years has gone into practicing musical instruments and/ or singing in order to be able to teach it to others. The process of learning to do it all by oneself in the first place is the best learning curve and training for becoming a teacher in the end. I find that such a question completely undermines the music journey that has already taken place.

Secondly, education professionals in any subject field are often undervalued. What I found is that after lockdowns and homeschooling, teachers were started to be valued more. Many parents realised how much work teachers are putting in on a daily basis. In my experience, I have not heard this questions nearly as much after lockdowns as prior to them.

Thirdly, there was a boom in children and also adults learning to play musical instruments over lockdowns. Many found that they had the time at their hands to learn such a skill while all places were shut and activities were limited. I certainly witnessed a boom in demand for lessons. I also witnessed great development and progress in students over this period. There was been a downturn for many in speed of progress since then for sure. Nevertheless, many still fondly think of their lockdown lessons and time spent online with their teachers.

There are so many other things that could be said on this topic. Let us hope that lessons learnt during lockdowns will not completely be buried and forgotten!