A Letter to Suzuki Parents during Covid-19
Dear Parents,
Congratulations on upgrading to super-parents. You are all doing an incredible job. As I speak to all of you, you are all maintaining your work, or doing e-learning with your child or children at home when you’ve never learned how to be a school teacher, and maintaining your violin practice (or other instrument practice), as well as cooking, cleaning (a lot!), your workout routine, and also trying to maintain some sort of sanity during a very unique, stressful, and uncertain time. Really, congratulations on your promotion to super-human.
You can see your child is also going through a huge amount of struggle and uncertainty, and that also adds to our stress. But, the one thing that is pretty much the most normal and most consistent in your house right now is your violin practice.
Since you started your musical journey, you’ve worked on maintaining a practice schedule in your home, every day, learned how to get rid of in-house distractions, keep practicing interesting and motivating at home, and learned the little tips and tricks to get your kid to practice even when they don’t want to (or when YOU don’t want to…). Besides seeing your teacher for your lesson, your violin practice remains pretty much the same.
Your child is depending on music right now to get them through. They know it is time that they can spend with you, and you alone, and have your full and honest attention. They know that even if there are other things bothering them, emotionally, physically, or mentally, that practice is there for them. It’s their sense of stability right now, and an outlet for them. They might even see you struggling, and look forward to practicing with you to see you settle into something familiar.
If your child practices without you (if they are in their teenage years and you’ve worked on transitioning to solo practice with your teacher), then this is their time to be by themselves, and experiment with their own musicality. Let them be, unless they ask for help. Everyone needs a little bit of space in the quarantine when you are in a house with the same people every single day. This is your teenagers alone-time, and space to feel some freedom.
Dr. Suzuki said in the most simplest way, “beautiful tone, beautiful heart”. We all are struggling with our emotions right now, in all sorts of different ways. But there is no question that hearing a beautiful violin tone will immediately make someone’s day brighter. Your child needs to hear their beautiful tone to feel good at what they’re doing, to feel their skills make someones face brighten, and feel their music provide freedom for themselves and those around them. You need to hear their beautiful tone, your neighbors need to hear their beautiful tone, and your friends and family over the phone need to hear it as well.
Pablo Casals said, “Perhaps it is music that will change the world”. Maybe music can’t cure Covid-19, but it can sure get us through it.
Your teacher is working overtime and tirelessly to make sure that everyone stays on track, so that your violin practice continues to provide strength and love within your home. Your child seeing their teachers face, someone they trust and have built a very unique one-on-one relationship with, is important to them.
You are doing the right thing. Make your practice about your time together, your time to show them strength, courage, joy, and patience; all skills and qualities we need to survive this quarantine.
We are unsure about if there is an end in sight to all of this, but one thing you do know is that your practice time with your child and music will be in your house every day, quarantine or not. Keep your practicing consistent, joyful, full of inspiration, curiosity, laughs, and hugs. Don’t let the stress of the situation tarnish your relationship with your child and music. Use this time to create good memories of your quarantine together— create music and memories, don’t count down the minutes on the clock. Enjoy seeing your child smile, not forcing them to struggle through more discomfort.
While this situation may feel like groundhog day, repeating the same day over and over again in our households, there is always new things to find in music. Go find them, and enjoy the inspiration with your child.
P.S.- I’m here for you.