“No, actually I hate music”

I was interviewed by a local TV station at a street fair in my town the other day (and a gorgeous fall day it was). At first, the reporter’s questioning seemed to jive with setting in which we were. He asked “why did you come down to the park this afternoon?” and, “What has been your favorite part of the street fair thus far?” Then… without much of logical transition at all, the reporter asked if I liked music. I had to pause… I felt like the question was not one that any professional journalist would ask. I felt like he was inquiring as to whether or not I ate food or breathed air into my lungs or regularly used the restroom! Such a question. A better question would surely be, “What kind of music do you enjoy most?” No one asks (especially people trained in asking questions) “Do you eat?”. No, people ask, “what’s your favorite kind of food?” Does not everyone in our culture enjoy music? Tell me if I’m wrong, but I don’t know anyone, in any of my circles that doesn’t consume and enjoy huge quantities of music.

I ask my students to give short speeches about themselves at the beginning of the year. In their speeches they are to relay to the class some of their values, goals, accomplishments, pet peeves, and interests. After about half of the speeches were completed in all of my classes I began asking each class a question that was inspired by the fact that almost every single student expressed that they had an interest in music. Shocking. The question I asked was “Would you please tell me if you do NOT have an interest in music?” Crickets. There was not a single kid in all of my classes that that did not enjoy music. (I then gave them a grand mini lecture on being more specific and intentional with their communication).

The point is not to carry on about the almost insulting question from a journalist in the park (I exaggerate), nor to discuss the problem of adolescent EIPU (Excessive I Pod Use), but to delve into the tremendous power of music. It is indeed a force. Perhaps it’s not so cheesy to say that music brings people together.