My main music experiences have been a mix of formal and informal instruction, as well as regular exposure to music in the home, at school, and in church.
Every instrument I have learned has mostly been through formal instruction. I started with violin at the ripe age of 5, adding piano a year later. Violin slowly became more informal as I began playing with family and we all had fun with trying new things and pieces together. Piano continued to be formal until around that same time, about age 11, where I lost my piano teacher and started independent exploration. Classroom instruments such as recorder were more formally taught. Then, I added oboe through relatively independent means, where I was part of the school band but otherwise self taught. All the instruments I have learned since have been self-taught and thus more informal. However, when considering the music listening or actual repertoire, much of it has been learned through a more enculturative means. For me, this included hearing siblings practice their classical music, listening to classical music as a family, and generally being exposed to much in the classical sense and not a lot of popular or modern music.
In terms of voice, it is about the same experience. I have sung my whole life, as many children do, and have been in choir since the age of 9. I never took formal voice lessons until this year, similarly to my restart of my formal lessons in piano and oboe. Much of the music I learned with voice was either choir music or church hymns, both of which I still listen to on a regular basis. I learned choir music in choir but also by being around family members singing, listening with the family, and attending concerts. As a family, we have several musical traditions that have stuck with me. I have listened to many oratorios with my family, especially around Christmas time, and we also listen to Nine Lessons and Carols every season. Classical MPR was the radio station we listened to aside from church CDs, and that consistent exposure with musical commentary from my dad encouraged active listening and enjoyment. I consider myself a classical music lover, and honestly don’t listen to much else.
With church, I learned most of the 600+ hymns just by being in church, hearing the congregation sing, and participating in children’s programs and choirs. I wanted to keep learning piano not just for classical music, but also so I could play our hymns on the piano and organ.
With all the music I grew up with, I continue to return to it as my home base of music. I don’t find myself enjoying popular music styles, since they are unfamiliar to me. For me, classical music, choral music, hymns, and other music along those lines feels like home. When I hear the word “music”, that is what I think of. My music learning now is still a similar mix of formal and informal, as I learn new things every day from both my teachers, friends, family, classmates, and listening experiences. After 7 years of band, 9+ years of choir, and many years of individual music exploration, I rarely find myself straying from the music I love.
