SAIIER 2021:Music teaching (by Shakti)

Auroville Choirs		Music teaching (by Pushkar)
Music teaching by Shakti Balu

This year I gave piano classes for 16 students including children and adults, and worked with students to develop their voice for performances.

The students and I gave 4 concerts in CRIPA for Christmas: 3 for all ages, and 1 especially for children with Santa Claus and presents.

I also organised a poetry event in Unity Pavilion in March, with music and poetry from Auroville poets and from different countries.

Reflections:

Most meaningful this year was to not give up the work I do, with all the mess around (uncertainty and lockdowns). We managed to pull the community together for Christmas, to feel again as a whole, with all our kids. Children were very happy to see Santa and get the presents, which Auroville units kindly donated.

There are still a lot of challenges to proceed. Usually my students give end-of-the-year progress performances in CRIPA. But it was not possible to perform this year, for the evident reason. This year many children left, because of COVID. I got new students.

Research highlights:

The model I use for teaching kids is a student and music oriented approach, not the classical way of teaching which is Solfeggio oriented. Musical grammar is very important, but it should not dominate as a technique.

Future direction:

I am going to go on, teach people what I know and love.

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