Benefits of Group Music Lessons
Guitar and mandolin group lessons are a great way to learn music. There are many advantages to taking group lessons. It can be a fun introduction to new students and a way to get your feet wet. It can also be a fun and challenging environment for more advanced players to work on skills not normally touched upon in private lessons. Some benefits to group lessons include:
- the friendly sense of competition and accountability helps motivate students and brings a built-in support group
- students are able to learn from each other and develop musical relationships that often continue outside of lessons
- the musical selections can be more varied and students have more performance opportunities
- you will learn how to play music with others and develop your listening skills in a practical setting
- improved rhythm and timing
- gives context to musical exercises and techniques
- provides a comfortable environment to work on songwriting and composition skills
- improves your reading ability
- allows the student room to develop improvisation and accompaniment skills
- lessons are more affordable and provide more opportunities for faster improvement
Group music lessons give immediate context for students to use techniques and knowledge to play in a musical setting. Students are encouraged to experiment and test their understanding of how to use the subject material in a real musical situation like jamming. Group play and making music with another human being is rewarding in and of itself, but the benefits of having to interact with other musicians will take the student to new musical heights that cannot be as easily attained by playing and practicing alone.
The main focus of group music lessons is to enhance the musical ability of the students. This means, that while individual lessons may still be needed in order to work on specific techniques and student issues, the musical aspects of playing will be the focus of the group time. The magic of playing with others and how that improves a music student’s abilities cannot be overstated. There is also the idea of group comradery and life long friendships forged from playing music together. Playing and learning together gives a great sense of accountability and positive peer pressure to achieve and keep up with the group. When partnered with other players of various abilities, students often learn new elements of music and technique from each other and reinforce their own understanding of the materials.
Group lessons are a great value for the student and an excellent setting for students to achieve their musical goals.