Humans—flute students included—often find themselves in situations where they are struggling with learning a new skill. Flute specific examples that are happening right now in my teaching studio include learning:
~ a new embouchure setup
~ a new embouchure setup again after braces are off
~ new hand positions
~ an entirely new approach to all the ways we control the air with flute playing
~ counting independently while maintaining a steady beat (as opposed to being a kid with a great ear who hears it once and copies it back perfectly)
~ how to effectively construct a phrase
~ double tonguing – oof
In each of these cases, the students very much feel like they are starting over. It’s hard to change habits, especially if you are not sounding as good as you did before. They sometimes fall into the trap of “I can’t do it,” and when I hear this, I ask them to add one more word to their statement. “I can’t do it—yet.”
In the age of instant gratification, it’s hard to be patient and actually spend the time to learn the new thing. As we age, we should all keep learning new things and know we will not be great at them the first time. Skill acquisition involves repetition. Think of watching a toddler learn to walk; they fall over again and again but always keep trying.
Another use of the word “yet” for music teachers is, “You aren’t quite ready for that yet.” We need to be thoughtful in how we progress our students through repertoire. Are we looking for a piece that challenges them appropriately or are we adding too many demands at once? I had a student who fell in love with one of the pieces from the blue French book and, after a few weeks, I had to say, “This is not the right time for this piece yet.” We took it off the college audition list and programmed it in the summer.
A third use of “yet” is my least favorite. A student might say they’re having a hard time with getting low notes to speak on time in a fast section (or insert some other flute playing skill here). I ask if they are practicing the techniques I have assigned. Usually, when they are not successful over a period of time, it’s because they’re not practicing the thing that will help! Then I have to say, “Well, you haven’t done the work yet, so why do expect that it will just happen on its own?” This is a relatively rare situation with the students I work with, but it does happen.
As teachers, we don’t have a magic wand. We can guide and inspire and instruct, but at the end of the day, the student has to be willing to do the work. That’s where the magic happens!