I couldn’t have answered this question two months ago. I have been studying Mrs. Curwen’s method for almost two years, but I’ve learned a lot since writing her method out in blog form.
Narrating a method back to an online audience forced me to think and own my knowledge.
I was confused for a while because I am very familiar with musicians who ‘play by ear.’ I was trying to connect the philosophy that music is taught through the ear with the musicians who can hear a piece and play it without needing the notes in front of them.
To further confuse me, Mrs. Curwen goes on to say that,
“The sine qua non of reading music is a quick recognition of the written sounds in relation to the keyboard; an unhesitating obedience of the finger to the eye; an obedience so unhesitating and complete that the action of the two is almost simultaneous.” (page 83, 31st edition.)
(Sine qua non is defined as an essential condition; a thing that is absolutely necessary.)
So what does Mrs. Curwen mean when she says music is taught through the ear and not through the eye?
Let me illustrate in a simple manner:
Teaching a child through the eye would be handing them a worksheet with a picture of a quarter note. Or maybe it means simply explaining to a child a what a quarter note is.
This symbol to the left of here is a quarter note. We see it a lot in music and, in most cases, it represents one beat. Four quarter notes equals one whole note. If you snap your fingers in a steady and even pattern, each snap represents one quarter note.
Above is an example of teaching a child through the eye. It’s an elementary definition of a quarter note. Observe that I used the word quarter note and beat and whole note in that definition. Consider that a beginner piano student has very little experience with a quarter note, a beat, or a whole note.
How does Mrs. Curwen teach a quarter note?
In the very first lesson a piano teacher every has with a student, she asks the child to clap or march to a piece of music. The teacher plays a song. This almost aways results in the child clapping or marching to the beat of a piece of music.
If the child cannot clap to the beat, the teacher repeats this exercise in every lesson until a child can begin to feel the beat, or steady pulse, found in all music.
After, and only after, it’s been made clear that the child feels the beat does Mrs. Curwen define that beat as a pulse in music. As the child progresses through the lessons, we see the child listening to music.
In lesson 2, the child listens for the accented beat. They listen for the STRONG, weak, STRONG, weak pulse. Or the STRONG, weak, weak, STRONG, weak, weak pulse.
In lesson 3, a child is listening to some simple songs with one pulse and two pulse sounds.
The child raises his hand when he hears the longer two pulse sound.
The goes on to distinguish one pulse sounds from two pulse sounds.
After, and only after, the child can distinguish one pulse and two pulse sounds does Mrs. Curwen go on to define a one pulse sound.
Then the child sees the quarter note.
Did you take note of that progression that Mrs. Curwen walked through with the child?
- They listened for a pulse in music.
- They listened for meter (the accented down beat) in music.
- They listened for one pulse sounds and two pulse sounds.
AFTER they listened, they saw.
Mrs. Curwen emphasizes that you cannot teach what a quarter note is with words and symbols. A child must hear and understand what a quarter note is…then, and only then, does the teacher define it.
If you find yourself trying to explain a musical concept, maybe stop and think for a moment. If a child has never heard what you’re talking about before, it’s going to be impossible for them to fully understand and grasp what you’re trying to convey.
Let them hear music to understand music.
Let them hear a triplet many times over before ever trying to teach them a triplet. If a child asks prematurely what he’s hearing, wonderful! Show him a triplet and explain the basic concept of a triplet. His ears have heard!
Music is progressive, and Mrs. Curwen has a very progressive means of teaching children. Music builds in difficulty, and Mrs. Curwen makes that process joyful and complete. If you take any part of her method and embrace it, I highly recommend laying the foundation well using her Preliminary courses.