For the forty years I’ve been teaching drums, students have been rescheduling or taken breaks from lessons due to soccer, baseball, lacrosse, football, basketball, etc. Students time and energy for studying and practicing drums has almost always taken a back seat for whatever seasonal sport whether they enjoy the sport or not.

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I’ve been blessed to have maintained relationships with many former students who are now adults. All of them are still playing drums in some capacity.

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Guess what they’re not doing? Soccer, baseball, lacrosse, football, basketball, etc.

Why are sports such a priority when the vast majority of people never play these sports after they finish school?

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I will make a distinction here between sports and health. Certainly health is a lifelong pursuit.

 

The learned skills that allow us to express ourselves such as playing an instrument, writing, painting, photography, etc. are not only potentially lifelong activities but are also essential for our health as human beings.

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Maybe it’s time to reevaluate our educational priorities and make the arts the greater focus!