Is my child ready to perform?

By: Renee Bordner
NWE Studio Director

Parents often ask if their student musician is ready to perform at our events.  Yes, is always the answer!  

I highly encourage our brand new beginner students through our professional students to perform as often as possible.  We offer many assisted living informal recitals to give all of our students a chance to play for others.  While adjudications and competitions are more appropriate for our students with more performance experiences.  For some of our students, starting with a casual recital for their parents and extended family can be thrilling.  We find that some students are very motivated to create their own recital for their teddy bears complete with construction paper homemade tickets and programs.  Some students, including my own son, can be very motivated by playing "Name That Tune" over the telephone with a family member.  For our students who are more technologically inclined, they can be motivated to create a video to share with friends and family who will share it on their social media.  All of these traditional and non-traditional performance opportunities can help a student develop more confidence in their playing.  These skills can also be transferred to other life events in which students need to "perform" such as job interviews, presentations at their school or work.  Whatever event your musician is preparing for, please connect with your instructor and work together to create a solid plan for preparing for success.  Happy practicing and performing!

Musically yours,
Renee ​