Music Education Can Unite a Divided World; So How Can It Be Done?

Gage Mizar, June 9th 2025

A Tough Question

Each year, countless band directors across the nation all ask a similar question; which repertoire should they perform with their ensembles? But that question is much more difficult than it seems. Directors are really asking themselves which needs of their students they need to prioritize. For some band directors, like Dr. Wesley Brewer in his early years of teaching, this meant teaching the standard repertoire because that’s what was deemed important by the music education community at the time [1]. While uncommon, other band directors will focus on performing music at the level the students are at on average, regardless of the music’s perceived value to the western canon, but this philosophy is still relatively new to music education academia. While choosing the right repertoire is a very tough and important choice, another important question is often ignored; what skills should they be teaching their students, and how can they prepare their students for a life of music making and listening?

Often, band directors and music educators in Oregon spend their time on things that do not improve the post-education musicianship the students may want, which includes critical listening, putting music into historical and cultural contexts, and using music as a driving force for critical discussion. Instead, they focus on standard repertoire, including music from a list approved by the Oregon School Activities Association (OSAA) with the goal of qualifying for the state band festival [2]. Dr. Brewer calls this a “glorification of affluence,” referring to a desire to admire and promote highly-resourced band programs in the state [1]. 

Dr. Brewer, during his first teaching job in Arizona, witnessed the disconnect between the expectations of the band tradition and the actual students that made up his classroom. In a school with predominantly Latin-American students, he taught and programmed the band canon and expected his students to embrace those traditions [1]. All it takes to change these expectations is to program music that caters to the interests of people who are actually in the group. This can mean performing popular music, but it can also mean changing the rehearsal performance practices of concert bands altogether.

There is a focus on printed music and the wind ensemble instrumentation while performing in front of a quiet crowd or a panel of judges, but the truth is that concert bands do not need to stick to these traditions in order to advance their musicianship [3]. Performance is just one of the many content standards that music educators are expected to cover when teaching an ensemble. The other standards include connection, response, and creation. Connection in the current model comes through shared performance experiences rather than through connecting with the music itself and with the fellow musicians who share similar connections to the repertoire. Response comes in the form of self-assessment and post-performance analysis, rather than through sharing thoughts on the musical world as they see it. Creation is almost solely focused on making and rehearsing music with the purpose of performing, rather than for the process of creating music itself with no stakes, as well as composing music, showing off each student’s uniqueness [4]. All of these standards are there to serve the students’ needs, and these ideas are not new, but the hyperfocus on performances and high scores come festival season leads to the other standards becoming part of performance practice, rather than being treated as equal to performance.

Countering the Media

Media literacy is a trait that not many people properly possess as the world of media changes constantly on what seems like a daily basis. With the rise of AI generated content, AI accounts online, and misinformation being promoted to drive clicks, engagement, and advertising revenue, attention is being treated as a commodity that can be monetized [5]. Media literacy becomes a very important trait to learn going forward because of this. While media companies try to extract every last bit of attention and data from the populace, it is important to remember everyone’s humanity and that individuality is what makes people special. The standards for the music classroom, therefore, should reflect this reality. This means not being afraid to express themselves through music while creating an environment where this level of expression is possible. Self expression leads to unexpected interpersonal connections, which then leads to tearing down the artificial walls many children are taught about their peers, which create deep-rooted biases that are hard to unlearn. Empathy is the key to tearing down these walls. There is no better place to encourage empathy than the music classroom [6]. However, this is something that is usually not achievable for every student in the current music education status quo.

Music education in the US has traditionally been centered around the band, choir, and orchestra classrooms, performing what has been considered standard repertoire for decades. Meanwhile, only 24 percent of students participate in music ensembles at some point during their years in high school [7]. Researchers have been working on methods to address students’ musical needs. These needs include promoting music exploration, analysis, critical thinking, and taking the focus away from the western canon to focus on the music the vast majority of these students will hear every day for the rest of their lives, while also teaching them how to critically think when looking at other forms of media [8].

The era of being told what to think, instead of how to think, is here. Media algorithms seek to keep users actively engaged at all times, which means telling people what they want to hear, affirming biases and perpetuating polarization [5]. People’s opinions of each other are likely already decided by just a few external characteristics, crushing hope for any genuine connection between people who are deemed too unlike each other through the media’s lens. This just leads to further polarization, destroying communities. Yet, when the phones are away and people are living in the moment, the rift between everyone shrinks. All of the external differences go away and what is left is a common interest, and a possible beginning of a brand new community.

“Crowd, Austin City Limits Music Festival 2015-3429” by Anna Hanks is licensed under CC BY 2.0

There could be countless different things between two people, but they could end up at the same concert, right next to each other, singing along to the same music. Even though on the outside, these two people have next to nothing in common, they come together at that moment to share something they both enjoy.

Moments like this can happen in the music classroom as well. If students are allowed to truly express themselves without judgement, there would be a lot more people who do not have external similarities sharing themselves through song, all happening at a much younger age. The outside voices telling the kids to put up these artificial walls will never go away, but establishing connections with people outside of the same social circle will help in acknowledging the reality that these walls are not real.

“Tiburon Protest for Black Lives Matter” by Fabrice Florin is licensed under CC BY-SA 2.0

Music Drives Connection, In and Out of the Classroom

Music educators and researchers believe that this can be done through a comprehensive retooling of how music education is handled at the secondary level. They believe in giving general music classes the same priority as ensemble classes and offering multiple types of general music classes to satisfy this priority. Within ensemble classes like band or choir, connection still needs to be prioritized, which includes programming music the students truly want to play and that audiences want to hear. Any music an ensemble performs also needs to be analyzed while the concept of the rehearsal schedule needs to be re-examined to fit these needs. This includes giving up rehearsal time in exchange for moments of critical thinking and time for the ensemble to connect as people, not just as parts of a musical machine [9].

Jakki Moses, the music teacher at Bessie Coleman Elementary explains that her students often connect the most in her classroom when they sing older folk songs. American folk music is a genre that is appropriate for students of that age to sing and connections happen naturally because most students, regardless of socioeconomic background, know these songs. At the elementary level, this is all Jakki strives for when looking to connect the students, as diving into historical or cultural context with children that young is not seen as a priority, or as too heavy of a concept for them to grasp [10]. For many of these students, however, fifth grade is one of the final years that they learn and connect with music in the classroom, as the percentage of students who participate in music will only go down after elementary school [7]. This means they are going into secondary education with the potential and foundation to critically analyze music and connect with their peers, but aren’t given a desirable opportunity to do so. If secondary general music education were given priority, then elementary general music education would be the first step on their lifelong musical journeys. According to Jakki, primary music education is used as a way to give the primary teachers prep periods. Another purpose elementary music serves is to observe how likely individual students are to succeed in traditional ensembles going forward, such as recommending strong, confident singers to join their district’s middle school choir.

“11 Community Music Center & SFUSD Partners” by Carnival.com Studios is licensed under CC BY 2.0

Across the nation, there are countless community ensembles that bring communities together. The benefits of community ensembles can be seen in people of all ages and backgrounds. Researchers have found that participating in these groups leads to more healthy brain activity and engagement in younger and older participants [11]. Within the senior demographic, people who learn new musical instruments saw increased self-perceived physical health and mental health, as well as possible evidence of increased respiratory health and possible changes to blood pressure [12]. However, community music groups often do not reach the broader population, as according to research, community bands are made up of predominantly white, upper-middle class, college-educated people within the older age demographic [13]. Much like the audiences of classical performances, community bands struggle to bring in younger members. This lack of popularity shows a fault in the current status quo of music education. Students are not prepared for a lifetime of music making or they are not given the opportunity to do so in their communities because what they are taught does not meet the desires of most younger musicians. Groups of this type require dedicated people to sacrifice their time and energy to make them work, and many communities lack either the resources, gear, awareness, proper repertoire selection, or performances practices to make them happen. Changes made to music education in public schools would affect the potential for community bands to succeed in the future.

Everything is Music

“The Ladies’ Home Journal” by N.C. Wyeth is in the Public Domain

Making music with a community does not have to be done in an ensemble, however. It can be as simple as listening to music with a small group of people in the same room or at a local venue, encouraging gathering for street performances, or even chanting words of protest with a rhythmic cadence. Music impacts everyone’s lives in many ways people often do not see or think about, whether that is the cadence of a protest chant or tens of thousands of fans creating the best home-field advantage in a sports league. Even when music is not the focus, it still drives the intensity of these moments. In the case of protest, it brings people together to unite behind one cause, justice. It creates a unifying message that is easy to remember and learn, while still conveying the importance of the cause. Music does not just help people learn to understand the importance of community and justice, but also helps them understand the strength everyone has when they are united.

“Ribbon cutting for the new expansion building of the San Francisco Community Music Center.” by Funcrunch is licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0

A Glimmer of Hope

The future of music education is exciting and promising in the eyes of Dr. Brewer, largely because of the new generation of music educators entering into the field. He believes that this generation has a better understanding of the world around them and how to incorporate this understanding into their curriculums. He believes that this generation will be the one to drive unity in the classroom and to step away from a music education culture that focuses on glorifying affluence and resources over everything else. This, he believes, can be the force that leads to more empathy and connection within the classroom which will lead to a more socially just society when the students enter the real world. This optimism is present despite all the hurdles young music teachers face that can lead them to embracing traditional practices. It’s the responsibility of the next wave of music educators to not break under pressure and to keep pushing the change they want to see in the field.

References:

1. Brewer, Wesley. Personal Interview. 12 May 2025
2. Becker, D. (n.d.). Oregon Band Directors Association Current Required High School Concert Band Literature List. Oregon Schools Activities Association. https://www.oregonbda.org/uploads/8/2/7/5/82758018/obda_hs_literature_list.pdf
3. Clauhs, M. (2018, June). Fostering creative musicianship in early instrumental … Music Educators Journal. https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/0027432118768383?icid=int.sj-full-text.similar-articles.3
4. National Association for Music Education. (n.d.). 2014 music standards (ensemble). National Association for Music Education. https://nafme.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/2014-Music-Standards-Ensemble-Strand.pdf
5. Barrett, P., Hendrix, J., & Sims, G. (2024, July 25). How tech platforms fuel U.S. political polarization and what government can do about it. Brookings. https://www.brookings.edu/articles/how-tech-platforms-fuel-u-s-political-polarization-and-what-government-can-do-about-it/
6. Ellerbe, A. (2021). Empathy in and through music education: Extending … Visions of Research in Music Education. https://digitalcommons.lib.uconn.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1002&context=vrme
7. Shouldice, H. (2020, May 11). RTRL.27: Who enrolls in high school music? (Elpus & Abril, 2019). Everyday Musicality. https://everydaymusicality.com/2019/10/09/who-enrolls-in-high-school-music-elpus-abril-2019/
8. Thomas, C. (2015, November 30). Active listening: Teaching with music. Yale Center for Teaching and Learning. https://campuspress.yale.edu/yctl/active-listening/
9. Confredo, D. A. (2025, June 3). What should the future of music education look like?. NAfME. https://nafme.org/blog/what-should-the-future-of-music-education-look-like/
10. Moses, Jakki. Personal Interview. 21 May 2025
11. Benefits of music on communities. PlayCore. (2020, May 27). https://www.playcore.com/news/benefits-of-music-on-communities
12. Barbeau, A.-K., & Cossette, I. (2019). The effects of participating in a community concert band on senior citizens’ quality of life, mental and physical health. International Journal of Community Music, 12(2), 269–288. https://doi-org.oregonstate.idm.oclc.org/10.1386/ijcm.12.2.269_1
13. Boswell, M. A. (2022, February). Music for a Lifetime: How Are We Doing? A Review of Literature on Adult Participation in Large Community Music Ensembles. Application of Research in Music Education.