Hey Moms and Dads,

I realize that I've been hearing them for 31 years and they may be novel and amusing to you, so I will smile and bear all the "unbearable third grade recorder" and "excruciating beginning instrumentalists' jokes that you innocently share on my Facebook wall. Just know that I earnestly LOVE those sounds. They truly are a "different kind of beautiful" to me. Having said that, post what you will, and have a good laugh. Whatever.

My real concern is that if your student musician is aware of (or maybe even a part of) that joke, you may well be undermining their chance of success. It takes a deliberate mindset to hear the excitement and potential for beauty in their early sounds, but I promise you, it's there. Don't poke holes in that with a bunch of cliche wisecracks. I will always strive to make my class room a place where it is safe to try. Their only real chance of thriving is if they feel the same at home.

I swear, if your mind is right, you can tell them that you love hearing them play, and mean it.