When I first saw this quote by Dr. King, my mind was immediately drawn to very similar – perhaps even stronger – words spoken by Dr. Suzuki: “Character first, ability second.”

The Suzuki Method is certainly unique for many reasons: the “mother tongue” approach in which music is learned primarily by listening as opposed to reading, the “Suzuki triangle” of parent, teacher, and child all involved in the learning process, the focus on memorization and review, and many more.  But perhaps the central core of Dr. Suzuki’s philosophy was that music education is a means to mold and shape the character of students for the better such that they become what he called “more noble human beings” (emphasis mine).

We certainly have the privilege of teaching some of the noblest human beings we’ve ever known, and we’re grateful every day for the opportunity to share the joys of learning music together!