Following the Money: Teacher or Performer

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There is a cliche in the music education world. It's usually said this way: "(name of guitar teacher) can play, but he/she can't teach!" Sometimes we even, unneccesarily, poke fun of music teachers by saying, "(name of guitar teacher) is not a performer; He/She is a teacher, obviously." At the center of these statements lies a crucial ambivalence facing the work of any guitar teacher:

Guitar teachers are paid to teach, and performers are paid to escape.

The best performers are the people who "have it." These are the ones who make a show so fun and enjoyable, so great and awesome, that we can't help but forget all of our problems and cheer them on. We as the audience want to see the performer escape so that we can escape with them. It's like seeing a show and thinking at the end of it, "I wish they would play another song!" Performers inherently know this; The stage is where time doesn't exist. Performers are often as irresponsible, impulsive, and immature as one will see. Drugs? Alcohol? Addiction? Stupid behavior? You name it. When one is paid to escape, when one is cheered on to take the audience to another level and help them forget about their problems, you can bet that it translates to many other areas of their life. To performers, responsibility might often seem like a drag. It seems far more exciting to trash a hotel room. For them it's more fun to just be out of control, like how it is on stage.

Many would-be performers are initially drawn to teaching at first. Why not? So many people are looking to play music that it seems like a logical stepping stone to being a rock star. The operative words are "stepping-stone." Are they there to teach, or are they seeking an audience? If I were looking for a guitar teacher, they would need to convince me that I was the center of their attention, and that they are going to do their best to create a space for me to learn. They would need to convince me that they are there for me. I will not say that all performers are like this, but many are unable to teach because, again, responsibility is a drag.

Guitar teachers are paid to teach, and teaching requires developing responsibility. If you want to perform for a living and teach too, the real trick is how to balance the both of them.

Posted by Dave Wirth

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Following the Money: Teacher or Performer