No Need for Music Teachers

            I’ve played piano since I was young and have picked up the guitar and a little drums in the past few years, but piano will forever be my favorite. Before I realized how much I enjoyed playing keys I got tired of it. My teacher made me learn classical pieces, boring scales, and other theory that I was not a fan of. I wanted to learn U2 and Coldplay songs; they were my two favorite bands in the fifth grade. Eventually the classical music got to me. I’d had enough and quit.

            From fifth to almost the end of my eighth grade year I didn’t touch any musical instruments. This stayed true until one of my friends, who was actually a few years younger than me, sat down at my piano and played “Stronger” by Kanye West. He didn’t take lessons at all so I asked him how he learned to play. His answer? YouTube. I was fascinated and, after exploring it myself, I became obsessed. I could bypass the teacher and learn only what I wanted to learn: songs that I wanted to learn how to play, and play for people.

            Five years later I still use YouTube as a resource to learn new music on the piano and guitar. There weren’t that many different options when I started using YouTube as a teaching aid, but now there are millions of tutorials for thousands of songs for piano, guitar, bass, and many other instruments. Another nice feature is that many teachers post hundreds of tutorials. Naturally, most of the video lessons they teach are of songs that are all similar styles (For instance, a teacher with a great Elton John lesson for “Levon” probably will have other solid Elton John lessons as well as Billy Joel). So, you actually end up finding a multitude of teachers that are good at teaching you different songs, and styles of play. You can also subscribe to their YouTube page and be notified whenever they post a new video.

As I have gotten older I’ve realized how important some of that theory was that the teacher was trying to teach me. Luckily YouTube is full of great videos on theory for classical, blues, jazz, funk, and other kinds of playing styles. So I can, not only learn the songs I want to play right away, but I can become a better pianist too.

My question is why would you pay for a piano or guitar teacher when you can learn the basics as well as very advanced techniques online? You can also decide that you just want to learn one song in particular, and no one wants to pay a teacher to do that, and I’m sure the teacher doesn’t want to do it either. On YouTube you can replay the video as many times as you want, free of charge. It’s easy, economical, and if I was a piano teacher I might find another job.

American Idol: Be Gone

           The television show, American Idol is destroying music stars of our generation. Music is a form of art, and a form of expression. Music stars of the pre-Idol era were raw, and original. Bob Dylan, Neil Young, Tom Petty, Stevie Ray Vaughan, Jimi Hendrix, Nirvana, Jack White, and The Dave Matthews Band are all examples of musical acts that are perfect in their imperfections. There is a great chance that not one of the previously mentioned acts would make it through the early rounds of American Idol, but they are all widely considered as some of the most influential musicians of their respective eras. American Idol produces perfectly tuned, pitched, and postured musicians that all turn out roughly the same. Music has become synthesized and inorganic, and I believe American Idol is a leading cause of that amongst other things.

            In my opinion, music is something that all humans can relate to. It is a universal language that touches us in a different way than anything else. The reason for this is the songwriters and musicians performing are raw, vulnerable, and display the pure emotions they felt when writing their song. Often times their voice will be slightly off key, or their guitar will be a little out of tune, but that’s what people relate to, and it’s what music fans come together to rejoice over. A new sound, or way of doing something that has been done for so long in songwriting.

            Don’t get me wrong, there are a few musicians who have avoided the vortex of American Idol artists and those who mimic them, but they are few and far between compared to the music legends of the past. Let’s take out the perfectionists and refill the music industry with what we are all, imperfect.

SMU Should Be a Wet Campus

            Almost every other college campus in America has a wet campus. A wet campus is when you can drink alcohol on campus as long as you are of legal drinking age. This may seem like an immature proposition, but it comes with good reason.

            Having a wet campus would solve many problems that college campuses will all inevitably face. One problem is the transportation of inebriated college students. If SMU was a wet campus, fraternities could host parties on campus instead of at an off-campus house or a bar. This would be much more efficient. Students would not have to worry about getting a ride to and from the party, because they would be able to walk instead of drive or ride. Having parties on campus would certainly cause a decrease in DUI’s. This change makes it safer and more affordable for students to make it to social events. It would also be much more convenient for everyone which would boost social life. Having house parties instead of renting out bars or clubs would be much more cost efficient for fraternities. This would leave them with more money to spend on more important things such as philanthropic events.

            The bottom line is college students will drink regardless of if the campus is dry or wet. Making it wet would allow student organizations such as fraternities to plan social events in a safer, more cost efficient way that would be beneficial for everyone.

            

The NFL: Let the Players Play

There’s no such thing as a superhero, but in today’s world professional athletes are as close as we are going to get to one. People fill stadiums across the country to see their beloved heroes wow the crowd with their spectacular homeruns, slam dunks, and big hits. The NFL is stripping the game of football from its integrity by putting restrictions on how players play the game. The league has implemented new rules that specify exactly how players should tackle, and now the referees have gotten out of control calling fouls on players even if the hit is clean. It took the players a few years to teach themselves how to hit properly according to the new rules, but now most of them understand and are still being penalized without good reason.

I watched several football games this past weekend and in each one I saw a player get wrongly penalized. The hits were powerful, exciting, and, most importantly, perfectly legal. In each case the player led with his shoulder, and delivered the blow to the opposing player’s chest—a textbook tackle! Yet, the NFL has trained its referees to throw a flag to discourage such violent hits. According to NFLPenalties.com, in both 2009 and 2010 there were a total of 58 personal fouls called (average of 1.81 personal fouls per team). After the new rules were enforced, the number climbed to 79 total personal fouls with an average of 2.47 personal fouls per team. In 2014 they are on pace to call a total of 84 personal fouls. (Personal fouls are penalties for unnecessary roughness or “targeting” a player). There should be a statistic showing how many wrong calls have been made. Of the 21 personal fouls called this year, I know firsthand that at least 5 of them were not the right call. The referees are getting exponentially stricter even when the players have made adjustments to how they play.

Seeing these monstrous athletes deliver such intense, bone-rattling hits on opposing teams player’s is a huge reason why people watch football. It is also the main reason players play the game. Every defensive player in both college and professional football loves to hit people; they do it every play. It is a huge risk to play professional football, but every player knows that. Hitting has always been a part of the game, even when they wore leather helmets, and the technology that doctors and medical researchers offer now keeps the players safer than ever.

I am not implying that we stop calling penalties for illegal hits; that should continue. I am worried that the league is taking away one of its trademarks. If the NFL continues to implement more safety regulations, and the referees continue to blow their whistles the whole game, my kids might be watching the National Flag Football Association.