The Humble Shall Inherit the Music

Coppola, W. J. (2020). An Artistic Virtue? Student Perceptions of Humility in Music Participation. Update: Applications of Research in Music Education, 39(1), 50–58. https://doi.org/10.1177/8755123320944407

Music education is more than teaching clean notes and rhythms. It’s time to explore our own humility as practitioners of good teaching.

  • “Humility is not thinking less of yourself, it’s thinking of yourself less” - Rick Warren

    This study investigated student perceptions of humility in musicians and music educators namely: What does it mean to be humble? Is it a “good” thing for musicians and/or music educators to be humble? Band students from middle school, high school, and undergraduate music programs (N=116) participated in this study. Overall, humility is perceived as a desirable social trait. Not too surprisingly, middle school students weren’t able to pinpoint what humility really means when compared to college-aged students.

  • A Marriage of Social Emotional Learning (SEL) and Humility

    In the era in which we presently find ourselves as a community of music educators, social emotional learning (SEL) is of utmost importance, specifically the development of “soft skills.” Humility is defined by Coppola as (but not limited to) the following:

    1. Acknowledging strengths and weaknesses

    2. Openness to new ideas, cultures, and worldviews

    3. Honesty, empathy, forgiveness, helpfulness, and generosity

    Coppola illustrates the close relation between humility and SEL, therefore we should not overlook their importance in educational practice.

  • So What?

    Coppola suggests that since humility is recognized as an important “soft skill” which is easily embedded in music education (particularly in ensembles), we must be more intentional about how we practice humility as leaders and artists. He specifically suggests, “Rather than rebuking that the student should avoid ‘showing off,’ the music teacher might instead encourage them to ‘practice more humility’ in that moment.” (p. 55). Additionally, using humility in name may be a way to teach concepts such as blend, balance, and overall give and take whereby students can “negotiate their own music contributions while actively valuing - and responding to - the contributions of others in the moment” (p. 55).

  • Mike's Riff

    This is interesting to me, because I think about some of the best musicians I know (and music teachers I know), and honestly the LAST thing that may come to mind is humility. I believe that music education has changed immensely in the past 50 years, it’s not just about clean notes and rhythms anymore - it’s so much more than that! So, let’s go out there and not only practice humility, but encourage humility in our student musicians!

Listen Up!

In this bonus podcast episode, Mike sat down with professor William Coppola from the University fo Southern California to discuss his article, An Artistic Virtue? Student Perceptions of Humility in Music Participation. If you would like to contact Prof. Coppola, you can do so via email at wcoppola@usc.edu.