Great post, Steve.

On 11/03/09, Steve wrote:
> On 11/03/09, anon wrote:
>> So, if I can't fix it, how do I hide it? Contest season is coming up,
>> and his voice sticks out like a sore thumb! I can't have him play the
>> tambourine on every song... eventually he'll figure it out! I don't
>> want him to quit, but how can I make it less obvious!?
>
> I had a trombone player with this problem. He was also in choir and
> ironically, he couldn't stay in step. We fixed all thee with him. It
> turns out, he wanted to be part of the band and choir because he loved the
> friendships, trips and general atmosphere of music. It's fun. He knew he
> couldn't sing and we didn't ever lead on that he would be able to. We
> worked with him but we were always honest with the results and encouraged
> him to participate in other ways. He would try really hard in rehearsals
> and then just hold back in performances. We helped him understand when he
> needed to do this. He was happy with it and he graduated from the program
> as a senior.
>
> As for the marching, I had him watch the person in front of him and had him
> mimic their steps by sight. It worked perfectly since he wasn't playing
> much anyway.
>
> The National Institute for deafness recognizes tone deafness as a genetic
> disorder that runs in families. My sister-in-law, who was in my father's
> band with me, had this problem as did her kids. This was a very depressing
> fact for my brother since we tune pianos. He tried to get them to hear
> pitch to tune but it always failed. My kids on the other hand are able to
> hear pitch perfectly.
>
> His wife (sister-in-law) played clarinet and we worked with her to match
> pitch for years and nothing worked. She plays clarinet but is out of tune
> sometimes. Other than that, she loves to play. Singing on the other hand
> is not so good. She realizes it and is okay with the reality of the
> situation. I think this is the best way to handle the situation honestly.
> You can do what you want but allowing someone to participate and receive
> the benefit of the class is rewarding for you and the student. Helping
> them realize the reality of the situation can also be beneficial for both
> of you.
>
> Some people would have you believe that there is no such thing as a tone
> deaf singer. This is obviously not the case. People hear pitch to
> differing degrees and occasionally there are people who cannot hear it at
> all. Experience has taught me that you can improve this but with a
> severely tone deaf person, it will be nearly impossible to improve it to
> the point of making a satisfying sound.
>
> It's allot like having a visual defect that is actually a perceptual
> defect. You can see okay but you cannot perceive what you see with the
> same accuracy as another person. This can be a problem for a lifetime. It
> can be improved but never to the same degree as a person without the
> perceptual defect.
>
> Good luck.
>
> Steve

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