Important Influence on the Intro to Music Ed in Ohio - Sanders

Britt Beil
MUSIC 23241
January 19, 2011

Important Influences on the Introduction of Music Education in Ohio

               The first Ohio school to get music added to their curriculum was Zanesville schools in 1842. The Eclectic Academy of Music was founded in 1834 with the goal of promoting music education in the West. Judge Jacob Burnet was chosen to be President, Nathanial Wright was secretary and Timothy B. Mason was assigned the music professor. Lowell Mason played organ and was the choir director at the Second Presbyterian Church and he established the Boston Academy of Music in 1833. The Western Literary Institute and College of Professional Teachers was a group of people interested in the cause of education. Mason and Beecher defended music education on physical, mental and moral grounds. The Common School Advocate was an educational journal published from 1837-1841 and it contributed greatly to music education in Ohio by making entries available to teachers, school boards and others interested.

               I agree that music is very important for students to learn and participate in. Music is a way to express yourself when you aren't sure how else to do it, it helps you relax and have a break from the constant hustle and bustle of life, and it is something we experience every day whether we mean to or not. The creation of educational journals definitely help teachers learn new teaching techniques or just inform them on new advances.

               In the article, Mason and Beecher were describing how music education is school can be a definitely benefit for physical and mental health, plus morality. They used a professional, Dr. Benjamin Rush, to explain how singing is good for you physically because he believed singing could help prevent tuberculosis. Mentally, music helps with paying close attention, abstraction and analysis. Morally, it helps with the ability to refine, teach order and discipline, instill affection and confidence from the student to their teacher, and it helps appeal to the feelings of students through appropriate song lyrics. A few of these items may be a bit of a stretch, but for the most part I believe all of this to be true and it was nice to see someone sharing my deep passion for music.

Sanders, Paul D. (2001). Important influences on the introduction of music education in Ohio. TRIAD. 28-30.