1. Setting Goals
It can be hard to practice the same song and scales over and over for months. Practice often takes place alone, at home, and may not feel exciting or rewarding. When students know there is a performance associated with their practice, they have a deadline to work toward. Many students look forward to showing off all that hard work and are more motivated to put time into focused practice. Adults who haven’t had lessons in years can often remember a song they played at a recital, as the muscle memory from those motivated practice sessions remains. A bonus benefit is that often this new practice routine persists even after the performance!
2. Overcome anxiety
Over 70% of Americans report feeling stage fright at some point in their lives. Students who get experience performing in recitals at a young age build confidence in their ability to be the center of attention on stage. It’s not obvious to the audience, but performance actually engages a whole different set of skills from musical skills needed to complete a song. Controlling your breath and posture under stress, being comfortable with your body on stage, and having resilience when you make a mistake are skills that will serve you well in both future performances and beyond.
3. See the Future
Especially for students who spend most of their time practicing alone, the recital is a great opportunity to engage with the social aspect of music. Younger children naturally look up to older kids, and when beginning musicians perform with others who are more advanced, they see what can happen with dedication and practice. Over the years, they will gain a sense of what is coming next for them in their lessons and skills, and the progress they want to achieve becomes a concrete goal to work for in between performances.
4. Sense of Accomplishment
Of all the benefits to playing music, this is the most rewarding. Preparing a song for performance takes a lot of time and focus. The performance requires bravery, stamina, and professionalism. All that hard work pays off when they’re taking their final bow to a round of applause. That magic moment sticks with children as they internalize the pride in their hard work and build their self-esteem.
No matter what their skill level is, a recital gives every child a chance to be a musical star for one afternoon. Not only does preparing for performance build musical skills, but the lessons and rewards of the recital build character and self-esteem that will enrich your child’s life on and off the stage.
