"Music is a higher revelation than all wisdom and philosophy." -Ludwig van Beethoven

From its outset in 1874, Stanstead Wesleyan College provided music lessons as an integral part of the students' education. By the turn of the century, it became evident that more space would be required to accommodate the growth of the music department. Thanks to a donation of five thousand dollars, the Eastern Townships Conservatory of Music was opened in 1902 in Pierce Memorial Hall. Under the leadership of Charles W. Holmes and A. Harlow Martin, the Conservatory flourished and the orchestra performed for the local radio stations on both sides of the border in Vermont and Quebec. Professor Martin was reputedly very strict and exacting of his students. Recitals were performed weekly and many fine students graduated under his guidance. A rich musical tradition had been firmly established. 

A terrible fire tore through the hall in 1951 and although efforts were made to maintain the music department, the needs of school had changed and the Conservatory was eventually amalgamated into the school. The musical tradition apparently and unfortunately faded.

The benefits of music education have, by the late twentieth century, been well researched and well documented. Studies have demonstrated that students who have had musical training not only greatly increased their math and reading skills but improved their overall academic performance as well. The music setting is one in which students engage daily in striving for their personal best through rigorous practice. The students' natural desire to improve promotes self-regulatory habits which can be applied across all subjects. The environment favours teamwork, cooperation and respect for each other. Hark work is rewarded in class and concert experiences. Music instruction helps students develop physical coordination, fine motor skills, memory, and helps promote a social awareness of self and others. Howard Gardener's theory of multiple intelligences (musical intelligence being one of them) outlines the need for children to experiment with various learning strategies and apply their various intelligences in order to build problem solving skills and sound critical thinking abilities. There can be no doubt that music education should be a core subject in a student's general education career.

Stanstead College and it's Board of Trustees have recently undertaken an important initiative to revive the musical heritage of the school. The choir, under the musical direction of Sonia Wells, grew last year with some forty-five students and already has a series of successful concerts to its credit. I certainly look forward to being a part of the musical landscape at Stanstead College and eventually building up a strong instrumental program in the tradition of Professor Martin (though perhaps a little less strict but certainly as exacting). I selected Beethoven's words at the top of this article to demonstrate how passionate those of us in the field of music can be about music education. I leave you with another quote from Shininchi Suzuki, a famous music educator, whose words capture the values inherent in music class that I have tried to describe above:

 "Teaching music is not my main purpose. I want to make good citizens. If a child hears fine music from the day of his birth, and learns to play it himself, he develops sensitivity, discipline and endurance. He gets a beautiful heart."

Many thanks to Joan MacDonald for her history of the Eastern Townships Conservatory of Music. For more information on the power of music education please consult the following web sites: www.menc.org (Music Educators National Conference) www.amc-music.com (American Music Conference)

Eric E. Grenier, Former Music Teacher