Music and Democracy

Music is related to many aspects of the human life. Music is not an isolated identity and it affects many people not only music teachers. It is entwined in our culture and society, including politics and democracy. I have an example of where music has become part of the presidential race. The presidential candidate John McCain has used the song "My Hero" by the Foo Fighters to represent his campaign. Subsequently, the Foo Fighters have blasted him for using the song without consent and for misinterpreting the original sentiment or meaning of the song. As Paul Woodford says, "If, as is now commonly believed, music is a badge of identity and form of cultural representation, then it is strongly implicated in politics and cultural wars" (xiii). In the article I read by David Lines, he writes that "music is intrinsically entwined with human affairs, with the aims and desires of cultural expression, and with instances of human power, freedom, dominance, control and resistance." Music has a strong impact on many parts of our society, and its realm of influence goes beyond the classroom.

Therefore, I think that this leads to the idea that music is not above politics and music teachers are not above politics and democracy. If music affects so many other aspects of life, we as music teachers cannot ignore the facets of society that affect us. Woodford defines politics as the way we engage and deal with the collective decision-making process. Democracy as Dewey defines it is the need for every citizen, in this case music teachers, to participate in the formation of social values regulating the lives of people. Thus individuals need to be involved with the institutions that govern them. Dewey in Woodford's book has another point that reminds me of Block's writing. Dewey believes that individuals have the power to contribute to the community in accordance to his or her abilities in the spirit of service to others. All of these writings emphasize the concept that music teachers have the responsibility to engage in democracy and politics to shape the way that the school and community function.

Specifically, Woodford sees that if teachers are engaged in the democratic environment, they have the power to influence the planning and implementation of curriculum. He says if teachers learned to exert a degree of increased control over their school and classroom environments, teaching would improve. I agree that teachers cannot be passive when it comes to issues such as deciding the curriculum in the music classroom. If we want our music classes to have an impact on our students, then we need to ensure that what they are learning is purposeful, beneficial, has substance, and most of all is enjoyable. Music teachers are leaders in the school, we have to make sure that we are involved in the process of change and transformation in the school and community.