September 5, 2003

Helping Music Students Learn From Their Mistakes

By JENNIFER JACOBSON

Practice makes perfect. But contrary to what our piano teachers may have told us when we were children, mistakes can be a constructive way to help us improve, says William Westney, a professor of music at Texas Tech University.

By reprimanding budding musicians instead of encouraging them to learn from their blunders, music teachers risk turning their young pupils off a particular instrument for good, says Mr. Westney. His book The Perfect Wrong Note: Learning to Trust Your Musical