Kristen Shiner McGuire

When I graduated from the Eastman School in 1983 with my (second) degree in Percussion Performance, I had no idea I would spend the next 40 years teaching at the collegiate level. I had some of the finest teachers in the country as my mentors, and their influence on me is immeasurable.

At Nazareth University I interact with students in private lessons, studio class, Percussion Ensemble, percussion pedagogy and literature, in methods classes for Music Education and Music Therapy and as an advisor.  My teaching philosophy encompasses these components: Love the Student, Meet the Student Where They Are, Teach the Student to Teach Themselves, Experience and Reflect, Prepare Students To Be Versatile, Lead by Example and Inclusion.

In Loving the Student, my charge is to be committed and give them my best. The most intense version of this is with my primary percussion students, with whom I meet 3 times a week for up to four years. I feel the importance of being a mentor and make myself available as much as possible, and I remain devoted to their development as people as well as professionals.  I learned how to be a more effective Advisor last spring during our completely remote segment of the semester. The benefit of my own feelings of isolation and responsibility to my students was that I felt driven to stay connected. I reached out to my Music Business advisees regularly by phone as well as Zoom and email; and was able to help all of them create their virtual senior recitals and capstone projects successfully during this extremely stressful time.

My first goal is to Meet The Student Where They Are at that moment and move forward from there. This entails understanding their preferred learning style(s), their interests and passions, and, over time, their personal backgrounds. It is my fundamental belief that students need to be exposed to a wide variety of learning styles in order to make their competence as universal as possible. In private lessons, I begin by asking a student what excites them about making music.  I find something they are confident playing, listen and watch and develop a lesson plan that includes the student’s goals. Lessons are based on a contract – I will keep giving my 50% as long as they continue their 50%. I tell them that although I start with a plan, I individualize instruction based on the student’s desires in being a musician and professional. This practice has contributed greatly to retention, student happiness and success for many years now. In a recent Percussion Chamber Music Literature course, I had an MMPP student, who loves composing music. The syllabus I had created was specific in areas, but also had some open-ended statements about what we might explore. I invited the student to be a co-creator with me for some of the content and he was able to focus on contemporary music, a topic that aligned with his interest in musical composition. This student is now a successful member of our SOM faculty.

Teach The Student to Teach Themselves – This area, in broad terms, is the art of critical thinking and problem-solving. The most valuable thing a music teacher can give to a student is the art and science of practicing. This ability – to delve into a piece of music, etude or technical exercise, take it apart methodically, and patiently put it back together again – is the greatest gift one can have for a lifetime of learning. I tell my students in lessons that they have the full capability to learn music and play beautifully through their own passions without a teacher, if they are driven enough. However, without developing the art of practicing, the route may be winding and inefficient.

 Experience and Reflect. This philosophy has driven my text book choices and lesson plans in Percussion I and Percussion II classes. Often I bring in a percussion ensemble piece and have students jump in and play the parts, learning the how-to’s along the way.  Upon reflection, the group usually discovers they are acquiring learning strategies as well as the piece.  Students in Percussion II for Music Therapy learn to lead a drum circle mostly by experimentation and thinking on their feet, with the understanding that the goal is to facilitate an inclusive musical experience for everyone.

 Prepare Students To Be Versatile – Across all degree programs, my students are trained in such a way that they “can say yes to anything” that comes their way in employment or opportunity. A significant part of my own success as a professional is grounded in my versatility. Our percussion curriculum includes classical literature, jazz and contemporary music, but the specific content of lesson material has changed over time in order to keep up with current demands in the fields of performance, teaching, music therapy and music business. I draw on my own experience as well as my students’ understanding of what they should know.

My philosophy of Inclusion may be best illustrated with our Nazareth College Percussion Ensemble, which began in 1984, when I decided the group should be open to anyone on campus with percussion experience. Some years I only had non-percussion majors, and so I learned how to choose repertoire that everyone could play. For two amazing years, I had a Zimbabwean student, Goodwell Nzou (chemistry major), in our Percussion Ensemble – he brought Zimbabwean marimbas, showed us how to play them, and we learned some of his music. In return, he played instruments by ear in our group on our pieces.  We learned to sing in Ndebele!  We have even had non-percussion faculty play in our group over the years.

I believe in demanding excellence, which has changed only in practical application over 40 years, as students and culture have evolved significantly. It has become more difficult to be critical of a student’s work without being perceived as insensitive or non-supportive. This area of my teaching is constantly evolving and propels me to continue my own learning through professional development and having discussions with colleagues in all areas, not just music.

In conclusion, I will end where I began. A result of the first teaching “philosophy” that operated within me, Loving the Student, is that I have been able to continue relationships with students after graduation. I am still in touch with those I taught from the eighties to the present; and I have been invited to play marimba at five former students’ weddings. These relationships have brought me great joy and growth; and for my students, a connection that continues as they enter the next phases of their lives as professionals, parents and community members.