We’ve all heard that age-old phrase, “Those who can’t do, teach.” We’ve also all heard the much needed addendum to that phrase, “Those who can do, teach.” As a singer with the utmost respect for her teachers, and as a teacher myself, I’d like to take that phrase a step further to say “Those who can do, should teach.”
I’ll clarify first by saying that I do not believe that this means you should only teach, or that you should always teach, but there are some unique skills that teaching can offer you as a performer.
Perspective
When you study something as abstract as voice, you don’t realize how hard it is to communicate what needs to be done until you’re the one trying to communicate it. You may hear what’s wrong, you may know what needs to be done, but you might also be working with a student who has a limited or different vocal lexicon.
Self-Reflection
You become filled with a much deeper respect for the teachers who have taught you. Furthermore, it makes you re-evaluate how you use your instrument. Teaching makes you go back to basics.
Well-roundedness
Many of us as young singers especially will have students that are brand new to singing, have lives and careers very different from ours, and want to sing things very different from what we sing (jazz, musical theater, even… pop). This is great training for us as musicians to stretch ourselves into other genres and styles. Most of us have done it at some point in our training, but once we specialize, we sometimes lose sight of what each genre has to offer.
So it may be a bit egocentric to put it this way, but I believe all singers should teach at some point in their careers to improve their own craft. If you find added benefits through personal fulfillment, pride in your students, and maybe a little extra cash (and you probably will find some of these benefits), then more power to you! The main point I want you take away from this is that those who can do, should teach. It will benefit their craft, benefit others, and support the music community at large.
What other benefits have you found from teaching? What have you learned as a teacher? As always, your comments are greatly appreciated!