The Cross Over Movement Blog

I saw The Visitor yesterday, which I thought was an excellent film. In the beginning, Walter, an older college professor, takes a piano lesson from a woman. The woman offers the same instruction she gives to little kids and ultimately Walter decides to find a new piano teacher. The woman says that it is very hard for a man of Walter’s age to learn a new instrument.

Later, he meets Tariq who teaches him to play the African drum. Tariq explains that playing the African drum is very different than the classical music to which Walter listens. Classical music is based on a four-count while the African drim is based on a three-count. Tariq challenges Walter to keep playing and eventually gets Walter to play with a drum circle in NYC.

While the move was not about learning musical instruments, the approach each takes was very telling. When the woman failed to get through to Walter, she blamed Walter. It was not her inability to instruct, but his age which she saw as the limiting factor. She had a belief that at his age, learning the piano was not something he could do.

Many coaches fall into this trap. When players make mistakes, they blame the players for not paying attention, or maybe suggest that the player lacks the ability to be good at the particular skill. Rarely does the coach address his own short comings in his technique.

The piano teacher tried to reach Walter, a college professor, with the same tools she used with little kids. If nothing else, this is insulting to the man and likely does not provide the same value in terms of the explanation as it does with a kid.

Coaches sometimes do the same thing, trying to use the same teaching style with all players. Teaching a nine-year-old and teaching a college players are different tasks requiring different skills, even though the game is the same. The instruction which makes sense to a nine-year-old does not always make sense to a 20-year-old, or vice versa.

Tariq had no preconceived notions and brought his enthusiasm for the drum to his teaching. The piano teacher showed no enthusiasm for the piano. Tariq’s enthusiasm was contagious and he wanted to share the drum with others. He used an important teaching technique, pointing out the difference between his previous experience with classical music and the drum. Then, he got Walter playing immediately. He did not dwell on details - like the rounded of his fingers when playing the piano - but focused Walter on the sound and the beat.

Tariq showed the goal and gave Walter the opportunity to reach it. He challenged Walter, but did not push him too fast. When they arrived at the drum circle, Walter was nervous. Tariq encouraged him. Walter declined. So, Tariq told him to feel the music and join when he was ready.

Many coaches and parents push their kids before the child is ready for that next step. Tariq provided the challenge, but allowed Walter to take the first step. He did not force the performance onto Walter before he was ready.

Tariq used many of the concepts from Cross Over and LTAD, using his enthusiasm as his greatest teaching tool to a beginner and progressing slowly when Walter was psychologically ready, while the piano teacher, with her formal teaching background, illustrated a cluelessness in terms of learning.