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Caleb Warnar
Kari K Veblen
Music 1800
October 25, 2015
Tobias, E. S. (2014). From musical detectives to DJs: Expanding aural skills and analysis
through engaging popular music and culture. General Music Today, OnlineFirst, 1-5. doi:
10.1177/1048371314558293

This article addresses how music culture is changing over time, as well as how students
and young people use technology as part of their practical application of music. Tobias
discusses the importance of broadening music education beyond just classical instruction, and
in turn developing aural skills and forms of analysis that are of interest to students.

I found it interesting that Tobias suggested the possibility of school music programs that
instruct students to play and learn music without using standard notation. I find this concept to
be both very abstract and practical. I have found that in most forms of classical education,
students will merely play just what is on the page and do not necessarily always rely on their
ear in order to play musically beyond the page. By instructing students to exclusively use their
ear in music, I believe that students will be better equipped for practical music experiences
outside of just classical music. Examples may include balancing better with a band,
jamming/improvising at a gig. Ultimately, this may allow for bands/orchestras to more easily
achieve a unified sound, which is a sought after by many classical ensembles. Additionally,

when students are forced to use their ear they no longer divide their concentration between
reading a sheet of music and playing their part musically.
It was surprising to learn of Tobias perspective on DJs, since I had a negative pre-
conceived idea of DJs in the world of music. According to Tobias, DJs are responsible for
gauging the musical interest of the crowd and responding appropriately. Also, DJs will mix and
layer music as part of their work. While I realize that our culture primarily listens to recorded
music, I personally believe that DJ-ing requires very little skill in comparison to musicians who
have trained all of their life on a particular instrument. However, as Tobias describes, DJ-ing
demands a totally different type of skill than live performers.
I have also found the topic of music and technology to be both fascinating and
frustrating. This is because I realize the musical potential that technology provides, but also the
restrictions that it places on students. The many benefits of technology in music include: music
distribution, recording, and editing. However, I think that pre-recorded music, such as music
played by DJs, is very automatic and demands little skill in a performance setting. My only
caution is that if Dj-ing (or pre-recorded music) is integrated into the school system, it may
actually hinder some aspects of creativity. This is because most DJ-ing actually just involves
playing or sampling music composed by others. Also, I find that when music is only made
through a computer, the music will often sound less human with less dynamic, improvisational,
and personal elements inside the music itself.

Overall, I found most of Tobias suggestions regarding new forms of music education

surrounding technology to be very practical and useful. While I agree with many of his
suggestions, I also think that his objective to broaden education beyond classical music is taken

to the extreme. Most of his suggestions actually rely heavily on aspects of classical music,
whether it is musical knowledge in general or musical technique. Even some of the most
successful DJs in the world, such as ZEDD, are classically trained. I fear that with the growth of
digital and processed music, there will be less need for live musicians over time. It is critical to
realize that if new forms of music are introduced into the education system, classical instruction
must not be eliminated or diminished in any way.