Wastage from Instrumental Classes in Schools

A survey showed that in the schools of a large Local Education Authority one in every two children who began lessons on an orchestral instrument in September 1969 had dropped out by the end of the fourth term of lessons. Wastage was greater in the secondary schools than in the primary schools, and greater among boys than among girls. The Bentley Measures of Musical Abilities, administered after the children had begun lessons, provided evidence that many pupils had been selected who to a greater or lesser extent lacked the fundamental abilities of pitch discrimination and melodic and rhythmic memory without which any attempt to learn to play an orchestral instrument is likely to be unsuccessful. A number of other factors were examined which it was thought might be useful as predictors of perseverance with instrumental lessons. In the light of the results and of a consideration of current methods of selection for instrumental training, it is suggested that a more rigorous procedure of initial selection might greatly reduce wastage from instrumental classes.