Inaugural Music Education Day held in Saskatchewan

With mallets up and ukuleles tuned, the students at Jack MacKenzie School awaited the cue from the instructor to begin playing.

On Thursday — the first-ever Music Education Day in Saskatchewan — the students performed an acoustically fantastic rendition of “You Are My Sunshine.”

Kaitlyn Redding, the president of the Saskatchewan Music Educators Association (SMEA), said she has seen music education come a long way in the past 15 years within the province.

“It’s (gone from) something that was held quietly to something that was celebrated across the province,” said Redding.

Redding said the reason Music Education Day was created is so kids can continue to stay involved in the bandroom and the choir chamber.

“Students find a place to belong, they find a place to be happy, and it’s a creative outlet for kids,” said Redding.

Holly Hou and Lanna Loewen are two students who sang in the ensemble during Thursday’s performance. They are both starting Grade 8 and play the flute in band class.

“Music is really fun,” said Hou. “Since we’re both in band, we get to meet different people and we get to have fun playing instruments.”

Hou said they have a “great teacher that makes everything fun” every time they show up to class.

“It’s a really fun experience because lots of people are very supportive,” said Loewen. “It’s really fun to learn new notes and how the instrument works.”

Both students are quite involved in the music room and stage as they both performed in the Spring Musical, Alice in Wonderland.

Jennifer McAllister, a music educator and psychologist, said the power of music has a positive impact on children.

“Science is actually showing us every day how powerful music is in terms of the brain,” said McAllister.

Brain-scanning technology has improved vastly in the past couple of years, showing children’s brains grew quicker when music was involved in the curriculum.

“An investment in music education in young people is an investment for people for their whole life,” said McAllister.

Dr. Devin Seghers, a psychologist, echoed McAllister that music education has great effects on kids.

“The benefits of music are far-reaching, especially in the teenage years,” said Seghers.

Seghers said one of the greatest finds is that students who study music are often a year ahead of their peers. Students who participate in music education often excel in subjects like math, science and English.