One part of you may sometimes feel like what you do as an arts educator as little bearing on the world at large. After all, does teaching dance or music really stop climate change?
But another part of you knows that, YES!, what you do absolutely matters! Touching the lives of young people and seeing them grow as artists can be so fulfilling. How do we sqaure these two points of view?
I believe that arts educators have a unique and vital role to play in preparing young people for the upcoming “event horizon” – given crises like climate change, nobody knows what life will be like even 10 years from now. We can prepare the next generation to face this challenge by orienting our students to what brings them alive. Just playing the notes right doesn’t give them the necessary qualities to navigate our uncertain times. But courage, compassion, playfulness, and an orientation towards what is life-giving (what I call Soulforce) absolutely does.
(I recorded this video a couple weeks ago, but am including it in my 100 Days of Soulforce series because it’s on point with the themes I’m exploring.) Today’s video: https://youtu.be/EtWRuMz5eH4
Subscribe to my blog or this YouTube channel to stay tuned.
What’s “100 Days of Soulforce”?
I’m embarking on a mission to spread the word about Soulforce Performing Arts because I believe it is a needed message for artists of all kinds in our times. To that end, I’m making 100 videos over the coming 100 days (or so) to explain all the different angles and ideas, and to hopefully spark inspiration in you! Each video will have inspirational and practical ideas for you to bring more Soulforce to your life as a performing artist.
These ideas are a part of my upcoming book: “Soulforce Performance Arts: Redefining Artistic Performance, Practice, and Pedagogy in a World That’s Lost Its Mind.” Subscribers to my newsletter will get early access and special perks!
Joseph Arnold
Violinist, Alexander Technique teacher, Founder of the Soulforce Arts Academy Sign up for my bodacious mailing list and blog
Violinist, Alexander Technique teacher, Founder of the Soulforce Arts Academy Sign up for my bodacious mailing list and blog
