Super Hero Music Educators!(Yoga Series 2 of 5)
Narrator: Faster than a metronome set to prestissimo! More powerful than a full brass section! Able to leap octaves as easily as turning on a light switch!
Man 1: Look! In the hallway! It's a student.
Woman: It's the principal.
Man 2: It's our music teacher!
Music educators are unsung superheroes. Sometimes, more accurately, over-sung superheroes, as many music educators have lost their voice or even experienced vocal nodules due to vocal overuse from teaching. But wouldn’t it be nice to have Superman’s powers? No student would get by saying they left their cell phone in their locker (where it's supposed to be) when your Superman powers can clearly see it in their pocket. All joking aside, you, as a music educator, have some serious powers of your own. But unlike Superman, you put in hours upon hours of practice learning your instruments, learning to control your voice, and honing your conducting skills. Your dedication and muscle control rival those of professional athletes.
But whether you are careful and always use correct movements or were never taught safe practices, you can experience negative physical symptoms working as a music educator. Music educators are part teacher, part musician, and part conductor, which makes you a unique population for research. While researching, I found a great definition of a music conductor that I feel applies to all music educators: they are a “professional mover, teacher, researcher, psychologist, and arts advocate” (Daley et al., 2020).
A study on music teachers found that 77% experience physical symptoms, most often in the neck, shoulders, and back
A study of workers’ compensation claims by music professionals found 69.78% of claims were due to playing-related physical symptoms,
with issues in the upper limbs the most common (Stanhope et al., 2020).
For vocalists, symptoms were experienced the most in the shoulders, neck, lower back, and wrist/hand (Stanhope et al., 2021)
Conductors experienced symptoms in their necks, backs, and shoulders (Daley et al., 2020).
Music teaching takes a toll on the physical body. But why am I suggesting yoga as a self-care option? Because the physical body is just one part of you, and yoga can be self-care for all of you, for your physical, mental, and emotional well-being.
To not bombard you with studies and details, I will simply state that yoga has been proven multiple times to be as effective or more effective than standard physical therapy or mindfulness exercises in improving overall health. I, however, am an information junky. So if you are like me, here are some studies you can check out that support yoga’s proven ability: Govindaraj et al., 2016; Moliterno, 2008; Hayes & Chase, 2010; Savvidou & Myers, 2016; and Metri et al., 2023.
There is a plethora of research available on the benefits of yoga for educators and musicians. Digging through all the content to find the gems is challenging. I wrote a 100+ page thesis on optimizing yoga for music educators’ needs, and there was still so much more I could have written! This blog series gives me a chance to share a small slice of that information with you. I encourage you to reach out to me and to others and continue the conversation.
Ready to step on the mat with me today? Here is a 10-minute sequence targeting an area where music educators commonly have negative symptoms: Yoga for Neck, Shoulders, Upper Back
If you want more of a full-body sequence, this 15-minute practice is one of my favorites! Don’t let the title put you off, morning just means it wakes up the body and energizes it. Like a movement-based cup of coffee, good for any time of you when you need an energy boost.
