This is a comment I posted onto the blog: Catalysts and Connections a couple weeks ago.

Hi etobias! I'm currently a music performance student (oboe) at USC in California, and I have been enjoying your blog for a couple weeks now. I enjoy your take on the progressions of music education in America--it is certainly changing. Although I am studying the oboe at USC, I am quite interested in the advancement and advocacy of music education in the US. Music inspires students and encourages them to be self-motivated and enthusiastic human beings! I'm sure you know that--you're a music teacher! I was excited to see your latest post about Ellen on American Idol. I haven't watched the show for a few seasons, but I never, even as a young music student, felt the show enhanced or detracted from my musical knowledge. Besides the fact that Randy would tend refer to EVERY vocalist as "pitchy," I always felt that the merit in American Idol was in the charisma and bravery of the contestants, who are "everyday people" that perform to millions each week. It's pure entertainment. EveryFan can judge whether or not they thought a performance was entertaining, right? What they probably can't do is explain exactly what elements made it entertaining--the melismatic differences between the contestant and the original, the use of different instrumentation or different tempos. But our culture does not require EveryFan to do that. In which case, why not have Ellen DeGeneres on the show? She also judged on So You Think You Can Dance this summer, with absolutely no technical dance expertise, and she was funny, kind and great guest. At the same time, it's "pure entertainment" that features music. Any outlet that brings music to our country is worth some merit, right? I was able to look over your "American Idol in the Classroom" blogs, and am impressed by the way you talk about giving "constructive criticism" through American Idol examples. In music education, especially with young students, a student who forms an opinion about the music they are playing, based on their musical knowledge, is a student excited about music, indeed! Although I still feel the musical credibility of American Idol is minimal, I am still an advocate for bringing a bit of pop culture into the music classroom--being a music geek isn't so bad! I see the influence of music in the US, and the world, is certainly changing--USC Thornton School of Music began offering a Bachelors of Music degree in Pop Music this year. As a classical musician, I hope the influx of technology and pop culture into the music world does not completely keep Americans away from the beauty and organic nature of orchestral and choral music. Hopefully, we can look forward to the collaboration between classical music and music education with the "real world." Thanks so much for your blog! Best wishes to you.