Someone asked "why the arts, why music?" - here's my answer: I've long seen it as my duty to provide a variety of experiences to my children in order to send well rounded adults out into the world. Music, art, athletics, hobbies, community service - all come into play alongside academics. Thus our family rule has been one sport, one musical instrument and one class of some form of art as one of the high school electives. What a child chose was up to them, but once they committed to something they had to finish it before quitting and moving on to something else.

This is a compilation of studies that might interest you: (http://www.ericdigests.org/2004-3/cognitive.html) Studies have shown that music enhances cognitive abilities, and beyond the benefits in the "academic" realm, the ability to create music is a good emotional and artistic outlet.

And as parents of gifted kids, I do think it's important to differentiate between the whining and complaining that comes with kids for whom almost everything ordinary comes far too easy and in persisting in pushing a child to continue something that has become a major conflict for little valuable outcome.

I really admire the OP for having the courage to not only recognize in herself that this issue was something that she needed to explore but for reaching out to others for input in making her decision about how to move forward. We can't always reach out to our friends because we seem like a real diva of a parent when we talk about why we want to push our kids in ways that a parent of a kid with an average IQ would not consider. It's a tough call - every time we face this delimma with our kids as they mature and try new experience - and it comes with no easy answers.

~Lisa
http://www.lisaabeyta.wordpress.com/