I know a guy in his seventies, who played lead harp in the NY Philharmonic and he only learned to play in high school.
A friend, in her 40s, played violin in Eastern Europe and attended a conservatory and played in orchestras. Her daugher, 9, is now playing violin and the mother commented that to be good now, you have to master pieces in middle school that she learned in conservatory level.
When I was figure skating, triples were stil; unusual for world level competition, just becoming common. Now there are quads.
Mastery at anything is a moving target. When we went to a Young People's concert, I was reading the playbill and it talked about a joint venture the NY Philharmonic was doing in Shanghai to train musicians in China for orchestra. They figure there are at least 10 million quality piano players there. Think of the number and how you compete in a college application in 5-10 years with the talent pool being developed?
Maybe being a Tiger Mom is not the most attractive thing to others, but what are the options to give your kid options?
What is gifted anyway, since the pool is growing?
Yes, you can ask, Howler, is it the mother or the kid who is disciplined. But what are the other options?
What solutions do you have beside critical of the situation. It is like saying we needs jobs in this country. But a solution would be a better use of intercourse.
