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Instrumental Teaching by Janet Mills. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2007. 224 pp., paperback. ISBN: 9780193359086

Instrumental Teaching by the late Janet Mills (2007) is a companion volume to Music in the School (2005) and duplicates a small quantity of material. Mills wrote from rich experience as a teacher, esteemed scholar and Her Majesty’s Inspector of Schools. She was involved with LEA music services in the UK and, until her sad and untimely death in December 2007, was Research Fellow at the Royal College of Music, London. There is a multidimensional approach in Instrumental Teaching that produces a different tenor to other recent books on the topic (e.g. Mixon, 2007). Mills has woven her book by interlacing strands of critically reviewed research literature with music luminaries’ stories, longstanding personal experience, reflection and thought-provoking reasoning. The book will appeal greatly to academic audiences and educational practitioners alike. Chapters 2 and 3 are teacher-centred as they ask ‘Why teach an instrument?’ These are a heartening opening, emphasising the need for training and drawing on attitudinal research on conservatoire students and educational careers. Research data comparing the UK, US and Australian students, will be of great interest to an international audience. Mills wrote of UK circumstances from two angles: whereas Chapter 2 pertains to commonalities between the classroom and instrumental teaching, Chapter 3 turns to contrasts. Many UK instrumental teachers – those employed by LEAs – are active supporters of musical learning in school classrooms. These peripatetic specialists typically visit a number of schools per day to present small-group lessons. Mills observes that a 1999–2000 survey of 20 music services by the Office for Standards in Education (Ofsted) revealed higher-standard lessons from those with Qualified Teacher Status (mandatory for class teachers). Other instrumental teachers operate independently, though, either visiting schools or in working in private practice; they ‘paddle their own canoes’. In the saddest cases I have observed, these teachers dispense wisdom that spotlights instrument-specific skills whilst shunning child-centredness, creativity and links with a wider school curriculum; they perhaps feel exempt from pedagogical systems that permit inclusion. In raising the issue of ‘match’ with compulsory schooling, Mills has contributed to an ongoing and essential debate regarding the place of UK instrumental teachers and professionalism. Ensuing chapters painstakingly explore, scrutinise and debunk matters surrounding topics including ‘Why take instrumental lessons?’, ‘What instrument?’, ‘The first lesson’ and ‘Planning a programme of lessons’. There are many well-presented tables and figures. For higher education students and trainee educators, the general index, index of authors, plus list of abbreviations, are handy. The extensive referencing introduces a plethora of germane material. Without hesitation, I recommend this book, which due to its depth of reflection, clarity and stimulating disposition will become a cornerstone of literature on instrumental music education.