Labrador piano teacher hits all the right notes, earns MusicNL nomination
'Even as a young child, I always went to music. It was therapy for me'
It was love at first note for Matthew Barrett many years ago when he sat in front of a piano as a young boy, and now MusicNL is honouring his ongoing pursuit to teach younger generations how to tickle the ivories.
"I've been playing piano since I was seven years old," said Barrett, now 29. "I begged my parents for years."
[Music] was therapy for me.- Matthew Barrett
Barrett is one of three nominees for the Music Educator of the Year award, which he said is "pretty cool."
'It was therapy for me'
Barrett teaches private piano lessons out of his home in Happy Valley-Goose Bay and estimates he's had at least 100 students over the years.
It's more than just a way to earn a living.
I always worried a lot about things, even as a small child...and I always went to music.- Matthew Barrett
"For myself, music was kind of a saviour in a way. I always worried a lot about things, even as a small child," said Barrett.
"So when I started playing piano at seven, it kind of calmed me down… From that point on, when anything ever troubled me or bothered me in life, I always went to music."
Barrett said he has seen similar reactions in some of his students.
"You almost see a switch go off when, all of a sudden, they realize how cool it is or how much something connects within them, and all of a sudden, you can see they just fell in love with it."
Music as a core subject
Barrett, who studied music at St. Francis Xavier University in Nova Scotia, says the importance of music in a child's development often gets overlooked.
"In terms of reading music, especially if you start at a young age, it teaches you math skills, you need to know your alphabet, rhythm, timing," he said.
It's not just one of these subjects that should just be pushed aside.- Matthew Barrett
"Playing music and playing with other people, it teaches you teamwork," said Barrett.
"You're communicating with one another without even talking, so it's a language in itself. It's not just one of these subjects that should just be pushed aside, which it often is, I know."
Dad and daughter duet
When Barrett isn't teaching, he's still at the piano playing his favourites for pleasure, which include Autumn in New York and Billy Joel's She's Always a Woman to Me.
Sometimes, Barrett is even accompanied by the most special of guests — his four-month-old daughter.
It seems whenever I play, she kind of brightens up.- Matthew Barrett
"I take her in the music room quite often and play on the piano. It seems whenever I play, she kind of brightens up. I think she'll enjoy it," he said.
The MusicNL awards will be handed out in Bonavista Oct. 13-16.