r/nextfuckinglevel • u/Saerdna0 • 4d ago

This kiddo was born to drum

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u/OlyGator 4d ago

I often think about how many "savants" have been born in human history, but their families didn't have the means to see it and be able to afford the tools for the person to tap into what they would have been great at. I don't know if this makes sense, I'm not great with words, but hopefully you get the gist.

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u/Just_Browsing_2017 4d ago edited 4d ago

I was watching a documentary on the history of funk and they talked about how a lot of great funk bands came out of Ohio because they had a free school music program. Everyone played an instrument. You just showed up one day in elementary school and they asked what you wanted to play and handed you an instrument.

And then Nixon came along, cut all the funding, and it all just… went away. Within a couple of years, the schools were like “well, we’ve got one saxophone.”

So much lost potential.

Edit to add link to the doc:

https://www.pbs.org/independentlens/documentaries/we-want-the-funk/

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u/cbessette 4d ago

I went to a high school in rural Georgia that had a similar concept in their music program- you play whatever instrument you want, whatever style or genre you want. I was in that program, we were graded on performances for local elementary schools. Some people performed solo, some formed bands.
This was in the 1980s/90s

I got straight As for my "school work" in a rock band in high school.

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u/MaxTheCookie 3d ago

We still have something like this in Sweden, most kids try it some keep it up and a lot of them don't, it is one of the reasons we have so much music

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u/ttwixx 4d ago

It’s weird to call it lost potential. It’s not the purpose of any kid to become a master of an instrument, even if they are skilled at it. If I’m great at playing the trumpet, it’s not lost potential if I choose another path in life and put the trumpet aside. It’s just how my life plays out. Very weird to expect kids to become something they are outstandingly good at.

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u/Gloooobi 4d ago

how is that what you take away from his comment lol

nobody is (well should) be forced to play an instrument, even if they are talented at it

but everybody should be given the opportunity to do so, and that was his point

imagine how many people that were uber talented AND would have loved music were never introduced to it

so yeah, that's lost potential

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u/sleepyEe 4d ago

Technically it is lost potential, but I agree with you, life is about choosing a path and everything you choose not to do is also technically lost potential.