Episode 306-Making Music Accessible for Everyone with Bryson Tarbet

Send us a text Bryson Tarbet, founder of That Music Teacher, takes us on a captivating journey through the world of accessible music education. Drawing from his personal experience with ADHD and sensory processing disorder, Bryson reveals how his quest to make the classroom more comfortable for himself evolved into a mission to ensure music is truly accessible for all students. What begins as a conversation about simple seating arrangements quickly expands into a masterclass on creating fully inclusive music environments. Bryson shares practical approaches like offering flexible seating options, adapting instruments with occupational therapists, and color-coding sheet music to help students make visual connections between notation and instrument fingerings. His ingenious solutions range from simple rubber bands that help students grasp mallets to sophisticated one-handed recorders for students with physical disabilities. Beyond the technical aspects of accessibility, Bryson offers a profound perspective on the psychological importance of inclusive music education. He explains how introducing instruments like recorders can create a level playing field where students who typically struggle academically can shine, as everyone starts at the same point regardless of past performance. This insight challenges us to rethink how we structure music education to ensure all students have opportunities to succeed. The conversation takes an unexpected turn when Bryson reveals how COVID-19 forced him to explore alternatives to traditional performance-based music education. This led to the discovery that many seemingly disengaged students were actually deeply musical—they simply resonated with production or technology rather than performance. This revelation has powerful implications for expanding our conception of what music education can and should be. Ready to make your music classroom more inclusive? Follow @thatmusicteacher on Instagram and visit thatmusicteacher.com to access free resources and join the waitlist for the upcoming Elementary Music Summit, where educators worldwide connect to share ideas for creating truly accessible music education. Support the show