San Angelo Children Learn About Music Through Reading

At 10:30 a.m. this morning at the Stephens Central Library, Hector Guzman, Music Director for the San Angelo Symphony read a book to many eager children.

“I was invited by the library to come and talk to the kids. [I] read them the book The Remarkable Farkle McBride,” Guzman said. “It is a book by John Lithgow, who is a very well-known actor. He has taken a fictitious name and character named Farkle McBride. [He] started playing instruments at the age of three, but was never satisfied. He was never happy until he was in front of an orchestra.”

Guzman has been reading this book to children at the Stephens Library for three years now. He chose The Remarkable Farkle McBride because “[the book] gives you a panorama of the different instruments of the orchestra.”

“I’ve done this many times, and every time the kids gets excited about music, that’s the goal,” Guzman explained. “Kids are [the symphony's] future audience. They need to know and hear about music when they are young. The younger the better.”

Children of all ages came to listen to the book reading this morning.

Guzman said, “This is probably the crowd that has been the youngest that I’ve talked to, and [sometimes] that can be a challenge. [Some of the kids] were familiar with the instruments and the music. But even if they are not, the good thing about the book is that it has beautiful illustrations.”

As the kids listened idly, they were able to identify instruments from the illustrations. Guzman explained, “[When] I open the book, the kids can relate. So even if they don’t know what I’m talking about, they look at the pictures and say, 'Ah, that’s what a flute looks like.'"

Guzman ended the story with a smile on his face. He said, “It is very satisfying to see their reaction at all ages. To spark an interest in music [for these kids], I think that is the most satisfying thing about reading these books to the kids.”