ABSTRACT
This chapter focuses on pedagogical sensitivity in music practice. It explores the essential elements of professional practice that are more than the obvious and accepted skills and techniques of effective music teaching. The chapter highlights the values and thinking behind the knowledge and skills through which we support learning. The reflective, sensitive pedagogue lives with the presence of multiple lenses to reframe and enquire as a continual part of the pedagogical process: before the moment, in the moment, after the moment, with colleagues and alone. In order to open up the possibilities for learning, the pedagogue uses different ‘positions’. Fascination as a guiding force for pedagogical decision-making is a revolutionary thought. Pedagogical sensitivity is at the heart of learner-centred professional music practice and can be seen as a means to articulate the tacit dimension of professional knowing and actions. In a teaching situation, awareness of using ‘the right tool for the job’ guides the positioning in action.
