Learning to Play

The notion that it is easy to play pan may be true but it may take many hours of practice to become an accomplished player.

Traditionally, you learn to play the pan by ear. Learning by ear is a good foundation to study any kind of music.  

If you are taught by a tutor, traditionally you are taught by rote. Learning by rote is the learning or memorising by repetition.

Long before music notation, music was passed down from generation to generation by chanting. The most natural way was to sing or play a phrase and have it repeated immediately.  Any corrections are made by listening and correcting the phrase were necessary until it is accurate. This method develops the pupils ear for recognising phrases and develops a relationship with the tutor.  It also a great resource as a group of students can be taught at the same time.  

Rote memory is used widely in foundation education: multiplication tables, learning a foreign language, phonics in reading and the anatomy in biology.

Music literacy is a symbolic language that engages the visual as well as the auditory cortex. By reading music, numerous avenues can be explored. 

Today, there are many ways to learn to play pan. You may use an arranger or tutor, books, CDs DVDs or the internet.