A teacher you encouraged you lots and told you your main weaknessed but wasn't particularly picky, or a teacher who gave you an honest, if brutal, opinion?

Someone who gave me an honest opinion.

As long as it remains constructive criticism, they can say what they like about your playing. Good teachers will highlight your weaknesses and suggest ways to improve them. If you can't take that criticism, that's your own problem. My best teachers have been really picky, perfectionists, always works.

Honest and brutal, except for the lesson before an important audition/competition/exam. Then they have to be nice

True (and if you'd just borken down in tears and sobbed that you were terrible and were going to fail everything)

Always brutal. My current instructor doesn't quite care about his students in either way. The person who taught me clarinet was the meanest guy I have ever met. I can still play clarinet four times as good as sax, but I've been playing sax twice as long.

lol yeah I was thinking that! I'd rather mine was brutal, if not demoralising, coz it gives me some incentive to do better! Plus I'm a srt of perfectionnist, so it sort of matches

honest opinion it's so annoying when people just tell you things were good and don't give you any ideas for improvements - especially as i'm usually harsher on myself than my teachers are

My classical guitar teacher only used to say "that was good", only if it ever was, praise was scarce, but then it was extra good when you did get it, cos you knew you had done really well!

Well, seeing as my teacher always gives me her brutal opinion and made me cry last week, I think I'd rather have an encouraging teacher for a change! A mixture of both would be ideal though!

Honest and brutal are not the same thing. Teacher's need to be supportive, to highlight what you CAN do, where you HAVE improved, while at the same time picking up what you need to work on. This doesn't have to be a harsh or unpleasant experience.

I think you do need to have weaknesses pointed out, but there generally is no need to be 'brutal' about it. I think the two posts just above mine (july's and meerkat's) sum it up just nicely.

I would rather a have mix of both- an honest teacher who gave constructive advice on how to improve my playing, but was mean about. also, a teacher who told what was good and were you have improved.

The worse teacher ever will be- one that tells you off for doing something wrong but not telling you how to improve.

I have an honest teacher who points out the faults nicely, and then tells me how to get rid of them. When I had a crisis last week, and wondered if I should carry on with the flute, she gave me loads of encouragement. I am still playing.
Beverley.

Without being constructive, any criticism isn't worth listening to. Simply slagging someone off without offering any words or advice on how they might correct the errors or amend their problems is pointless. A good teacher will balance honesty with integrity; taking the pupils personality into consideration and adapting their approach to how they phrase critisism.

I teach a couple of hard-nosed teenagers who can take it or leave it as far as criticism is concerned, but I also teach a variety of students for whom a more sensitive approach is required. Good teaching is knowing which approach to use and when to get tough. Knowing what the student aspires to is also a key. If I spoke to my adult or non-exam students in the same manner as someone who's looking to make a career in performing, then I'd lose all of them very rapidly.

I have always been far harder on myself and my own skills than any teacher (bar one!) that I have had. Being tough on yourself is good in some ways, but it's essential to be objective at the same time.

Honest opinions do matter and are a really good way of improving but being TOO brutal could damage/ruin someones love of music or that instrument.

I agree.

Being honest and pointing out weaknesses doesn't have to be brutal and doesn't have to preclude being encouraging.

And criticism for the sake of it is completely unhelpful.

Constructive criticism is always useful! (as long as it's not brutality) I think that my instrumental teachers have got the right balance, especially my viola teacher as I know that she'll always be honest about what I've done but not be brutal.