How Marley Hamon ’20 helps her students explore their love for music
By Ashley Pauls
K-State Alumni Association
When Marley Hamon ’20 works with students at her music academy in Valley Falls, Kansas,
she encourages them to imagine that they’re painting a picture inside other people’s
minds whenever they perform a song.
“‘How do you want the audience to feel?’” she asks. “And I just sit back and wait
and let them answer because nine times out of 10, they are giving me exactly what
I want, or they're surprising me and giving me far more profound answers than what
I had in my head. They inspire me and they teach me right back.”
Hamon has loved music since childhood. She came to K-State to study music education,
and her experiences inspired her to start Valley Falls Music Academy, LLC, where she helps children discover their own love for music.
“We have a range of ages and abilities, and all students have the ability to learn
music. They are all capable,” she said. “That's something I try to send home with
them: don't let the limitations that have been put on you affect how you approach
things in your life, because they have nothing to do with the outcome.
“A lot of people say, ‘Oh, I can't sing, or I could never play an instrument.’ But
we all listen to music, and there's music in movie soundtracks everywhere. We can
all connect to music, and that connects us as humans.”
First experiences in music
Hamon grew up on a ranch near Whiting, Kansas, located about an hour and 30 minutes
east of Manhattan. From a young age, she knew she wanted to pursue a career in music.
After begging her parents for a full year, she started acoustic guitar lessons in
second grade.
“It was my first experience in music,” she said. She remembers thinking, “‘This is
something outside of school that I can choose to do, and I enjoy it.’”
She began singing in fifth grade and will never forget one of her first experiences
at a solo and ensemble contest.
“I was really scared,” she recalls. “And my mom still has the video of me looking
petrified and like I got no sleep. I looked 40 years old in a fifth grade body. The
judges were very nice, and that kind of started my thought process of, ‘Oh, I might
be good at this’ or ‘I might have something here that is worth looking into.’”
She continued singing throughout high school and also started learning piano her senior
year — driving 45 minutes to Topeka to take lessons once a week.
Although she appreciated everything she learned as a student, her school had a high
music teacher turnover rate during her time there. She missed having the stability
of a regular mentor. She determined that one day, she’d like to be that type of mentor
for children who loved music, and she decided to study music education in college.
“Deep down, I knew that I wanted to do something a little bit different than the traditional
teacher teaching in the classroom at a public school or private school, even,” she
said.
She was drawn to K-State based on the university’s variety of choral opportunities,
ranging from a capella to classical music. She also appreciated the welcoming spirit
on campus.
“I grew up on a ranch, so it felt like a good place to go where I was welcomed for
my country roots, but also my love for Broadway,” she said. “I could combine both
of those things, which are very, very different realms to be in. I felt very accepted
walking in with that background and also having other interests than my classmates.”
Building a business
One of the most important things Hamon learned at K-State was the value of perseverance.
She initially struggled with music theory, but refused to give up on her dream of
being a music educator.
“I just sat down every night in my room and worked really hard to pull that grade
back up,” she said. “And by the end of that semester, my composition was chosen for
the recital. That really helped build my confidence that even though things were going
to be tough, more difficult than I thought, it's up to me if I work hard enough to
learn those things that are more challenging in the beginning.”
Hamon graduated in the midst of the 2020 COVID pandemic, and was unable to have her
senior recital. Instead, she was graded based on a Zoom performance. She continued
to press on towards her dream, teaching music at a private school in Topeka.
“That was really fun to be able to get instruments in younger kids' hands and teach
them about some of their very first instruments,” she said.
After the birth of her son in 2022, she stepped back from the classroom and decided
to focus on raising a family. However, her love for teaching music remained, and she
remembers sitting down with her husband several months later and brainstorming how
she could balance all her goals.
Her husband suggested hosting one-on-one music lessons at their home. She started
with five kids a week, teaching voice, piano and guitar. She kept adding to her schedule,
and finally realized it was time to look for outside business space to conduct her
lessons.
“I have an amazing landlord who I actually know from my high school years,” she said.
“I called him and said, ‘Hey, I see you have this big space for lease. I'd like to
look at it.’”
That space ended up not being the right fit, but he offered to show Hamon another
option: a former chiropractic office.
“I'm not kidding — I drew a picture a year prior of my perfect walk-in space: two
classrooms, a front welcome desk, and a big back room for conferences or group classes.
That's exactly how it was built. I walk in and I go, ‘This is it.’”
Empowering students to learn
Hamon said her teaching philosophy centers on student-led lessons.
“I want them answering the questions, not yes or no; I want critical thinking happening.
And so, even with the littlest ones, ages five and six, I'm pointing at something
and going, ‘What note is this?’ After we've discussed it and we've explained it, and
I say, ‘Okay, how many beats is that worth?’”
For her more advanced students, she inspires them to fully immerse themselves in the
music.
“You've got to allow the kids to lead their own education because otherwise they begin
to feel trapped in a corner, like there's only right or wrong answers, and they just
have to put in their time and get out,” she said. “And that's not what I want my academy
to be about. I want them to be there because they want to be, because their parents
are thrilled that they're there. I want us all working together with one goal in mind
and pushing them towards excellence. But they're the ones leading the charge.”
And when a student experiences a break-through, or encounters a piece of music in
a new or profound way?
“That look of awe on their face — that has always been my inspiration as a teacher,”
Hamon says. “When you teach a kid something, and they understand that they did it,
there's no better feeling.”
