Enhancing the enrollment of students into music education in Nigerian tertiary institutions through ethos and pathos

The doctrine of ‘Ethos’ asserts that music affects character and emotion of man by way of morals or ethics. The implication of this is that music has a profound ability to alter the way we think, feel and behave. Many Nigerian songs are full of ethos, a crying baby is often calmed and lured to sleep by her mother’s use of gentle lullabies. What else can do this, if not the melodious supremacy of musical art? Similarly, musicians, through the use of artistic language, systematically employ Pathos in their musical compositions as evidenced in most of their dirges. This study X-ray various kinds of parodies the Nigerian society has formed about the music study which directly or indirectly have contributed to poor enrollment of students in the music programme of both Colleges of education and Universities in Nigeria, and through the application of Ethos and Pathos, some of these misconceptions were debunked. The study employs a survey research design. The population for the study comprises one hundred (100) respondents. Sample comprises fifty (50) respondents. Data is gathered through the use of questionnaire. The study reveals that the choice of anyone to study music does not necessary mean that he or she is lazy. The researchers recommend that people should stop believing fallacies about music education and see it as a viable and gainful enterprise.