Xan's Music Together Blog

Share Your Musical Memories with Us!

To celebrate Sing With Your Child Month 2012, we’d like to find out what songs have been most meaningful to you. Is there a particular lullaby or folksong you will always associate with your grandmother? Growing up, did you dance along to the “West Side Story” soundtrack or sing silly songs around the campfire? Have you shared this music with your own son or daughter?

Create a video sharing your musical memory—and, in the spirit of Music Together and Sing With Your Child Month, include your family, too. Sing that lullaby with your son or daughter or put on the musical soundtrack and have a dance party!

Every family who submits a video will be entered into a drawing to win musical prizes, including the grand prize: a free semester of Music Together classes!

Visit the contest page for more details, to upload your video, and for filming tips from our A/V Department. Videos will be accepted through March 31—so start working on yours today! All clips will be shared on the Music Together YouTube Channel, so keep an eye out for them throughout the month of March. Contest Page

And, don’t forget to visit the Sing With Your Child Month web page, where you’ll find music-making ideas and weekly giveaways in March. Remember, too, the simplest—and most important—way to celebrate Sing With Your Child Month is to simply gather your family together and share a favorite song. We hope you enjoy creating more musical memories with your family!

In a Music Together classroom, there is so much stimuli for infants. If you have a baby in a music class, you will notice how quickly they develop musically. Babies are in constant download mode and therefore just being in the room is enough. The music, the motions (like hand clapping, egg shaking, etc.), the getting up and dancing with baby, bouncing to the beat and so much music making activity will constantly help develop the infants as their neurons are connecting. These are connections they will never lose and some babies, by the time they are almost 2 can keep a steady beat already!

Here’s my infant story. Feel free to share yours too! My twins were 2.5 when my youngest was born so I took all 3 kids to Music Together classes. The twins kept me plenty busy so I pretty much had to ignore my 2 month old. He, however, would be sitting in the car seat with eyes and ears wide open. Without me even knowing it, he was getting more out of the class than the twins did. By the time he was 2, he could keep a steady beat to any song. His big brother was already taking Suzuki violin lessons at Longmont Suzuki Strings where the teacher encouraged the younger siblings to start even earlier. At age 2, he started violin lessons. When he turned 3 years old, I switched him to cello. He is now 13 and does not remember a time he did not play the cello. He and his brother just performed today at Macke Auditorium with the Greater Boulder Youth Orchestra. The performance was fantastic! You would not know it was kids performing if you heard them.

If you are ever interested in attending a concert, let me know. The next one will be the first Sunday in May. Also, you can enjoy this video of my cellist performing in 2010, when he was 12. It’s great to share videos with your little ones so they see people playing live instruments. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oLIaoTYEZJ4

I am having so much fun teaching the Bells CD. We are in the midst of week 3 already! After 2 weeks of class, you may have noticed your children doing musical activities at home. Hopefully you’ve had a chance to listen to the Bells CD at home and/or in the car. Remember, all kids thrive upon repetition. We adults also learn with repetition so as you practice the activities in class, the more you’ll retain and thus be able to enhance your child’s musical development in the comfort of your own home. Music tends to calm little ones so don’t hesitate to sing wherever you are – in public places too! Who knows, you might be in line at the grocery store while singing “Two Little Kitty Cats” and a family nearby who also takes Music Together will join in with you! Music Together is world-wide and you are part of that community as well.

During class, I’m usually so busy making music, I forget to take time to explain things about the Music Together philosophy and wonderful research they’ve done with early child musical development so if ever you have any questions, fell free to ask. I’ve created this interactive blog for parents to share their stories involving music in and out of class. Tell me what’s happening at home.

Today’s topic:

Some children like to observe in class – soak it all in – there is A LOT TO SOAK IN – in a Music Together class. It’s as if they do not want to miss anything and if they participate, they shift the focus away from observing and relocate the focus clapping, tapping, etc. In the comfort of their own home, these children will usually practice what they’ve observed. Have you seen this happen in your home?

Research shows this to be a sign of maturity. If your child is in this observing phase, encourage them, but during class be sure to participate yourself. Here’s why:

1. You need the repetition in order to learn the activities to play at home with your kids,
2. You are the most important model to your children so they will learn more from you than anyone else and
3. Every adult in a Music Together class is a model for not only your own child but for the child across the room who is watching you. Be sure to not pass on timidness to your kids. Get down and boogie! Pant like a dog! Meow like a cat! Your kids will love it.

Read this article about the importance of early childhood musical education: It makes your kids smarter if they are actively practicing music making.
http://www.sfcv.org/article/music-and-cognition-the-mozart-effect-revisited