We have music on the brain—all sorts of music. All. The. Time. We love to share music and musical learning with children and families in studios, schools, childcare centers, and more. Introducing children to a wide variety of musical genres gives them a greater understanding of what is possible through music. Today, thanks to a new study from Johns Hopkins University, we have jazz music on the brain. Here’s why.
What jazz teaches us about language development
Led by Charles Limb, M.D., the study tracked the brain activity of jazz musicians in the process of “trading fours.” Trading fours is a musical term that refers to jazz improvisation when solo instrumentalists take turns playing four measures each. The musicians respond to each other by repeating, elaborating, and altering what another musician plays.
During the study, 11 skilled jazz musicians participated. Limb and his team found that improvisation activated areas of the brain linked to syntactic processing. However, the musical exchange deactivated brain structures involved in semantic processing. In language development, semantic processing happens when the brain encodes the meaning of a word and relates it to similar words with similar meaning. Syntactic processing happens when the brain computes certain aspects of meaning from the underlying structure and not simply from the linear string of words.
“Until now, studies of how the brain processes auditory communication between two individuals have been done only in the context of spoken
language,” explained Limb in a press release. “When two jazz musicians seem lost in thought while trading fours, they aren’t simply waiting for their turn to play," Limb said. "Instead, they are using the syntactic areas of their brain to process what they are hearing so they can respond by playing a new series of notes that hasn’t previously been composed or practiced."
“We’ve shown in this study that there is a fundamental difference between how meaning is processed by the brain for music and language. Specifically, it’s syntactic and not semantic processing that is key to this type of musical communication. Meanwhile, conventional notions of semantics may not apply to musical processing by the brain,” he concluded.
5 ideas for using jazz improvisation with children at home and in the classroom
Idea #1: Go on a virtual field trip by attending a jazz concert. Try listening to one of the world’s best jazz pianists, Keith Jarrett. He improvised this entire performance.
Idea #2: Get out your own instruments or use your voices to improvise a family or classroom concert. Try your own version of “trading fours” by taking turns.
Idea #3: Learn more about the origins of jazz and play some jazz music online at PBSKids.
Idea #4: Explore various types of jazz music on Pandora, Spotify, or iTunes radio. Try jazz musicians such as Esperanza Spalding, Miles Davis, Preservation Hall Jazz Band or even one of the jazz genre stations.
Idea #5: While listening to jazz, move expressively around the room together. Movement is another way to experience the value of improvisation and emotional expression, while also gaining an appreciation of jazz music.
Interested in learning how other genres of music unlock a child’s potential, including early language development? Come visit a Kindermusik Class today.
According to the authors of the book 
“This partnership with Kindermusik emphasizes the important, proven connection between literacy and music,” said LeVar Burton, RRKidz/Reading Rainbow co-founder. “We know that when young children are engaged by music in age-appropriate ways, they can build skills that are the foundation for reading. By integrating the other arts and sciences, we aim to further inspire a lifelong love of learning.”
We are embarking on a beautiful time of year, dedicated to love, love love! 
“…it brings families together and is FUN!” ~ Debby Pool, Vice President, Product Development/Owner
“… of what we do for children all over the world. Music is something REALLY special — and it’s hard to imagine that music isn’t part of the lives of some children. I truly hope that one day we will, indeed, bring the gift of music (Kindermusik) into the life of every child — amazing things would happen — of that I am certain. I also <3 Kindermusik because of my fellow employee-owners and our educators. Working with and getting to know such talented and strong individuals is awe-inspiring — and — so many friendships have been made over the years — friendships that remain constant for the rest of my life — of that I am certain, as well.” ~ Connie Schor, Manager, Educator Communication/Owner 
“…Every day is an exciting journey, touching the lives of children and helping them discover the creativity that is inside of them. The best part of my job is sharing with parents how intelligent and artistic their children are, and that these children communicate their talents in many different ways. The glow on their faces is incomparable, as they realize the many unique ways that their children are special!”—Crisel Consunji, Hong Kong
“Music class is the best part of being a kid.” ~ Marcus
” ~ Alicia
“When I went to a trial of Kindermusik I thought I was going to a singing class. It is so much more. Children learn to share, listen, express themselves and they don’t even know they are learning. They have so much fun and for my daughter, it increased her confidence 10 fold. Thank you Kindermusik.” – Louise T.
“I love that I can share the joy of music with my sons of different ages, in a relaxed and warm environment. The first time my youngest son sang the ‘Goodbye’ song to me at home made me realize just how much they really do absorb in class!” –Lindsay J.
The term scaffolding evokes the image of a temporary support structure in a construction site. The process of scaffolding in an educational sense is much like the traditional definition of scaffolding as a temporary support system used until a task is complete and a building stands without support. That sounds a lot like our job as parents, doesn’t it? We provide a temporary support system for our children until they can stand on their own in the world.
In Kindermusik, we give you lots of opportunities to babble, bond, and build connections that prompt early communication and enhance language development through songs, rhymes, vocal play, bounces, and more. We help you mix up your language-building parentese with singing, talking, and rhyming, to expose your baby to a variety of sounds that will aid her singing and language development. Language AND music AND learning – just one of the many benefits of early music learning you’ll enjoy in Kindermusik.