Uncategorized Archives - Page 7 of 70 - Minds On Music

Growing Up in Kindermusik

[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]When I became licensed to teach Kindermusik way back in 1994, I never imagined what the next twenty-something years would hold for me…or the hundreds of children and families I’ve been privileged to hold in my heart all this time.

Twenty plus years means that many of those babies I had in my lap are now all grown up, and I’m even starting to see a few come back around to teach for me or to bring their own tiny baby to his first class. I still run into those Kindermusik moms who are always so eager to thank me and to proudly tell me that so-and-so went on to study music, or is playing with a music group, or still sits down at the piano to play.

So many of these Kindermusik kids not only went all the way through our Kindermusik program, but stayed on at our music school to take music lessons. And every single one of those parents and kids all recall with great fondness and warmth just how important Kindermusik was to them in those early years.

So what exactly does it mean to “grow up in Kindermusik”? Here’s a bit of perspective from my own years as a Kindermusik mom, a Kindermusik educator, and Director of Piano Central Studios.[/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]

Theresa Case works her magic with a young musician (yes, friends – Kindermusik Educators are magicians!)

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Growing up in Kindermusik means…

Being allowed to gently unfold and blossom at their own pace, thus deepening their love of music and ensuring that love would stay in their hearts for the rest of their lives.
Reveling in a nurturing environment where each individual was lovingly encouraged to be themselves, to play and be curious and creative, and along the way, to discover for themselves just how much they could come to love making music.
Finding a place to belong, to linger in the delights of childhood, and to savor moments that will never be forgotten.
Asking for music to continue to be a part of their lives even after Kindermusik, by continuing on with music lessons.
Pursuing music as a career or maintaining their musical skills as a beloved hobby.
Forever having a story, a memory, or a song to share from being in Kindermusik class and enjoying Kindermusik together at home throughout the week.
Gratefully acknowledging parents who recognized the power of music not only to shape their children developmentally, socially, and cognitively, but also to nurture their souls and give them great joy the rest of their lives.

[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]My experience has held true over and over and over again. Growing up in Kindermusik is one of the best ways a parent – and a Kindermusik teacher – can let a child grow up.

Shared by Theresa Case, Director of Piano Central Studios in Greenville, South Carolina[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row]

Planting Seeds that Grow: Music for a Lifetime

[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]We’ve listed the endless benefits of an early childhood saturated in musical experiences before (and we’ll keep doing it, too!). The science is in: music is good for the brain. It’s good for the body. It helps build all types of intelligence. Music making positively impacts language development, creativity, and coordination. When you make music with others, it increases empathy and trust. The list of music’s benefits, particularly for our young ones, seems to constantly grow.

But there’s a benefit that we haven’t really talked about too much: regularly enriching the young life with music leads to a lifetime of music appreciation. It’s really an investment, right? By planting the seeds early, we see beautiful green shoots poke through the surface that will lead to fully-bloomed musical flowers, flowers that will add dazzling colors to the entirety of life’s journey.

[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]Here’s the truth friends. Every child is born a natural musician. Every child is born a natural artist. From the first sounds we hear from them, there’s music present. We are musical beings at heart. Don’t you hear music in your baby’s babbling? I know I did. Watch this short video of a mother and child exploring different tones – to the great amusement of both.[/vc_column_text][vc_video link=”https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HP3v-H6xGtU”][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]That little girl was composing! She was exploring different pitches as her mother interacted with her. She was exploring her musical voice.

What about this little one mimicking her mother’s song? Friends – this is magic. You can see her going back and forth from listening and copying.[/vc_column_text][vc_video link=”https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SQ58BW_xlcc”][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]

The Next Steps

These attempts to copy what they hear, lead to music-making on their own. How many times did you hear your baby over the monitor singing in the crib? Making music often becomes a method to self-soothe. Remember? Making music releases endorphins which lower cortisol (the stress hormone) levels in the body.

These parents caught their daughter singing Darth Vader’s Imperial March in her crib.[/vc_column_text][vc_video link=”https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bX_kKA6gXCg”][vc_column_text]Every child’s a singer. Every child’s a drummer. But as we move through our young lives, without regular musical activity and encouragement, we lose a little of that sense of endless possibility. There’s a wonderful story about a group of kids that were studied over the course of several years. In kindergarten, they were asked, “How many of you can sing?” EVERYBODY’S hand shot up. A chorus of “Me! Me! I can!” rang through the room.

Four years later, that group was asked the same question. “How many of you can sing?” There was still a largely positive response, but certainly fewer hands went up.

In middle school, they were asked again. “Who here is a singer?”

Less than half of the room responded affirmatively.

By the time this group of kids was in high school, the number of kids that thought of themselves as possessing the capacity to sing well dropped to 10%.

Somewhere along the way, they forgot that in infancy, each of them was a singing, drumming, dancing artist who brought musical beauty into the world.

So what do we do? How do we keep them engaged?[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]

Give Them Experiences!

It’s simple, really. Constantly bring music into your kids’ lives. Start while they’re in the womb. Have music playing when they are born. Sing to them every day. Play music for them. Bring them to kid appropriate concerts. As they get older, make daily activities like cleaning up or making the bed musical activities. Make up silly songs for everything.

Make music their second language. These are the seeds that lead to those shoots of green that lead to a garden of life full of musical flowers. The more experiences you give them, like our wonderful Kindermusik classes, will get them addicted to something that will only enhance the quality of their lives.

Music feeds the mind…music feeds the body…music feeds the soul.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row]

Baby Speech Development? They Learn with their Mouths…

Yes, “baby speech development” really is critical in that first year. According to the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, researchers found evidence that babies—long known to explore their world with their mouths—actually use their tongues, lips, and other articulators to unravel the mysteries of the speech and language they hear on a constant basis. Let’s start with articulators… Continue reading “Baby Speech Development? They Learn with their Mouths…”

Kids Need to be Kids

[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]Author and early childhood education expert Nancy Carlsson-Paige makes the case for authentic educational experiences, less concerned with assessment and more concerned with experiences that give kids what they need – opportunities to be kids.

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Dr. Nancy Carlsson-Paige knows a thing or two about childhood development. For 30 years, she trained teachers at Lesley University and is critical of educational models that focus on standardized tests. Dr. Carlsson-Paige’s focus can be found right in the subtitle of her book: A Proven Roadmap for Raising Confident, Creative, Compassionate Kids. But how do we do this? In her acceptance speech upon receiving the Deborah Meier Award by the nonprofit National Center for Fair and Open Testing, she said the following, published in the Washington Post:

I have loved my life’s work – teaching teachers about how young children think, how they learn, how they develop socially, emotionally, morally. I’ve been fascinated with the theories and science of my field and seeing it expressed in the actions and the play of children.

So never in my wildest dreams could I have foreseen the situation we find ourselves in today.

Where education policies that do not reflect what we know about how young children learn could be mandated and followed. We have decades of research in child development and neuroscience that tell us that young children learn actively — they have to move, use their senses, get their hands on things, interact with other kids and teachers, create, invent. But in this twisted time, young children starting public pre-K at the age of 4 are expected to learn through “rigorous instruction.”

And never in my wildest dreams could I have imagined that we would have to defend children’s right to play.

Play is the primary engine of human growth; it’s universal – as much as walking and talking. Play is the way children build ideas and how they make sense of their experience and feel safe. Just look at all the math concepts at work in the intricate buildings of kindergartners. Or watch a 4-year-old put on a cape and pretend to be a superhero after witnessing some scary event.

But play is disappearing from classrooms. Even though we know play is learning for young kids, we are seeing it shoved aside to make room for academic instruction and “rigor.”

– Dr. Nancy Carlsson-Paige

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Play: Let Kids Be Kids

Dr. Carlsson-Paige reminds us that some of the most important competencies can’t be tested.[/vc_column_text][blockquote cite=”Dr. Nancy Carlsson-Paige”]”Self-regulation, problem solving ability, social and emotional competence, imagination, initiative, curiosity, original thinking — these capacities make or break success in school and life and they can’t be reduced to numbers.”[/blockquote][vc_column_text]Letting kids be kids, letting them experience the world through interaction with peers in a safe environment, supervised by caring, trained educators is incredibly beneficial as children develop. Where can we find these opportunities? Often, in many districts, even at the kindergarten level, the school day is rigidly structured, with little time for creative play, and that, as Dr. Carlsson-Paige points out, is one of the three things young children need:

Time and Space for Creative Play

Feeling of Security

Strong Meaningful Relationships with Adults and other Children

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Love Above All

This is key. I know – it sounds like a line, but love is empathy and caring in action. Kids learn how to interact with others by actually interacting with others. And in those interactions, especially starting from age two, they begin to understand empathy and caring. Social and emotional coaching from trusted adults guides kids through this development. When you see one child sharing with another…when you see one child helping another up after he tripped, you are seeing love in action.

If young children don’t receive these experiences that positively shape their developmental progress in school, where can they find them? Where can they experience all three of Dr. Carlsson-Paige’s legs that support the table of childhood? Kindermusik fits the bill. Here are 10 benefits of enrolling:

Benefit #1: Kindermusik gives your child that unique head start you’ve been looking for – musically, cognitively, and academically.

Benefit#2: Kindermusik inspires a love of music from an early age with songs, instruments, and activities that are just right for each age and every stage.

Benefit #3: Kindermusik enhances every area of your child’s development – we are so much more than just music!

Benefit #4: Kindermusik gives you the time and the tools to enjoy quality time with your child – in class and at home.

Benefit #5: Kindermusik Home Materials let you take the music, fun, and learning with you all week long, wherever you go.

Benefit #6: Kindermusik classes provide a happy social outlet for your child and a valuable support network for you.

Benefit #7: All Kindermusik activities are research-proven and giggle-approved, and all are supported by a developmental and musical focus.

Benefit #8: Kindermusik lays a strong foundation for future success in school and in formal music lessons later on.

Benefit #9: Kindermusik is something you and your child will use every day – at home or on the go!

Benefit #10: Kindermusik offers a comprehensive program with the potential for positively impacting your child from newborn all the way to 7 years of age.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]Check out Dr. Carlsson-Paige’s book. It is a research-based, compassionate approach to guiding the development of children, written by a veteran collegiate educator who is also the mother of two successful, artist sons.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row]

Love and Music: A Magical Connection

[vc_row][vc_column][blockquote cite=”Johann Sebastian Bach”]”It is the special province of music to move the heart.”[/blockquote][vc_column_text]I’ve said it before: music is magic. It’s the strangest thing…something you can’t physically touch can have such a tremendous impact on your emotional state. And it’s pervasive. Marketing folks and film producers know this magic. They effectively use music to tug at your heart strings when the mom in the insurance commercial opens up a letter from her son, who’s been away at college. Music, in situations such as this, increases emotional response. It’s as if music is an emotional lubricant – think of Dorothy freeing the Tin Man in the Wizard of Oz with the oil can – music can sometimes free emotions that have been stuck in gear.

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Music, Love, and the Brain

Dr. Cortney S. Warren, a professor at University of Nevada, Las Vegas states it quite clearly – “Music is what feelings sound like.” This is true, especially for composers and performers in many cases. They are expressing emotions through their music. We often get a tonal representation of an emotional state. But what about how the music impacts the listener? Well, part of this comes from association. Hearing is a sense and is tied to memory just like the other senses. When you eat that favorite childhood dish, you are taken back to pleasant days, sharing a meal with the family. When you smell a specific flower – let’s say a daisy – you are reminded of your baby shower because the room was full of daisies that day. Music has the same associative impact. When you hear the song to which you danced your first dance at your wedding, it most likely will bring forth positive emotions (as long as no one’s feet got stepped on!). The music becomes a cue for the brain to recall a memory associated with that tune.

Makes sense. But when you’ve never heard a piece of music before and it causes certain feelings, what’s going on there?[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]

Words Matter…But So Do Notes

If the music has words, this can have an obvious impact. A song that talks about the one that got away might make you think of the one that got away. If you are expecting and a song talks about babies, you might respond with strong emotions. If you have no connection to the words, you might not feel much. But music doesn’t need words to evoke feeling. Therein lies its magic – and it’s based on science.

The amygdalae are deep, central brain structures that receive some of the first projections from the lower brain centers. Music stimulates the amygdalae in a similar way to faces, smells and other sounds, most likely because all these stimuli are perceived as having social significance due to their communicative properties.

– Dr Victoria Williamson

So music has a physical effect on the part of the brain that is partially responsible for processing emotional reaction and memory.

Let’s try something. Take a listen to the first few minutes of this piece by Arvo Pärt, an Estonian composer of minimalist music. This is his Spiegel im Spiegel (Mirror of Mirrors) for piano and cello. It is very, very simple. No words. No flashy rhythms. No driving drum beat. No singer crooning about that special night. Close your eyes and listen. As you listen, think of a loved one for whom you care very deeply, whom you haven’t seen in a while. Press play, close your eyes, think of that person, and listen.[/vc_column_text][vc_video link=”https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TA0U22ZMVR0″][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]

Music Waters the Emotional Tree of the Soul

What happened? What did you think of? What did you see in your mind? What did you feel? I bet you felt something. Did you cry? Did you smile? Did the music take you to an emotional place you weren’t expecting? It’s almost as if the music gives us permission to feel, to emote, to let the inward become the outward.

Music, in its infinite wonder, feeds the emotional tree of the soul. It allows buds to form, flowers to bloom, and green leaves to spread like a crown, turning toward the light of the sun and collecting dew in the morning and rain drops in the afternoon.

Music connects us emotionally. When you make music with others, you develop a sense of trust, of empathy, of compassion.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]Sure, there’s science to back this up, but we can feel it when it happens. When there’s a song in your heart, let it out.

I’ll say it again: music is magic. And with respect to Shakespeare’s original line from Twelfth Night, I think Col. Henry Heveningham got it right when he said, “If music be the food of love, sing on!”[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row]

Music Therapy for Babies

What has been one of the most effective treatments for babies born prematurely? You guessed it – music!

In fact, Shanghai’s Children’s Hospital of Fudan University regularly uses music therapy “…to help premature babies to speed up nerve cell repairing and development…“, more proof of the power of music to activate and enhance brain activity and development.

Various clinical trials have recently revealed that the sound of mom or dad singing can stabilize the breathing and heart rates of babies born prematurely. And there’s benefit for mom and dad too who report that their own stress levels were lowered as they sang to their little ones, promoting greater bonding and attachment between parents and preemies.

Other music therapy interventions, specifically the use of live music, have been found to “…increase a premature infant’s capacity to feed, sleep, and self-regulate…”, according to the American Academy of Pediatrics.

If music has this kind of power to affect premature babies who are at their most vulnerable, think of the impact music can have on a little one who is not facing the challenges that come with being born prematurely!

Your child doesn’t have to be a preemie to benefit from music, and you don’t have to go to music therapy to benefit either. You can just enroll in Kindermusik classes! It’s all about opening the window of opportunity early, when the brain is most receptive to learning and growing and when little hearts can be most affected by the powerful combination of music, movement, and a whole lot of love from some really special people – engaged parents and a nurturing Kindermusik educator.

– Shared by Theresa Case, Kindermusik Educator & director of Piano Central Studios in Greenville, SC

Happy Chinese New Year!

[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]We have Kindermusik Educators all over the globe, including China! This weekend, many in the East will be celebrating the Chinese New Year. The celebration is full of fireworks, music, and lots of family time. On New Year’s Eve…today…families often gather for the “reunion dinner”, considered one of the most important family gatherings of the year.

The successes of the previous year are celebrated and wishes for a fortunate upcoming year are expressed. Just about every single building, home, and street is decked out in red, a most favorable color in Chinese culture. Lion dances, dragon dances, and various other performances honor the festival.

This year is a rooster year – the fire rooster to be exact. In the spirit of the fire rooster, enjoy this charming video from us! Happy Chinese New Year![/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_video link=”https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=25-AdiyxDjk”][/vc_column][/vc_row]

Amazing Musical Moments: #3 Will Have you Sobbing

[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]Kindermusik educators have the immeasurable joy of seeing amazing musical moments in nearly every Kindermusik class – a baby shaking a bell for the first time, a toddler belting out parts of the hello song, a preschooler who proudly contributes his movement idea in class, or the big kid who plays her first song on the glockenspiel. These moments are so special because they are the result of the beautiful process and incredible curriculum that is Kindermusik.

But we love highlighting musical moments outside of Kindermusik class, because that’s where the magic truly happens – in the routine of the days at home in between class, and as a child carries a love for music into adulthood. Unlike many other activities and experiences, it’s MUSIC that stays with us, in our minds and hearts, for all our lives.

These five amazing, feel-good musical moments will remind you of the power of music… and have you reaching for a tissue too!

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The Toddler Who was Moved by Beethoven

You don’t need a music degree to experience the emotional power of music. Beethoven’s Moonlight Sonata has a way of getting into the mind and stirring up those emotional neurons…and maturity isn’t a requirement. Two-year-old Tyler Noftz wept as his older sister performed Ludwig’s masterpiece. Watch him become visibly moved by the music.[/vc_column_text][vc_video link=”https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DHUnLY1_PvM”][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]

Music Unlocks the Mind

If you aren’t aware of the Music and Memory Project, check it out here. But before you do, check out how Henry, a man with Dementia, responds when he hears the music of his youth. As a bonus, you get to sea Dr. Oliver Sacks explain what’s happening.[/vc_column_text][vc_video link=”https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NKDXuCE7LeQ”][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]

Music Stops a Bullet

Col. Jack Leroy Tueller tells the tale of a German sniper, an American GI, and the heart-squeezing power of music. Take time and hear his story.[/vc_column_text][vc_video link=”https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aQzRxGuBn0k”][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]

Music Provides a Purpose

Isabel Song, a senior at University of California, Berkley found her purpose – studying pediatric oncology – through a song.

It started with a song. “Ronan.” When Taylor released that heartbreaking song about a boy who died of cancer before he could even turn four, when she sang that song live for Stand Up to Cancer, I cried. Taylor cried. Everybody cried. After listening to the song a few times, I realized I couldn’t just let this go. I had to learn Ronan’s story.

I cried throughout the whole weekend reading the blog posts his mom wrote. It wasn’t just small, controlled tears. It was full on ugly crying, with a waterfall draining out of puffy, red eyes. As I learned his story, his family’s story, I kept looking at pictures of that beautiful little boy with the most gorgeous blue eyes I’ve ever seen. My heart broke tenfold.

– Isabel Song

Read the rest over at HuffPost.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]

Music Saves a Life

Barbara Dunn, a music and psychotherapist in Washington tells the story of bringing a woman back from the edge of life with song.

[/vc_column_text][vc_separator][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]These are dramatic examples of the power of music, but we believe in the power of music because we see it every week in our Kindermusik classes – with every smile, every song, every hug, and every dance.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row]

Book Review: Pete the Cat – I Love my White Shoes

[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]We love children’s books. Also – and this should be no surprise – we love children’s books that get people singing. Oh! One more thing! If that children’s book teaches some really fantastic aspect of childhood development, well, that’s a home run. Dr. Boyle takes a peek at Pete the Cat – I Love my White Shoes, by author Eric Litwin with illustrations by James Dean (no, not that James Dean).

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One Cool Cat

Meet Pete the Cat. If you don’t know him, you should. He’s the feline equivalent of the proverbial duck that let everything roll off its back. In 2008, he pounced out of the minds of Eric Litwin and James Dean into a self-published book. Within 10 months, the book was picked up by Harper Collins and has enjoyed a great deal of success in a rather crowded market. In my estimation, Pete’s a standout. Several books featuring this easy going blue furball have followed, and we’ll probably review a couple of them in the future. Today…is all about white shoes, singing, and executive function and self-regulation. Stay with me; this children’s book gets the concepts across beautifully.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]

White, Red, Blue, Brown…Just Change the Song

As Pete takes a stroll on a beautiful day, he wears his beloved white shoes. He loves them so much he sings a song about them – “I love my white shoes, I love my white shoes, I love my white shoes.” If you read this book, you have to sing that part. You know that, right? It’s a law – and the beautiful part is that there is absolutely no wrong way to sing it. You can sing it differently every time you read the book. You can make up a tune, or sing it to an existing melody. If you want to, you can download the song that Eric Litwin created – but I think it’s much more fun to make up your own silly tune. Litwin, James Dean, and friends in a live reading, complete with his White Shoes song![/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_video link=”https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nUubMSfIs-U”][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]As Pete continues his walk, the first dramatic turn occurs. He steps in a mound of strawberries. His pristine white shoes, the source of his musical joy, are ruined! What’s a singing cat to do when faced with such frustration, such unexpected CATastrophe (these are the jokes, people)? Scream? Cry? Take his shoes off and throw them in the air?

Nope. Pete does none of that. He keeps his cool and just changes the words to his song.[/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]

red shoes — Pete just keeps on plugging away with new words

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A Cat who Gets Executive Function

So, now we see Pete for who he is: a cool cat with an understanding of executive function and self-regulation. How about some help from the folks at Harvard:

In the brain, the ability to hold onto and work with information, focus thinking, filter distractions, and switch gears is like an airport having a highly effective air traffic control system to manage the arrivals and departures of dozens of planes on multiple runways. Scientists refer to these capacities as executive function and self-regulation — a set of skills that relies on three types of brain function: working memory, mental flexibility, and self-control. Children aren’t born with these skills—they are born with the potential to develop them.

– InBrief: Executive Function – Center on the Developing Child: Harvard University

What do we see Pete do when faced with apparent disaster? He shifts gears and shifts his song, singing about the newly acquired color. This is a prime example of both executive function and self-regulation. He experiences, processes, and chooses to celebrate a new experience rather than mourn the loss of the old one.

This happens several times throughout Pete’s journey. He’s resilient, that one. And let’s be honest, you don’t have to be a kid to relate to this story. We’ve all been there. So – as you share Pete’s adventure to your kids, they’ll see a cat remaining calm in the face of adversity who comes out on top, making the choice to keep his composure and sing a new song. They’ll get it, they’ll relate, and it will help them develop those skills in their own developing self.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]Pete the Cat – I Love My White Shoes is a book that gives more to the reader than a cute story with beautiful illustrations. It gets us singing and thinking about how we respond to life’s giant piles of strawberries and puddles of mud. Plus, it’ll leave a smile on your face. You can get it through your favorite bookseller or online, and in several formats – hardback, paperback, and digital editions.

After reading this book, your little one might just ask herself, “What would Pete do?” the next time drama creeps into her life. I know that I already have.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text][/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row]

4 Musical Ways to Help Keep Those New Year’s Resolutions

[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]Happy New Year from your friends at Kindermusik! We’re always looking for ways to incorporate music into daily life because, let’s face it – music makes everything better! Our last post talked about musical resolutions for 2017. In this post, we’ll explore four ways to use music to help keep some of the most common resolutions. We all have access to just about any piece of music, anytime and anywhere. Let’s take advantage of technology and make our lives more musical!

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1. Timing

Let’s go back to 1991 and a fun little movie called Hudson Hawk. The film starred Bruce Willis and Andie MacDowell. Willis played an adept cat burglar who uses standard songs like Swinging on a Star and Side by Side to time his heists. Now – please don’t think we are condoning breaking and entering or stealing iconic pieces of art, but using music to time aspects of your life to help keep you on track isn’t a bad idea.

So what can you time? Well – just about anything. And frankly, music will make anything go by faster. I know that listening to the first movement of Bach’s Cantata 140 – Wachet auf ruft uns die Stimme is roughly 30 minutes – how long I want to walk the dog (remember – I’m a choral conductor – I listen to A LOT of Bach!). Using Bach’s music to time my dog walking activities works very well. And I can change it up with other pieces or play lists that run for the amount of time I want to walk our ball of energy.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]

2. Workouts

We touched on this in the last post – but I wanted to share a story. While in graduate school preparing for my master’s conducting recital, I’d go to the gym three times a week before the boys were awake. I’d take recordings and scores of the music on which I was working to be efficient with my time. Riding a stationary bike, I’d listen to my conducting rep, review the scores, and even practice my gestures.

Fast-forward to rehearsals…whenever I stood in front of the ensemble to rehearse my repertoire, my heart rate would increase and I’d sweat like a race horse! Listening and practicing my rep while working out had conditioned my body to respond to the music as if I was working out – even when I wasn’t! It was fascinating.

The right music during a workout can keep us focused and driven. The right playlist can form an arc that supports the arc of your physical exertion. Workoutmusic.com posted this informative chart that lists tempos which match various activity. Couple this info with songbm.com, a site that will tell you the bpm (beats per minute) if any song, and you can create a custom playlist for your activity.

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3. That New Hobby – Music!

I’ve known several people who have made resolutions to learn a musical instrument or take voice lessons. Do it! Buy a guitar! Get a keyboard or piano! How about a drum set? It is never too late to learn about music. Making music does so much good for the mind, body, and spirit at any age. If your kids happen to go to Kindermusik classes, learn the songs and sing with them in class and at home. You know they’re catchy.

Want to keep your brain young? Make music. Listen to music. Here’s some great advice from the folks at Johns Hopkins:

Jump-start your creativity.

Listen to what your kids or grandkids listen to, experts suggest. Often we continue to listen to the same songs and genre of music that we did during our teens and 20s, and we generally avoid listening to anything that’s not from that era.

New music challenges the brain in a way that old music doesn’t. It might not feel pleasurable at first, but that unfamiliarity forces the brain to struggle to understand the new sound.

Recall a memory from long ago.

Reach for familiar music, especially if it stems from the same time period that you are trying to recall. Listening to the Beatles might bring you back to the first moment you laid eyes on your spouse, for instance.

Listen to your body.

Pay attention to how you react to different forms of music, and pick the kind that works for you. What helps one person concentrate might be distracting to someone else, and what helps one person unwind might make another person jumpy.

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4. Gift Giving

Taking the time to remind how much those we care about with a gift always makes us feel good. Making a habit of gift giving keeps that feeling present and makes others smile as well! And the gifts don’t have to be extravagant – just thoughtful. Why not make it a musical gift? Find out what music your friend, family member, or co-worker likes and pick up a CD or send a digital album. Do you know them really well? How about picking something new for them to experience?

The act of simple gift giving, especially for no specific reason other than to let someone know you care, builds relationships and is actually good for our health. That good feeling? Turns out it’s mentally and physically beneficial. So – why not give music?[/vc_column_text][vc_separator][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]Good luck with your resolutions! I’m keeping mine secret; we’ll see how I do. But rest assured, my year will be filled to the brim with music. I wouldn’t have it any other way. Kindermusik wishes you a happy and healthy 2017. May YOU experience lots of music as well![/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row]