The benefits of starting music classes at an early age

Since the earliest years, children are fascinated with sounds, singing, humming and moving rhythmically. For instance, newborns turn toward a human voice, look around for the source of the sound, and are also able to distinguish their mother’s voice from that of others. Infants enjoy listening to music from birth, and by the time they are toddlers, they are dancing to the radio and singing songs. Babies imitation of sounds and rhythm are the building blocks for language acquisition. Psychologists are finding that hearing songs is one of the fundamental ways that babies learn to recognize the tones that add up to spoken language.

Our Musical Aurora™ class includes dancing, singing and playing musical games that help a child to awaken his or her full creative and intellectual potential. This music program gets children up and moving, rather than sitting in front of a television screen or computer monitor. It helps youngsters to learn about music through fun, playful activities that may lead to studying an instrument or voice in the years ahead. Children learn faster when lessons are playful and fun. It is fascinating how children love the small steps of exploring the mystery of music. The more they explore, the more they develop pride in their accomplishments.

Children are full of energy and respond naturally with movements to music. They become a personification of their musical experience. They succeed in activities that include movement and singing, which helps to build a musical foundation for future learning. However, playing a musical instrument must wait until eye-hand coordination is sufficiently developed. Depending on the child, the best age to start studying an instrument is around four years old. Children who start studying music at an early age begin a lifelong venture rich in songs, dancing, music making an appreciation for the arts that lasts throughout their lifetime.

All the best,

Massimiliano Facchini and Claudette Munné

Magazine Clavier, December 2006
From “The First Recital” by Jeffrey Wagner

• “Especially in the digital era the benefits of piano study are something to marvel at. Piano playing fosters the ability to finish a project through extended effort and thought.”

• “The electronic games that are so popular with youth train them to make split-second decisions and develop hand-to-eye coordination but offer little else. The games of my generation and of those previous ones - monopoly, chess, bridge – developed a sense of strategy, good memory, and the ability size up an opponent. When someone plays a piano solo, even a modest one, it requires concentration for minutes at a time. This is a skill well worth developing. Without the capacity to concentrate, we cannot read fine literature or poetry, listen to or perform significant musical works. Without good concentration it is also difficult to earn a living.”

• “I believe that entertainment technology often leaves users nervous and passive, which is sometimes referred to as information overload.”

• “Music study with a good teacher is more important for children than ever.”