A Holiday Message from Music Together in Phoenix

The joy of the seasons are here; lights twinkling, bell ringers around town and Santa's o' plenty. All of us at Music Together in Phoenix send thoughts for joy & peace, celebration and fun to your family!

Music is an essential part of many holiday traditions. When we share the music that we enjoy with our children, it can be like a heirloom. Our favorite holiday songs and traditions will be what our children pass along to their children. Precious memories are made when trimming the tree, lighting the menorah or baking cookies together while singing favorite holiday songs. These connections are locked deep in our little ones' hearts.

My family has a silly tradition of hiding a pickle ornament inside our Christmas tree. Last year, we never found it until the tree went down. My daughter was proud of her hiding talents (I think she possibly hid it in her bedroom). We always listen to the Charlie Brown X-mas CD as we are decorating. This year, I put on my new Mindy Smith, but my family changed it back to Charlie Brown.

May you have many magical moments of merriment with your loved ones this season!

Kathy and everyone at Music Together in Phoenix
Sumr, office manager, Stacie, outreach and social media, Sarah, Jennifer and Mary, awesome teaching team

www.musictogetherinphx.com

Unplugging the Music

The i-pod is out of juice. The electricity has not made it to this town. There are no stereos or wi-fi. How do we get the music?

While having a fun experience of my lifetime with my family this summer hiking the Inca Trail (and a brief overnight with a sweet family on Lake Titicaca) in Peru, I had this really cool experience of spending time in places with out any plugs! Was there music? Yes, of course, YES!!

Actually, my teenager daughter's i-pods seemed to last for days without running out of juice; the people, however, who lived in these sweet car-less communities did not have such accessories. It was inspiring to experience how these communities made the music themselves: singing, playing quena & zampoa pan flutes, drums and small Peruvian guitars. As an early childhood educator who gets most my vital nutrients from live-music making, I was in HEAVEN!! We even happened upon one of the many multi-day festivals that involved entire groups of people in song, dance and quena flute/drum ensemble which I believe was the most juicy part of the trip.

For young children, live music making is a vital for them to develop through primary music development, rhythmically and tonally. In class, we repeatedly share how important it is to make music with our children. Families love playing CD's as there are great arrangements for even the adult ears; jazz numbers, sassy blues songs, and rockin' folk numbers. While children can get great exposure to a plethora of genres' and multi-cultural music by listening to CDs, this is not a substitute for making the music on your own. My music mentor, Lili Levinowitz, Ph.D. professes that "children get their disposition to be a music-maker, from the important role models in their lives, their parents"; we just need to make music with them!

I am guessing that if we were raising our children on Lake Titicaca (or along the way to Machu Picchu ), it would be silly to have a Music Together class because life would be like a Music Together class! In the meanwhile, it is SO fun to get to MAKE the music with families each week. Keep singing with your kids!

Kathy Rowe M.A. Music Education and Center Director for Music Together in Phoenix

Bringing the Music Home: Five Ways to Add Music to your families lives.

· Put on your VERY favorite music and dance your heart out!

· Get out the pots & pans (or plastic tupperware & wooden spoons) have a family jam band on the kitchen floor.· Have a ritual song for putting away toys (or make the BUM BUM sound)

· Sing Itsy Bitsy Spider (or other song) while washing hands and encourage little ones to keep washing to the end of the song. This one serves two purposes.

· Try using Ridin' in the Car to sing about regular things through the day. Maybe sing, "yum, yum, eatin' my peas, down they go, down they go. . ." or slow it down for "yawn, yawn, it's time to lay down, sleepy, sleepy. . . we're getting rest today".

Most importantly, have fun and email us with your most fun creative ideas!

When we support language by speaking with our children, language will develop. When we support music by singing with our children, music will develop. Did you know that speech and language is inherently musical? Also, active music making not only engages the entire brain, it is also fun and can promote a sense of happiness and well being.

Kathy Rowe, M.A. Music Education and Center Director for Music Together in Phoenix

Music Together in Phoenix Journal #2

Dear Kathy,
Last week I went to a community college band concert with my daughter as she needed to fill a "concert attended" requirement for her school. I was amazed at our cool experience together. The band played fun traditional marches as well as a few contemporary pieces. It was the conductor's last concert after many cherished years, the group acknowledged his years of dedication to the group with a moving speech and sweet gifts. The most remarkable part was seeing young college-age players, working-age players, along with many retired-age players; all performing together to create this beautiful music. It made me realize that music is something that can be created, enjoyed and celebrated at ALL ages and stages of our lives.

Music really builds community!This community building happens in our Music Together classes too! Music is so amazing.Until the next note,Kathy

Kathy Rowe, M.A. Music Education, is the center director for Music Together in Phoenix

The Power of the Lullaby

The Power of the Lullaby
www.musictogetherinphx.com

Soft and sweet, sung with love in the heart, slow and soothing, the lullaby is a very precious ritual mommies and daddies can share with their little one!

Rituals are very important for children. They provide predictability and a framework with which everything else can happen. The repetitious nature of having a ritual is a very valuable part of the ritual. For many children, rituals help the world feel safe.

When a family chooses lullaby time as a family ritual, it can be like sharing a precious heirloom. It is very common for parents to sing the lullabies their parents sung to them as children. These family musical mementos can be passed down for many generations.

Music can help soothe even the most savage beast.

Psychologists have helped us to understand the best way to regulate a child’s emotion is through singing. When a mother sings to her child, the level of serotonin in her child’s brain increases which helps promote feelings of contentedness and happiness (and more likely to fall asleep). Since much of music is processed in the same part of the brain as emotions, music nurtures the bond between parent and child!Many people think singing lullabies only for infants; however toddlers and preschool age children enjoy and benefit the sweetness of having a parent sing to them before going off to sleep. Older children can request their favorites and help make up words. The soothing benefits of lullaby can also extend to the singing parent; singing lullaby can calm a parent’s frayed nerves at the end of the day, and the peaceful effect can help as children respond naturally to our moods.

Lullabies are used in every culture.

The term “lullaby” comes from ‘lu lu’ or ‘la la’ sound made by families to calm children, and ‘by’ or ‘bye bye’, either another lulling sound or a term from good night. Lullabies are found in cultures all around the world. They are typically sung with lower pitches and at a slower tempo. It is curious that many traditional lullabies are set in minor keys with content that is upsetting in nature.

Lullaby 101:

There are many easy ways to incorporate lullaby into your night time routine:
· Pick a song that you truly love. This part is very important. I’ve heard of families slowing down their favorite Rolling Stone song and singing it to baby. Slowly build your repertoire of lullabies to sing to your child. Your child may have a favorite that you choose to sing over and over; repetition is good!
· Make up lullaby. Use your child’s name and repeat it over and over with any melody you like or a newly invented one. Let your creativity fly! Humming or singing quietly on “la, la”, or “lu, lu” also works very well.
· Pick a comfy quiet place to sing with little one! Some families choose a rocking chair, some cuddle up next to their toddler in bed or even on the couch with the light dimmed low. Eye contact can be very bonding.
· Sing it slowly! Rocking is highly recommended. If your child is crying and hysterical, singing slowly might be very futile. Try starting off with a quicker tempo and gradually slow it down as you notice the child’s breathing slowing.
· While it may be tempting to put on a CD, live singing to your child is much more meaningful. Don’t worry if you are in tune or if you are ruining your child’s tonality; you are not! By sharing lullaby time you are imparting your love of music and sweet and gentle way. Children get their disposition to be music makers from their favorite adults.

Lullaby time can be a wonderfully bonding experience. It is a time to slow down and share unconditional love with your child. This connection is the magic that happens when families embrace lullaby time with their children.

Kathy Rowe, M.A. Music Education and Center Director of Music Together in Phoenix, LLC www.MusicTogetherInPhx.com

Music Together in Phoenix Journal #1

Today in class a Mommie shared a fun story about her quiet son. He is the careful observing-learner in class, always watching everything closely; his mom shared that as soon as they get home, he runs his own music classes just like his teacher!

I have heard many cool variations of this story through the years and I am always fascinated and excited! Children learn in so many different ways. The moving-learner will be very active in class, while other children absorb the information by watching or listening and will play with the music later. I am glad we honor different styles of learning.

Music learning is cumulative and flourishes as a child returns, reviews - and finally masters.

Parents are the best music models for their children!

Children get their disposition for being a music-maker from their parents. How do I nurture this inborn music in my child? Manyparents are worried that they themselves are not musical and might destroy their little one’s possibilities of being a confident music maker. Actually the very opposite is true.A child gets his disposition to be a music maker by seeingthe grown ups in his life joyously make music. If your childsees you having a blast singing and cutting up the rug, they will see it is safe and they may even imitate you.

Ways to nuture your child musically.

There are many easy ways to nuture your child musically:• Sing, sing, sing! Sing in the car with the radio, makeup songs (or change the words to familiar songs)about whatever you are doing with your little one,changing diaper, going to the store, eating some broccoli. Lullaby time can be the most precious time,singing your child off to sleep with love.• Dance, dance, dance! Put on your favorite dance music and move your bodies. It’s fun to invite friends over and dance together. And while playing a CD in the car is good, your child is buckled in tight and can’t get the large movement experience that is important for rhythm development.• Play, play, play! Get out the pots and pans and have a jam session to some fun and inspiring music that you enjoy. Wooden spoons on plastic bowls and shakers of dried beans in a sealed up water bottle can makesome interesting sounds for children to experimentwith. Children benefit by having different sensory experiences of tapping, shaking and scraping.-from the article Hard Wired for Music, North Central Parenting Group, Parent Times, March 2010

Kathy Rowe, M.A. Music Education and Center Director for Music Together in Phoenix, LLC