Music and babies!

[ojkojbgoj]

Hello all, i'm presently working in Karachi, Pakistan and trying to form a platform for the exploration of classical western concert stage music. I'm hoping to start with just a listening group of parent(s) and their child/children - newborns in particular. Got some ideas as to what to line up for our listening sessions but would appreciate any recommendations and/or suggestions, even if they are more activity based than listening based.
Cheers!
Omer

[iansinclair]

Peter and the Wolf comes to mind right away!  Have you the option to do video?  If so, would you consider ballet?  There are a number of excellent videos of some of the classical story ballets which the children, particularly, might find interesting, even if the culture is a little foreign to them. 

[ojkojbgoj]

video is indeed an option, though with newborns i'm not sure they'll get the benefit of that. Perhaps with children between the ages 2 - 5 and on up, the ballet would be useful. Thanks for the feedback.

[keypeg]

I'd think that for the newborns you're actually addressing the parents, who will transmit their feelings to the babies.  Something with a story line like Peter and the Wolf isn't for babies, since babies don't follow story lines.  I think you also wouldn't want anything with harsh, disturbing sounds, since infants are much more sensitive, with everything being new.  I wonder - would Steiner have done anything about this, maybe seeing what the Waldorf schools might have to say?

[kriatina]

Hello all, i'm presently working in Karachi, Pakistan and trying to form a platform for the exploration of classical western concert stage music. I'm hoping to start with just a listening group of parent(s) and their child/children - newborns in particular. Got some ideas as to what to line up for our listening sessions but would appreciate any recommendations and/or suggestions, even if they are more activity based than listening based.
Cheers!
Omer

When I studied at University I also took on
a part time job to look after little toddlers.
They were all around one or two years old
and they all came from different backgrounds.

One of them was extremely upset because his parents
were going through a very messy divorce
and the little one felt something was wrong at his home
and his behaviour (screaming for no apparent reason  etc)
distressed all the other little ones I was looking after as well.
 
I tried everything like "taking them for little walks",
showing them interesting little things,
I tried everything like talking to them, reading to them etc.
just to take their attention away.

But my most successful "tool" was playing a record of Mozart
and all of a sudden the screaming stopped and they all appeared so happy
and every little one was listening to the music.

It took me a few weeks, but eventually the little toddler
who was at first so distressed about his parents messy divorce
calmed down considerably and he even started to have fun with the others.

I was so happy about my discovery and recommend Mozart,
especially his "eine kleine Nachtmusik" etc. for "starters".

Good luck from Kristina.