Singalogs & Mini-Operas
June 9th, 2007 by vincebates
Sophie is at that stage where a lot of kids make up their own songs (she’s almost three). Sometimes if kids know that someone is listening, however, they will stop singing. So, it’s important to go on about your business and just let them sing. In fact, it doesn’t seem to matter that I am in the same room as long as I don’t acknowledge what she’s doing. It’s hard to resist, though, and today I was actually able to enter her song world. I started singing the same sorts of things she was singing, in a soft voice and using the same pitches (a lot of mi-re, not so-mi, sometimes ‘resolving’? to do). We carried on this sort of dialog or “singalog” (I think I just made that word up) for about a minute and it was magical for me anyway. I wonder if, for Sophie, it seemed rather normal.
Kristin has been successful a few times at getting the kids to participate in a sort of mini-opera/sung dialog. They really get into it with screechy voices and crazy vibrato–the whole bit. It’s funny that even at a young age they have picked up (probably via TV) that opera stereotype. I wonder how old they will be when they lose interest in making operas on the spot. I know back in Utah there was a program for opera in the elementary schools that involved a facilitator/accompanist spending a week or so at the school to help the kids make their own opera. What a great creative outlet! I have no real interest in whether or not kids will learn to “appreciate” opera (I have a difficult time with it myself unless it is in English), but as an extension of what seems to be a natural impulse to express oneself musically I think a program like that is a good idea.
My oldest (we’ll call her “Sarai”) actually started making up songs and allowing me to listen closely last summer, when she was 5. I was able to get her to repeat the tune enough times that we have the words written down. Maybe I should throw together a simple accompaniment, as she still sings the tune.
Kids and music…big fun! Until, of course, it’s not. Ken Robinson said “All children are artists. Our challenge is to help them remain artists as they grow up.” How sad! For those who are interested, here’s the link: http://www.ted.com/index.php/talks/view/id/66
Of course, this is probably as much an indictment of “how” we teach music and other artistic disciplines as the importance of teaching creativity, but that’s a 3-root-beer conversation!