Music in the Womb

This doesn't apply directly to our classes, but it does apply to music in early childhood.

I was asked what my opinion of playing music to babies in the womb was. I have a strong opinion on this subject because of my own experience, when I was pregnant with Reuben I was actively singing and playing the piano. As his movement became more apparent to me I noticed a trend--he was always more active when I was making music, or surrounded by good music. It was almost as predictable as drinking some juice to provoke kicks. Going to concerts got more difficult as he grew; I couldn't sit comfortable because he was so active.

I was asked specifically about playing Mozart for the fetus, my opinion is that any good music will be beneficial. The important thing is to keep recorded music "good." For playing recorded music to the womb "good" means in-tune, and following rules of order. This would include most classical music, and several other genres and artists. The fetus develops in an orderly fashion, infants need order, and toddlers display a natural ability of order, so I think that sharing orderly music will have more of a positive impact because the fetus is already surrounded by order and will recognize it as a natural part of the environment. It already hears (and feels) the rhythm of the heart, the rhythm of the breathing, the rhythm of walking, these sounds (and movements) are a security to the fetus, and music can be another layer of security.

The sound of mother and father's voice singing is just as powerful, even if its not always in-tune. I was told of a study where if the fathers sang the same lullaby to the fetus, when the baby was born he or she would respond to the sound of the father's lullaby the same as he or she responds to the sound of the mother's voice. This made sense to me. I remember things better if I put it to a song, and the singing voice has more memorable characteristics than the speaking voice so doesn't it make sense that a song would help the baby remember the father's voice. I had my husband sing to my womb, and although we weren't exactly scientific about our own study it did seemed to work.

There is a reason there is a history of lullabies, the reason being they work at comforting babies. Why not assume that we could start as early as possible, plus its easier to sing a lullaby when the baby is screaming and you are tiered and frustrated when you already know the songs.