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Columbia area have on such
musical greats as Mozart
and Beethoven? They too
are starting their musical
careers at an early age with
guidance from the USC
Children's Music
Development Center. Hey,
you never know who will be
able to write the next
"Moonlight Sonata." It could
be a toddler. Imagine that.
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The mere mention of "musical
training" might conjure up memories of
involuntary piano lessons.
Yet, children younger than a year
old are receiving early exposure to music
now at USC, and learning it like a native
language.
The Children's Music Development
Center, under the direction of Wendy
Valerio, offers classes that guide children
up to five years of age through musical
development.
Through exposure to songs, music
and rhythm games, the program aims
to give children a vocabulary of tonal
and rhythm patterns. Its ultimate goal
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is not to develop prodigies, but to ensure
children can enjoy music as they grow
up.
"Children are like sponges, and the
best way for them to learn music is as
if it's a native language," said Valerio,
an early childhood music education
specialist. "Music potential is
developmental until age 9, and we need
to tap it before then."
Parents are encouraged to attend
with their children.
"We want to help parents understand
music development, so that families can
have music together," Valerio said.
Parents can reinforce each child's
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Wendy Valerio (above, left) chats
Feelings (above, right) and daughl
months) looks on. Elizabeth Kent (
personal pitch and tempo, just as they
would with language, according to Valerio.
They don't need to be musical, though.
Their attendance is also necessary, as
some of the participants are not even a
year old.
The center will hold classes once a
week from Jan. 15 to March 29, and the
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newborn to 5 years old can participate.
A typical class for the youngest
participants turns music into a toy.
Instructors, including Valerio and
graduate student Nancy Wells, chant
rhythmical phrases over and over, letting
the children absorb sounds. They facilitate
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memory bank of songs in all tonalities
and meters.
About 30 different activities are
covered in the 45 minutes of the class.
No instruments are used, just voice and
body. Valerio likes to call this exposure
"music vitamins." When the instructors
get a vocal response, they improvise
around it.
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"We like to play off the kids'
responses?what they sing back to us,"
Valerio said. "As we improvise, we guide
each child through a tonal and rhythmic
vocabulary," she said.
Parents learn any response to music
from the children is a good one. The
course is not designed to produce little
Pachelbel's, but if the instructors detect
some major talent, they let the parents
know and recommend further instruction.
"Basically, we're tapping a new
population for musical guidance. We
want children to develop a musical
vocabulary so they can enjoy music later
on in their lives," Valerio said.
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i with Elizabeth Kent (19 months) a
:er Niani Feelings (12 months) listen
below, left) diligently crawls across i
movement games between child and
parent Parents might hold their children
while dancing, for instance.
It's good to let the child see the parent
dance to music," Valerio said.
Classes for the older children are