Classical music is widely known as the “golden age of music” as various significant music forms were created during this era such as the concerto, symphony and orchestra. Composers who dominated the classical era during the 18th and 19th centuries include musical geniuses like Mozart, Haydn, Beethoven, and Schubert. Classical music can be defined as  traditional structured music that follows established principles of composition. 

Classical music may seem boring and dull to some, but it actually forms the foundation of the composition and style of modern day pop music. Thus, learning classical music will give you a greater understanding of pop music compositions.

​The form and structure of a pop song originates from Franz Schubert’s very first German art song, the Lied. The Lied is a song written for one voice with a piano accompaniment that is characterized by themes of love and nature. Schubert was a remarkable composer who wrote over 600 songs with tender melodies that were  intimate and emotional. For the most part, Schubert’s songs can be categorized into 2 types of song structure. The first structure would be the strophic form where the same melody is repeated for each verse, while the latter structure would be the through-composed form which has a different melody for each verse. These  structures establish the structure of pop music, primarily consisting of 2 sections - the verse and chorus, which has a different melody for each section.

Pop music is also characterized by a diatonic harmony which originated from Classical music. A diatonic harmony means that the chords of a song are built from the seven tones of the major and minor scale. Most of the pop songs are based on these seven tones chords, which is a significant characterization of Classical music as well. Mozart’s famous piece ‘Eine Kleine Nachtmusik’ (A little night music) in G major, revolves around these diatonic chords of G, D, Em, C and A. On a similar note, Ed Sheeran’s ‘Lego house’ in G major shares very similar chord progressions, mainly the 4 chords of G, D, Em and C. Thus, we can see that classical music had a notable influence on the fabrication of pop songs. 

Listen to Mozart’s ‘Eine Kleine Nachtmusik’ (A little night music)

Pop music flaunts a strong rhythm with a steady tempo that does not fluctuate greatly, mostly staying the same throughout the entire song. This characteristic can be traced back to classical music where the melodies and harmonies are both driven by steady beats and a steady meter. 

Here are some famous pop songs that have notable influences from Classical composers:
 
Listen to ‘Because’ by The Beatles
The Beatles composed ‘Because’ by playing the chords of Beethoven’s Moonlight Sonata backwards. 

Listen to ‘Ave Maria’ by Beyonce
Beyonce re-composed Schubert’s song ‘Ave Maria’ into her own pop edition:

“Stand by me” is a classic love song to play on the guitar for your sweetheart this Valentine’s day! Released in 1961, this song was originally performed by Ben E. King, and was inspired by the spiritual hymn “Lord Stand By Me”. Over 400 versions of this song have since been recorded. In 2019, Smooth Radio ranked this as one "of the greatest love songs of the 1960s". 
​
Can you play a song the first time you ever play the guitar? Yes, this song is perfect for beginners! Learn this song to show how romantic you can be. 

In this tutorial video, you will learn: 

1. 4 essential chords
2. ​2 easy strumming patterns

The art of music is not defined by the mechanical process of mastering technical skills on an instrument. The process of music learning actually encompasses many other foundational elements that are beyond the mechanics of finger movements on the piano, violin, ukulele or guitar.
​
What are the foundations of music that students will learn during instrumental lessons?

​1. Rhythm training

Aural techniques consist of training in 3 different areas; musical hearing, musical reading, and musical notation. The first aspect is essentially developed through ear training. The second aspect of musical reading is defined as the ability to hear the sounds of a piece in one’s head simply through reading the notes on a music score i.e. the ability to translate something visual to something auditory with the right tone and expression. The third aspect of musical notation is defined as the ability to put into written form the sounds that you hear and identifying these sounds with the correct musical terms.
 
How does aural techniques relate to musical training?
Aural training is extremely beneficial to students, as it will help you to develop useful skills such as musical memorization, creativity and musical analysis and evaluation. Aural training is integrated into instrumental lessons through sight-singing, dictation and ear training. ​

4. Music theory

"Everyday I love you" is the final single from Irish Boyband Boyzone before their initial split in 2000. The song was released in November 1999 and peaked #3 on the UK Singles Chart. The song has also received a Silver certification for shipping 200,000 copies in the UK. (Source: British Phonographic Industry)​

"Imagine" is a song written and performed by the English musician John Lennon. His lyrics encourage the listener to imagine a world at peace, harmony, and to consider the possibility on humanity where one should be living a life unattached to material possessions. This song makes John Lennon his best-selling single of his solo career.

 "(Everything I Do) I Do It For You" was released in 1991 performed by Canadian rock singer Bryan Adams, featured on the soundtrack album from the 1991 film Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves and on Adams' sixth studio solo album Waking Up the Neighbours.

The song was a Billboard hit and won several music awards throughout the world, including the MTV Movie Award for Best Song from a Movie, making it Adams' most successful song and one of the best-selling singles of all time.

The platinum-selling "Right Here Waiting" was released in June 1989 as the second single from Richard Marx's second album, Repeat Offender. The song was topping charts throughout the world, including the U.S. where it hit number-one on the Billboard Hot 100.

Marx became the first solo artist to reach the Top 5 with his first seven singles.

Music learning provides various benefits documented in our previous blog posts. However, the real challenge is to convince your child to practice the instrument. Assuming you have tried the five ways to inspire your child to practice an instrument and it is still not working.

Let’s dive into the learning environment at home. As quoted from Mahatma Gandhi, “There is no school equal to a decent home and no teacher equal to a virtuous parent.”

Imagine a scenario at home, “I don’t want to practice” or “I want to quit because I don’t like to practice”. Firstly, you have to understand that this is completely normal. Music lessons are fun and exciting at the beginners’ level, when practicing does not take a lot of effort.

Giving in is a quick way to avoid whining and complaining attitude from your child. It often wears down even the best daddies and mummies. What about the future challenges in life that could not be avoided?

This is a good chance to develop your child's self-discipline.

Before you know it, your child might achieve his/her first milestone. You will be proud. When consistency is achieved and you work in a team which include the school, teacher, parent and student, this provides alot of opportunities to share your problems and they could offer suggestions and ideas to help your child.

It is also important to begin with these two components:
1.       Create a good learning environment at home
2.       Provide the support and guide your child

Here is the breakdown of a list of supportive practice environment (also mentioned in our previous post):

List of Supportive Practice Environment

1.       The television is turned off during practice time.

2.       Mobile and computer games should be turned off during practice time.

3.       Younger siblings should be occupied with other activities away from the practice area.

4.       Plan a suitable time that is best for your child to practice, set a timeframe for his/her practice.

5.       Place the music books in the same location to avoid misplacement of books.

6.       Follows the points or instructions given by the music teacher in the notebook or music pieces.

7.       Motivate your child to practice independently.

Teaching your child good practice habits at home takes a lot of patience. Since research has shown that students involved in music helps them to achieve better academic results than non-music students, helping your child to stay committed and encourage continued participation is one of the best investments in your child’s future. It also develops self-discipline which will come handy in school, their future career and beyond.

One of the greatest barriers that prevent the breakthrough for learning to play an instrument in the long run is the idea that music is just for fun. It might be true to bring music appreciation to children as young as two to three years old. However, as your child progresses, it takes time and effort to turn their music pieces into something beautiful. Practice!

If you child is already learning music, there are five ways that you could inspire your child to practice at home.

Supervise 
Children that are between three to seven years old need higher level of supervision. Often times, the instructions/points to note are given by the music teacher in the notebook or music pieces. Read them.  

Practice environment 
Silence is golden. Your child needs concentration during the practice session. Ensure an environment free of distractions for instance; sounds from the television programmes or activities that will distract your child will make the practice session more productive.

Encourage practice as everyday activity 
Instill daily practice as part of the activity, just like brushing your teeth every day. It helps further by following the instructions/points to note given by the music teacher in the notebook or music pieces.

Motivate 
Perhaps, ask your child to teach you how to play the instrument! It helps to reinforce what they have learnt in class. Your child may repeat the same song many times during the week, but practice makes perfect. Motivate them to practice and resist from saying, “Why are you playing the same song again?”

Reward 
Reward your child for practicing the instrument regularly. It could be as simple as, “Practice this song well and you will receive ...” This reward system hopes to gradually build confidence and commitment in your child when learning an instrument. 

Once your child is keen on learning an instrument, the next step is to choose a teacher. For many parents, this means searching around for a good private instructor. 

Seek Recommendations

Ask the parents of children who are already learning music, friends and others in your community for recommendations. Word of mouth is a good way to find a teacher.

Ask your Child for Feedback 

Before registering for your child, it is appropriate to ask your prospective teacher if trial lesson can be observed. Choosing an effective music teacher could be based on the qualification and teaching experience. But a great teacher needs much more than the shiny master’s degree on the wall, they need to have the heart, spirit and dedication to turn making music into a magical experience for her students. After the trial lesson, ask your child for feedback. Young children may not be able to analyze the experiences during the trial, but they will know what they liked, and whether or not they want to go back.

Trust your Gut Reaction 

An effective teacher helps your child end each lesson on a positive note, inspire them to feel proud of their accomplishments, and motivate them to practice during the week. To any teacher, it is important to notice and respect that the teacher’s age may not be a deciding factor, for instance – the very youthful private teacher has more than one trick up her sleeve which could be a good sign of patience for engaging the students and overcoming challenges for students with shorter attention span.

Are you ready to make a choice now? Trust your gut reaction. You know better what teacher is best for you or your child. 

Your expectations for your child’s musical learning journey could be as intensive as skipping grades to achieve certifications or it could be truly a skill that your child will eventually  learn to enjoy playing their music pieces.

Learn 2 Play Music takes emphasis on a dynamic approach to meet the learning styles and needs of each individual. 

Sign up with us here or Call us @ 6384 1041 for a trial to see if we are a good match. :) 

How to help your child to learn? 

1. When your child is interested about vehicles or things happening on the road, you may read books to them about transportation. 
2. Doing things together such as building road using Legos, or woodblocks and making handmade vehicles also give your child a chance to pretend to be in certain roles which helps to construct his or her own knowledge. 
3. Revisiting the “live” road, helps your child to gain more information, you may also use this time to ask open-ended questions and clarify any misconceptions. Some examples of open-ended questions, "What made the car move like that?" "Did you hear the sound of the car?” "What do you think the driver is going to do now?" Open-ended questions also encourage analytical thinking. 
4. If your child knows how to draw, you could also provide some materials for your child to draw what he or she observed. 

Children are like Copying machine – Learn through Watching and Modeling
Unconsciously, a child’s learning process involves watching and modeling people close to them, this includes language and behavior. 

What would be a more positive approach to help your child to learn?

1. When a child has undesirable behavior such as throwing the handmade vehicles around the room, instead of emphasizing what the child cannot do: "Don’t throw the vehicles." You could suggest what the child can do: "Here is a good box to throw your vehicles, let’s see who can be the first to finish."

Children are like Children - Learn through Play
Perhaps, this is one of the key processes of a child’s way of learning, learn through play. Parents may encourage learning by providing some basic materials in-house or organizing outdoor activities to extend their play.

What materials would be helpful for my child to learn? 

1. Stationery such as papers, crayons, glue and water colours to draw, paint and/or write to present their ideas. 
2. Basic materials such as assisting in cooking or use other existing materials at home for hands-on learning.
3. Outdoor activities for exploring nature and other active play such as beach, sand and sun for sensory experiences, running and climbing for motor skills.  
4. Play some musical activities for aural skills.

What would be more rewarding than watching your child enjoy their learning and getting better each time? At Learn 2 Play Music, a child’s learning is the primary focus of parents and teachers. First, we learn to play music together, thereafter, we play music to learn together. Free trial lesson is available to experience it! Start off your music adventure with us, click here to register or call us @ 6384 1031 for more enquiries. 

Music can be fun with kids, and it could be as simple as clapping, dancing and singing!

When kids participate in music activities, for instance, moving with the rhythm and keeping the beat, the brain starts forming connections that help sharpens motor skills and it also helps to establish routine that enhance their learning power.

Try some of these music activities that will get them moving:

The Marching Parade
Try making a homemade drum or re-use pot, bowl or even shoe box and prepare ice-cream sticks or chop sticks. Play a nursery rhyme, the key is to introduce to kids to march and hit the drum while the music is playing. 

Ask the kids to march without the drums and once they are ready, proceed to hit the drum according to the beat of the music. You may increase the complexity by increasing the tempo.

Playing in a Concert
Parents/Teachers are encouraged to introduce famous/pop songs of various genres beyond classical music. For this activity, kids will use the homemade instruments as shown in the first game. You could even sing along, or play with a musical instrument to feel more like a concert!

My Body Percussion, Clapping Hands!
Clapping is one of the body percussions to introduce sounds, rhythm and beat. Try to play a nursery rhyme that helps the kids to clap along with the music. Next, teach them to sing the words. The last step would be to sing the words and clap together with the music.

You could take a step further to clap the first few rhythms and test if the kids are able to clap back to you accurately. Repetition is the key, do give them a few tries and keep going until they get it right.