The Music of Grandchildren
Posted on July 31, 2016 by bob in EdNote
We all have a soundtrack for our lives, songs we heard at meaningful times in our lives, good and bad, that, when heard again, bring back a flood of memories. Since music meant – and means – so much to us, we should share it with our grandchildren.
Regardless of our (or their) natural abilities, music is a language children can learn to appreciate, and connect with, well before they roll over, sit up, crawl or walk.
While pregnant with our first child, I’d often sit at the piano, casually working my way through a handful of simple tunes I’d learned during two years of, well, disastrous, piano lessons. Bob would often play his guitar and sing to our in-utero child, and more than once I felt the eerie sensation of an arm or leg being moved, or a tiny body shifting. We chalked it up to the normal course of pregnancy.
After our son was born, and our lives changed swiftly and dramatically — for the good — we’d lie on the floor with this little bundle watching in new-parent wonder as he learned to raise his head, turn over and eventually sit up. My piano recitals had been forgotten in the overwhelming rituals that developed — feeding, sleeping, changing diapers.
One Sunday afternoon, our son now upright on the floor, I sat at the piano to plunk out a tune or two. I was largely ignored until I began one of the songs I’d played before he was born. To our amazement, he made a deliberate turn towards the piano, smiled, and attempted to make his way there.
Before either of our grandchildren could walk, they’d be seated at the piano, in my lap, and introduced to the magical transformation of moment into music. They loved pressing the keys, hearing the results of their efforts, moving their stubby fingers from one key to the next, or rhythmically repeating a note over and over as they moved their head in time to the note. There was often little rhythm, rarely a discernible melody, and never any harmony.They were doing what children do best — playing— literally and figuratively. In the process they were also learning another form of communication, a way to express themselves, through the sounds made by the keys and the intensity and speed in which they were pressed.
A recent grandchild day at the house resulted, as it often does, with a cacophonous trio of hands on the piano, me playing a simple melody while the young ones, fingers splayed out like small human fans, plinked and plonked their way up and down the keyboard. Bob grabbed his guitar, found the right chords, and began accompanying me. Both children loved the interaction of this ad hoc quartet.
On their next visit, I again sat down at the piano, one grandchild in my lap, the older standing beside me, and began my usual rendition of long-ago tunes. When I started playing one from the previous week, the one for which Bob had provided accompaniment, the youngest grandchild turned, looked at Bob, and said “Papou, get you guitar.” Another music lesson learned.
Now, go brush up on “Go Tell Aunt Rhody” and “She’ll Be Coming ‘Round the Mountain.” You’ve got a lot to share with those little ones. You may think your technique and ability leave much to be desired, but the sounds you create will truly be music to their ears.
Sandra Polizos, Editor
primeeditor@gmail.com
