Hitting the right notes

Music is widely considered to invoke emotions in humans. Exposure to good music in the household can lead to children developing 'a musical ear'. Children are less conditioned in the early years by societal norms or pressures. Hence, you often find children casually moving to the music they enjoy and attempting to hum or sing the tunes that appeal to them.

An intuitive way to gauge a child's interest and ability to learn music is to have some musical instruments lying around the house, perhaps a piano or a mouth organ. If children naturally gravitate towards the instrument and spend time pressing the keys of a piano or blowing into a mouth organ while trying to latch onto a sense of melody and rhythm, then it would be advisable to get them a private teacher or enroll them in a good music school in the neighbourhood.

Music education has lifelong benefits if imparted from an early age. It has been found that there is a correlation between early music education to higher test scores in language and math. Ideally, music should be taught informally to children from the age of 5. Children are not afraid to make mistakes, and this attitude can often lead to children themselves discovering new and innovative ways of making music learning fun for themselves.

Simple yet complicated

Music on the face of it is simple. Yet, it is complicated when broken down academically and consumed in a scholarly fashion. The relationships between melody, harmony and rhythm can fuel an infinite number of possibilities allowing for each individual to express his or her personality through the music. The combinations and permutations of notes and beats can create both simple and complex arrangements that invoke a multitude of reactions in listeners.

Formal training can start at the age of eight years, or sometimes earlier depending on the holistic upbringing of the student that has an effect on cognitive maturity and receptive skills. At this age, students should find a balance between learning an instrument, the theory of music and repertoire that they enjoy.

Instrument studies can be practised through careful analysis of classical and contemporary pieces, in pursuit of a personalised style and flair for performance.

Theoretical studies provide musicians with the ability to make informed musical choices and decisions. These studies help develop aural skills which are critical to musical development. Finally, expression of the individuality of each student is best displayed through the composition or performance of their personal preferences in music. This helps students create their unique voices.

(Nitin Chandy is co-founder and Saurav Ghosh is associate dean at a school of music)