Babies Have a Strong Sense of Rhythm From Birth

from http://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-1059815/Babies-sense-rhythm-used-help-develop.html

By Daily Mail Reporter
Last updated at 7:34 AM on 23rd September 2008

It will be months before they talk, walk or even sit up. But at just a day old, babies have a strong sense of rhythm, say researchers.

Newborns are also sensitive to pitch and melody, they found.

Experts said that introducing a child to music at an early age could enhance these innate musical abilities and also help them learn to talk.

The fledgling musical talent was discovered by Hungarian researchers during a study of more than 100 boys and girls who were only one or two days old.

They played the babies music as they slept and measured their brain activity.

The researchers found that their brains computed changes in beat, tone and melody.

For instance, if a key beat was missed from a rhythmic pattern, the baby's brain registered the change.

A change in pitch, similar to that between male and female voices, also provoked a reaction.

The Hungarian Academy of Sciences study was part of a threeyear European project on how the brain processes music and other sounds, co-ordinated by Dr Susan Denham, of Plymouth University.

She said: 'What is perhaps most significant is that not only do babies' brains register changes in beat, pitch and simple melodic patterns but they do so more or less automatically, as they are fast asleep during these experiments.

'People come into the world with brains that are wired-up to detect patterns'.

Dr Denham added: 'A lot of music reflects the rhythms and contents of speech. If you are listening to music you will also probably be more sensitive to speech rhythm.'

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-1059815/Babies-sense-rhythm-used-help-develop.html#ixzz0kvZ2uoeA

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When Can We Start Music Lessons?

Here's an article on the same topic as the previous entry: http://www.babycenter.com/404_when-can-we-start-music-lessons_6876.bc

When can we start music lessons?

Expert Answers

David Geller, pediatrician

Whether your child takes a music appreciation class or starts actual lessons, she'll benefit mightily from being exposed to music. Kids can start formal music training as early as age 3, when brain circuits for learning music mature. In fact, studies at the University of California suggest that taking music lessons at age 3 can increase your child's brainpower. However, many piano teachers prefer that children wait until they are 5, when their hands are bigger and they're more ready to sit still and concentrate. (See more on music and toddlers.)

If you don't feel your toddler is ready for formal music lessons yet, you might want to join an early music program such as Kindermusik, which focuses on fostering a love of music, rhythm, and self-expression. By exploring how different instruments sound, and how music makes her feel, your child may learn to appreciate music much more than if she were practicing scales.

When your child is ready for more formal training, piano is a good instrument to start with, as the finger movements are less tricky than those for a guitar or violin. At this age, however, the most important thing is that your child enjoys herself. Make sure the instructor works well with young children and keeps the class fun and fast-paced.