I try not to post too much about kids on this site, because I realize that not everyone is there. Moreover, I realize that not everyone finds my kids to be as interesting as I do. Having said that, something happened yesterday that was really funny in a wow-that's-weird kind of way.
I was walking around the house, absent-mindedly singing "It's Not Bothering Me" by VoL. Hadn't heard the song in ages, but for whatever reason, I was singing it. And then, out of nowhere, my son looks at me and says, "Daddy, I like that song." So I asked him if he wanted to hear it and he did. We ended up playing all of "Room Despair."
What's interesting is that this kid has a genuine perspective on music. Some stuff he likes, and other stuff he does not. The funny thing is, I'm starting to actually anticipate things that he will enjoy. And he's only four!
Do you all remember when you started to get into music. I didn't grow up in a house that encouraged music, so I didn't come to it until I was in 7th/8th grade. But here, in our home, we play it all the time and E. really seems to like it. When did you all start getting into music.
I was walking around the house, absent-mindedly singing "It's Not Bothering Me" by VoL. Hadn't heard the song in ages, but for whatever reason, I was singing it. And then, out of nowhere, my son looks at me and says, "Daddy, I like that song." So I asked him if he wanted to hear it and he did. We ended up playing all of "Room Despair."
What's interesting is that this kid has a genuine perspective on music. Some stuff he likes, and other stuff he does not. The funny thing is, I'm starting to actually anticipate things that he will enjoy. And he's only four!
Do you all remember when you started to get into music. I didn't grow up in a house that encouraged music, so I didn't come to it until I was in 7th/8th grade. But here, in our home, we play it all the time and E. really seems to like it. When did you all start getting into music.
posted by Just a Few Things about Scott ... | 8:34 AM
4 Comments:
I think I'll write my own response to this a little later on. :-)
As far as music goes—I have a rather messed up background. As you guys know, my father grew up in (what can be best described as) a “Christian” cult. So pretty much all music was banned. And growing up, he did the same to me. He literally took music away from me from 1982 through about1988. (I had left on a music countdown on a station that he himself listened to. A song came on (John Cougar Meloncamp / “Hurt so Good”) that he did not approve of, and the rest was history.)
But with that said—an embargo only increased interest in the black market. So I successfully did that for some time, until my brother ratted me out. (Chicago “18”; Prince “Purple Rain”.)
So in short, music was always very important to me—because I wasn’t allowed to enjoy it. Even as a kid, I knew that the early Petra albums were crap—musically. And in time, I became a better pop-culturalist for my ‘missed years’ than most of my cohorts.
But as an aside, Court’s been taking E to KinderMusic since she was 6 months old. It’s safe to say that Ella’s life revolves around music. And her ability to concentrate on music really does astound me; she’ll focus on it for 30 minutes at a time. Suffice it to say that she definitely has favorite composers and music genres.
To me, you comments regarding E. are fascinating because she's even younger then my E. What kind of stuff does she dig in terms of classic music? E. is really into Mozart, but that's about all I have been able to identify on the classical front. His responses to Mahler and Tchikovsky are relatively indifferent.
As for pop music, he tends to dig Creedance Clearwater revival, David Cook (yes, American Idol. I know. Get over it.), Dropkick Murphys, faster-paced U2, Lincoln Brewster, and David Crowder.
Uhm... I'd have to think about this. She doesn't like bluegrass. Piano concertos aren't her favorite, but she really digs Piano Sonatas. I've got the entire Mozart library, so that's her primary source of exposure. She tolerates Jazz pretty well.
As an aside, she initially liked Piano Sonatas as played by Baby Einstein. So I got the real thing, and she rejected it. Then--Court told her that Elmo was playing the piano, and she loves it. So the performer definitely has significance.
But in the end, she prefers her kid-music. The KinderMusic CDs are actually pretty good and quite diverse. They include the goofy kid songs, all the way to multi-cultural songs (sung in different languages) as well as a variety of music genres.
It's just interesteing. She likes different genres and songs for different reasons. She likes the interactive songs, for sure. But she also seems to prefer certain world genres. "Classical" music is tolerated. Piano Sonatas are enjoyed. Jazz is tolerated; Bluegrass is not. She does seem to like the whole Brazilian carnival kind of music. (You know, the kind with the whistles in the background...) 1940s era music is appreciated, but not loved. Modern artists are ignored. She doesn't like K-Lov either...
I'll start paying attention and report back later... As a general rule, our main stereo is on nearly 100% of every waking hour. Her own stereo in her room is also a permanent "on" fixture as well.
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