Kids and Classical Music

"Music is so naturally united with us that we cannot be free from it even if we so desired" Boethius Is my child musical?

Most children are musical. In fact, child music education expert Atarah Ben-Tovim, and co-author of The Right Instrument for your Child (Weidenfeld & Nicholson), says she has only met three non-musical people in her entire life: "If a child can recognise a simple tune, then they are musical - it's how we use our musicality that differentiates us."

The right age to start learning

This is a surprisingly contentious area. Experts express contrasting opinions. There probably is no 'right' age - it's more a matter of what suits your child.

Amadeus Quartet violinist Norbert Brainin once said that the latest one should start learning the violin is seven if they wanted to be a professional. Violin teacher Roland Herrera takes this lightly: "I know good professional violinists who didn't start until they were 10. With the cello I would advise eight, nine or 10. With the violin - six, seven, or eight. But every child is different."

The world authority on this subject is Atarah Ben-Tovim. She is of the opinion that "the right moment is a particular stage in your child's physical, mental and emotional development". And it is often later than you might think. "For 95% of children, the best time to start learning their first instrument is sometime between the ages of eight and 11," she says. "It's never too early to listen to records or to clap or sing along, but an actual structured course shouldn't be considered until the child can really read and write, relate to friends at school, and is actually a little bit bored."

Learning an instrument requires a lot of mental energy - the child has to learn to read music, while coordinating their fingers. "The best time is when the child has mental energy to spare, when the basic three Rs have been learnt. If you start a child at nine, I can do as much in one year as I can if you start a child at six, it doesn't save any time," Ben-Tovim says.

But what if your six-year-old says: "I want to learn the flute or cello"? Ben-Tovim believes it is better for the child, and for their long-term musical health, if they wait, and that this early expression of desire is simply "the promptings of his or her developing instinct to make music".

Meanwhile, there are many activities you can do to encourage your child and get them ready to move on to the next stage. Even if a child isn't learning the recorder at school, there is no reason why the parent can't teach them - even if they have never learnt themself. First equip yourself with a book and a recorder (try Yamaha's I can play recorder set, which includes a recorder, a tape and a book). All you have to do is stay one step ahead of your child.

Make a point of listening to music with your child at home, or take them to a concert. One of the best concert series for children is the Children's Classic Concerts, designed to introduce children to the joys of music-making. It's also a great way to introduce your child to different orchestral instruments. There is nothing more inspiring for a child than experiencing the talent of their peers live on stage. So take your child along to a concert featuring young performers.