Music as Creative Language A presentation by The Mosaic Art & Sound Teresa dello Monaco

1. Teresa Dello Manaco
The Mosaic Art And Sound
Adults Learning for Intergenerational Creative Experiences
Project number: 518106-LLP-1-2011-IT-Grundtvig-GMP
Advanced Training Course A.L.I.C.E.
Learning Unit 2
Music as Creative Language for Adult-Child Interplay

2. SOUND AND MUSIC IN
ADULT-CHILD INTERPLAY

3. In their first year of life, children
activate a non-verbal
communication by using rhythm
with parts of their body or vocal
sounds and inflections that can be
intended as musical characteristics

4. Caregivers and infants are engaged
in a sort of communication that
does not concern a transfer of
information from one to the other,
but a
simultaneous creative interplay

5. Through this, they relate and make contact

6. The communication is continuously
recreated in action, through the
expression of simple, shared games
of repetitive actions

7. A typical example is the familiar
and universal game of peep-bo

8. Each new move in the game, hiding
for a moment longer, hiding in
different way, showing a more
exaggerated surprise and so on
depends on what has just gone
before and, crucially, on how the
baby is reacting

9. The outcome of effective
communication is a sympathetic
contact which is mutually
rewarding to both partners

10. Communication becomes an
active process which brings
people together and sustains,
enhances and strengthens their
connection

11. In a jazz jam session the music
performance exists because of
shared impulses and ideas which are
taken and given by the performers

12. None of the musicians know the
outcome of the music
combinations that are about to
appear in their performance,
until they are created at the very
moment of their exchange

13. The creativity depends on an
intangible chemistry between the
members of the group

14. It emerges out of musical
conversation

15. Similarly, in non-verbal caregiver-
infant interplay, the communication
is not a directional process from two
individuals in turn, but operates
continuously as an active, dynamic
system in which all participants are
simultaneously fully engaged.

16. As the child grows, the same
spontaneous, natural structure of
music creativity, and therefore
communication can be cultivated.

17. A child will be prone to develop
harmonious social skills when the
adult is adaptive to her/his
spontaneous musical expressions by
being able to mediate between his
own music/cultural background and
the child’s own musical impetus.

19. Nevertheless, although in their full
spontaneity, in the music games
children need to be given clear
boundaries within which they can
act. This allows them freedom as
well as clarity and grounding.

20. How can we support and
develop musical communication
between parents, caregivers,
teachers and young children?

21. Ask the social initiatives supporting
families,
nursery and primary schools
to draw their attention on the
subject
of musical communication.

22. There is the need to
develop children
music competences
that enable them to
have harmonious
social skills.

23. At home, have a variety of simple
music instruments and play them
together with the children.
The whole family can become a
music group.

24. Percussion instruments can be
also easy to build. For instance,
we can use different fruit seeds
or shells and put them in boxes
of various materials and shake
them or we can use different
sized pan pipes and so on.

25. We can use recycled materials or
buy a number of inexpensive
educational instruments and greatly
enjoy jamming with our children.

26. End