Distinctness and variety help learning
If we enjoy an experience, we tend to seek it and repeat it. As you build up your child’s knowledge of various rāgams, you might find yourself choosing reference songs from a small set of favorite artists. If so, I found that consciously avoiding that, and instead seeking variety is actually is far more beneficial to learning because:
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distinct sounding tracks for each rāgam’s reference songs aids remembering. It is difficult to remember twenty tracks from the same artist because they all start sounding similar at some point
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variety opens up your child’s eyes to the possibilities
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experimenting with variety is a way to discover what your child likes. Discovering a new track that they love is a very pleasant experience for them and you
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variety breaks you out of your own shell, and lets you explore and discover as you teach your child
What does it mean to have distinct sounding tracks, or variety? When picking your reference tracks to play, pay attention to ensure there is variety across:
- vocal vs instrumental tracks
- solo vs set of artists
- male vs female voices
- non-“standard” instruments
- sub-genre (eg: thillānas, kritis, pāsurams, a dance piece, etc.)
- language
- composer