Making introductions gentle
Introducing Carnātic music for the first time to a child unfamiliar with the genre can bring on a few challenges. Making that introduction gentle and smooth helps kick things off on a positive note. Here, I discuss some of the challenges and how to approach them.
A friend writes, about his young child:
So far my attempts at introducing ragas to him haven’t gone too well […]. Problem is, he’s used to seeing videos and children’s songs as “treats” on my laptop, so now when I try to play anything else he keeps demanding his favorites so much so that he doesn’t pay attention to what’s being played. Maybe I should use a different device or just allow him more time to get him used to music other than what he’s already used to.
Ah, that’s familiar. A few suggestions:
- try using a different device, even one exclusively for Carnātic music, so he does not think you are taking his familiar device away from him
- simply play the music in the background at a time he doesn’t expect to be watching videos. I play the music at dinner time when he does not expect videos, or in the background when he’s busy playing with his toys
- consider showing him a video of the concert piece. I found that that actually got him
very excited once I started describing what was happening in the video in detail
including:
- the colors in the video (for younger children)
- what the artists are wearing
- the instruments, and how they are played
- how the instruments produce sound
- the names of the artists, their musical style, and even their stories
- what other videos the artists appear in
- etc.
There are video links in the pairing article that work just as well for introducing your child to Carnātic music.
Another concern:
I need to start gently introducing so he doesn’t think it’s “replacing” his favorite videos.
- Excellent point. After all, you don’t want your child to think Carnātic music are the enemy
- Having them see you and other adults enjoying Carnātic music audio and videos can help pique their natural curiosity and innate need to imitate adults. So play Carnātic music tracks for yourself, and clap along or simply make it clear you are enjoying them. And wait for their curiosity to take over
A friend says:
I’m trying to introduce Carnātic music tracks for the first time. However, he asks me to change the Carnātic tracks and instead play his favorites each time. His fast-paced western classical instrumental favorites gets him going every time. Can you think of any fast-paced Carnātic piece that I can play for him to help “transition”?
Try this one. The good news is, he clearly enjoys music, and he has already walked a path to having a set of favorites. All you have to do is to find a “gateway” track in Carnātic music that helps him discover a new genre and (hopefully) expand his set of favorite tracks.
Another question:
I played a sample track in the background thinking he wouldn’t even notice… he stopped what he was doing, gave a concerned look, and then repeatedly asked for a different track
Glad he noticed the shift instantly. That shows how aware he is of music genres already, which is very promising!
Familiarity seems important to kids, which can be a catch-22 when trying to introduce something new. I found that simple things like these to help:
- gradual exposure: play the music for two minutes or less twice, then three minutes, then five minutes, and so on
- play the track at your desk or table for yourself, but in a way where he can notice it. This may be seen by him as less of a threat. Even better if he can tell that you are enjoying the music
- play other genres of music to have him see that music comes in genres, and it is okay and fun to explore
A friend writes about their child:
Progress has been challenging. We are still only at a 50-50 hit rate for the first two rāgams, which seems no better than guessing at random.
The learning process in distinguishing between the first two rāgams appears like a step function. That is, the learner (especially young ones) seems clueless, and do no better than guessing for the first two rāgams. And then suddenly overnight (seemingly), it shoots up to 98%.
Anecdotally, most people give up when there’s no discernable progress. Persist through that phase, and it’ll suddenly become far easier than you think, and there will be no looking back! The third and fourth rāgams are typically easier than the first two. Beyond the fourth, it gets very easy because the concept of rāgams has become intuitive and native.
A couple things that might help in this phase:
-
Reduce the number of songs to just two per rāgam, and work your way up from there. This will let him lean on identification based on the song first, and then let him transition to identifying the rāgam. This feels a bit like cheating, but it is actually an excellent learning aid.
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Kids tune in to emotion and facial expressions really well. Try making appropriate contrasting facial expressions for the two rāgams you are teaching the child, when each of those rāgams play, and that’ll let them tune in to the emotion in the music.