If you can walk then you can dance, if you can talk then you can sing.Zimbabwean proverb
We love this quote. It’s obvious isn’t it....and yet how many people complain that they were born tone deaf or with two left feet? The Singing Tree grew out of our strong belief that everyone is born intrinsically musical. To sing with confidence and to move freely to the beat is one of the best things in the world and it’s something that everyone can do, as long as they are given the chance early on. Our classes are warm, gentle and nurturing. They hark back to our own childhoods and the content is easy for you to do at home.
Keeping our classes small means we get to know every child. To find their singing voices we appeal to all their senses and their imagination. We try out different rhythms, beats, high and low sounds, fast and slow sounds and songs and music with different feelings.
We sing songs that everyone can learn. We show the children how to do it and then give them the confidence to do it themselves. It’s a bit like scaffolding a building until it’s strong enough to stand alone. And it works! We have seen two year olds singing solo in class after only a few months.
Many people tell us that their children are always singing our songs (often on the way home), even if they are quiet in class. Tara’s son Arthur was singing some of our songs before he could talk and one of Mollie’s one year olds began using hand signals to show the length of crotchets and quavers.
Don’t just take our word for it. Research has shown that singing to babies from as early as possible aids children's development immeasurably.
Once a wide repertoire of songs is known and loved, we develop this and before long (by the age of 3 or 4) we start introducing children to written musical signs. They love realising they have learned to read music.
Our training has shown us the value of starting all music education with singing. This was the main principle of the Hungarian composer and educationalist Zoltán Kodály. One of his pupils Szilvay, later came up with the Colourstrings repertoire of sweet, simple songs, which we also use in our classes.
We move and listen to many genres of music. Many parents have said that dancing with their child or having a cuddle and listening to some peaceful music at the end of the class really makes their week.