Kids Music 101: Music and Emotions – Music for Calming

This post is by regular contributor Christine Gora of Kids Music Toys.

In this post and over the next few months I will be exploring the ways in which music can be used to calm and to stimulate, how it can be used to influence emotion and mood, and also how it can be used for teaching children positive behaviour.

Today I’m focusing on music for calming, for relaxing and unwinding.

One of the most stressful times for parents can be the arrival of a new baby.  Settling a young bub into any sort of routine can be difficult. Sleep deprivation or lack of good quality sleep is almost universal for new parents but it goes beyond that for many who have difficulty getting children off to sleep or have wakeful nights way beyond the newborn stage and into the terrible twos. Curtain calls or delay tactics are the armour used by many toddlers who wouldn’t have “butter melt in their mouths” on any other issue but have found their winning trump card with mums and dads and getting to sleep.

This is a huge issue and in this post I can only just begin to scratch the surface but I would like to begin with three questions to put the situation in context:

  • How would you feel if you were uprooted from the most enjoyable party to be suddenly told you have to lie down and sleep?
  • How would you feel if you were extremely tired and wanted sleep but were constantly barraged by noise and stimuli that kept you awake?
  • How would you feel if you just wanted some time off to relax but social/work demands kept you in performance mode?

Babies and young children are no different from adults in their needs, except that they are adult dependent and have little personal control over their environment. They are relatively powerless to effect positive change and are dependent on their ability to communicate their needs to you. The environment is something that adults have control over. Let’s look at how music plays a part in this. In a world of constant background noise, sound can be a negative influence if it is not tempered with silence.  The principles of music for calming are:

  • Less sound, less movement is calming
  • Routine provides security
  • Music combined with routine is magical

And these are some practical steps you can take:

  • As sleep time approaches, reduce the background noise level and reduce social stimulation
  • Use massage with music to calm at bath time or bedtime – your touch provides reassurance
  • Use the music as a cue during the bedtime settling routine

What are some tools you can use to aid the calming effect?
The Majors for Minors Classical Music Series has been developed on the foundation of extensive scientific research demonstrating the indisputable positive effect of certain classical music on the brain development of foetuses, babies, toddlers and young children. You might want to try the settling influences of Symphony of Sleep or Classic Lullabies.  All CDs in this series utilize classical music and are not just simply environmental sound effects.

Patience and a calm manner are essential for success.  Be kind to yourself and try adding a little music for calming to your sleeptime and settling routine.

Have you used music as a way of soothing and settling your little ones for sleep?

8 Comments

  1. I was interested to hear at an Autism seminar that some autistic children who do not respond to spoken words will respond to something if it is sung to them. So fascinating.

    We use music a lot for Heidi, she is very noise sensitive and going to the shops can be sensory overload for her – the different music coming out of each shops radio system, announcements, people talking, squeaking trolleys, buzzing flourescent lights, children playing/crying, etc.

    We use her iPod and headphones and it really helps Heidi to remain calm. The iPod music masks the background noises and we are able to stay out for longer.

  2. Doots has always responded very positively to music and from an early age she’s had music playing in her room at bed time. As a baby we used the Sounds for Silence, which I wouldn’t describe as music, it’s actually awful sounding industrial noise which is designed to replicate life in a noisy womb! It really did work to help her settle. We would leave it on repeat all night, so if she woke it would help her settle again. The trick was to have it as loud as possible in her room without us having to listen to it too!

    Now she has a cd player by her bed and a selection of cds, and she will often chose one to play while she’s going to sleep. I think it’s comforting to her, and her room is at the front of the house so sometimes traffic and street noise keep her awake.

    Oesch prefers silence!

    1. Isn’t it interesting that both your children are so different in so many ways, Sarah. Makes me wonder which is more like you/your husband??? 🙂

  3. I played lullaby and calming CDs almost every night I was pregnant with Will, and he still loves to go to sleep with music on. He went for about a year with no music at sleep and nap time, can’t remember why, but it did show me that he wasn’t totally dependent on it. Music is magic when the room is getting a bit loud at kindy too – we put it on and it suddenly goes quiet because everyone wants to listen. 🙂

  4. Prior to becoming a Mum, I worked in the under 2’s room of a community based childcare. I was taught an italian lullaby ‘Ninna Nanno’ which helped calm unsettled babies.
    Then when I was pregnant, I often sung the same song to my unborn child especially while driving in the car. Even today at 3 1/2 years of age, my daughter still finds it soothing and even likes to sing it with me sometimes.

  5. Lyndsay Johnson says:

    I adore Ladybug Music. It’s the most fresh and enjoyable music I’ve found. You can find more about them here:
    http://www.ladybugmusic.com/

    And they sell their songs through iTunes and on Amazon, as well. Give them a listen, and I promise you will be wanting to put that CD in your car every time! They also end every CD with a sweet lullaby to calm your child for sleepy time!

  6. Junior listened to “Symphony of Lullabies” every night before he went to bed for about the first two years. Not sure if it help him but it is an instant sedative for me!

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