Diary of a Music Studio: The Show Must Go On

Pre-School Music Class Begins at Major Minor's Music Academy: Week One Focuses on Tambourines - Diary of a Music Studio Chronicles "The Show Must Go On"

Diary of a Music Studio: Week One

Fourteen years is a long time between preschool music sessions.

Yesterday at 1:00 pm, after well over a decade away from early-years group delivery, I unpacked our instruments, tuned my ukulele, and officially opened the doors for the return of Major Minor’s Music Academy.

Our very first explorer arrived with Mum and Dad, and like so many two-year-olds finding their feet in a brand-new space, she decided the safest, cosiest place in the world was right on Mum and Dad’s knees. She didn’t run straight into the centre of the rug, she didn’t march around the room, and she watched every second with big, wide, curious eyes.

And as any experienced early-years teacher knows: that is entirely, completely normal, and wonderful.

In early childhood, listening is participating. A toddler observing from the absolute security of a parent’s lap absorbs the pulse, the singing, and the dynamic contrasts just as profoundly as one bouncing across the floor. Mum and Dad sang along, the tambourines woke up softly, and the first seeds of musical confidence were planted.

As Freddie Mercury famously sang, the show must go on, and what a gentle, lovely beginning it was for the first entry in our Diary of a Music Studio.

Tambourine Week kicks off at Major Minor's Music Academy with a focus on dynamics in "Week One: Loud and Soft Week."

Try It at Home: Music on the Knee

If you have a shy or cautious toddler, you do not need them to perform or follow instructions to nurture their natural musicality. You simply become their instrument!

Try this simple rhyme from our first session together at home this week:

The Tambourine Tap

Sit your toddler on your lap facing you, or cuddling with their back against your chest.

Part 1: Soft Tap (Piano)

"I have a little tambourine, how can I play it?

I can tap it, tap it, tap it, that’s how I play it."

• Action: Use two gentle fingertips to tap the steady beat directly onto your toddler's palms or knees. Whisper the word "tap, tap, tap" so they feel the pulse softly.

Part 2: Loud Shake (Forte)

"I have a little tambourine, how can I play it?

I can shake it, shake it, shake it, that’s how I play it!"

• Action: Gently hold your toddler’s hands and shake them up high like autumn leaves in the wind, using a big, happy singing voice!

Next week in Greenhill, our characters continue their journey as we explore a brand-new instrument: Jingle Bells

We can't wait to see you back on the rug.