Music is more than a gift with Yamaha

Music is something that is close to my soul. When I was little I played a whole host of musical instruments – I went to a school where it was the norm to play lots of musical instruments, play languages at 4 and have split science classes. I eventually decided that singing was more my thing, but I think it’s stuck with me from that early age that it’s good for children to learn an instrument.

My mother in law received a Yamaha keyboard for her Xmas present last year and it was always a source of fascination for the boys, especially Reuben who seems to have a natural love of music – from his dad’s old drum set right through to his uncle’s cello and now, Grandma’s keyboard. He’s getting to that age now where he will start the statutory parental torture that is the recorder at school, but I thought it would be nice for him to start learning a real instrument, not an object of torture…

When we visited my in laws on Sunday we had a little go with the keyboard, learnt to play jingle bells and had a look at the different settings because, unlike when I was banging chopsticks out on an old piano, this keyboard has different tones, different sounds and can even sound like different instruments (we did not approve of the violin noise). I think there are benefits to children learning an instrument but also benefits to not pushing children or forcing them to learn an instrument.

I hated the clarinet at school, it was one of the worst parts of my week, yet I felt a tremendous amount of pressure to continue on with the damned thing because I knew it afforded me a part scholarship which allowed me to stay in a school that I wouldn’t otherwise have been able to stay there. That pressure and overall dislike of the instrument grew until I really didn’t want anything to do with instruments for a time, so I think it’s wonderful to try and encourage children to embrace music slowly – start by listening to music, all music, and then trying out instruments, be it in a shop or at a family members home like we did.

As someone who has always had a passion for instruments (not the clarinet, I still hate that thing) I can’t impress upon you enough how I truly think that a child’s instrument should be something high quality from the get-go. Yes, this is paid post for Yahama but that doesn’t make it any less true – children’s instruments are often flimsy, poorly made and really easy to damage, whereas a passion for music and the creation of music, can be found in the respect that comes with handling a really good instrument and how beautifully crafted they are. With it coming up to Christmas I really think that now is the perfect time to explore a relationship with music and how it can give a child a creative outlet that they perhaps wouldn’t get with anything else.

After trying out Grandma’s Yamaha keyboard we’re now looking to try out a guitar (perhaps when the siblings aren’t about) to see if we prefer that route at all.

Do you play an instrument?

H 🙂

#MoreThanAGift #ad