Does music give you a bounce in your step, a smile on your face, and the zest to do your to-do list? Have you ever felt like you are dragging through the day. . .UNTIL you put on music? If so, the energizing effect of music is one great indicator that you are strong in the Musical Intelligence.
Music is one of the most amazing gifts of this life. Regardless of our age or culture, there is music that will stir our heart—reminding us of happy or sad moments in life, and everything in between. Whether folk songs, classical, country-western, hymns, or the latest movie soundtrack, music can connect us to old memories, it can evoke powerful emotions, and it can help us to worship. Profoundly, music can help us communicate the very depths of our heart, whether joy or grief.
And, this “smart” is not limited solely to people who create music. Anyone who enjoys music—at any level—is exhibiting a Musical Intelligence. Since music adds such a depth of richness to our everyday lives, it is certainly worth spending time and money to cultivate this in our families!
With that in mind, let’s take a peek into this “Music Smart” intelligence (excerpted from my book, Reaping the Harvest).
“People who are strong in this area enjoy listening to music, as well as making music. They might be instrumentalists, vocalists, percussionists. They could make instruments; they could play instruments. They might like classical music, country-western music, Polynesian music, jazz music, rhythm and blues, folk music, opera, twentieth century music, African music, Renaissance madrigals, or Japanese music. They might like woodwinds, brass, strings, or percussion. They could play Sousa marches on the CD player to do chores, or a Bach violin sonata to help them write an English composition. This intelligence has to do with rhythmic tapping, soft humming, original composing, guitar strumming, tuneless whistling. Someone strong in this area might very well “sing for their supper” and for any other opportunity that comes their way!
“An example of a person strong in this intelligence would be Johann Sebastian Bach. He was a church organist who composed original church music on a weekly basis. Unfortunately, many of the people of his own time hated it! Too many new ideas!! However, many years later, Felix Mendelssohn discovered Bach’s manuscripts and shared them with the rest of the world—which led to an astonishing growth in popularity of this music, which was composed for the glory of God!”
If you or any of your kids are strong in this intelligence, step outside of the box! That means, you can look for opportunities to sing your way through subjects. For instance, you can actually learn the countries of the world by singing them. . . And, though this might be obvious, let me say that for these learners, take the time, trouble and expense to get them music lessons if they are interested. The benefits are numerous—not the least of which is that they will have the opportunity to SHINE.
P.S. I LOVE music!! I love to hear it, work with it, sing it, play it, compose it, perform it. That’s why we created the fun of learning American history through its folk music in Experience History Through Music books/CDs. And, it was also delightful to add music into my History Revealed world history curriculum. We not only learn about music during each chapter (the elements of music, church music, and famous composers), but there are also opportunities for students to create and perform music within their history studies. We also have a lot of fun with it—as you can see from the example below (part of the Recapping exercise in Unit 2 of World Empires, World Missions, World Wars):
In a small group, decide what the Industrial Revolution would have sounded like to the people of the day (crowded cities, railroads, machinery, telegraph, etc.). Once you have chosen the type of sounds that will best reflect this revolution, organize your team to make a rhythmic and discernible set of sounds, paying attention to rhythm, loudness, and pitch. Can onlookers identify your sounds?
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