Mothers and Babies: a musical relationship

Abstract

The role of music in the everyday life of mothers and infants has been studied by scientists throughout the world. It is well known that children prefer the maternal voice to other sounds, and are more attentive when speech or singing is directed to them. The purpose of this experimental study was to investigate and discuss current musical practices and interactions of mothers and babies, utilizing semi-structured interviews with mothers whose babies were between 18 months and 4 years of age. Results suggest that mothers are not currently singing to their infants, as has been suggested by previous studies conducted in Canada and in the USA, but use music from CDs and television. In this sense, early childhood music education programs are important for child development, especially in respect to the encouragement of maternal singing. By educating parents and children, we will encourage future music lovers.
Keywords: Mothers, infants, music, musical speech