Ashley McLeod: It’s Sunday morning in Boulder and at the Birth Center a group of parents and children have come together and are singing a hello song.
(song)
AM: Music Together of Boulder, owned by Jane Simms Roche, is a local part of this international program that’s geared towards exposing children to music at a young age, which helps increase brain growth, while also bringing the child and parent together.
Jane Simms Roche: “The whole point is that if we can teach the parents how to support their child’s natural musicality, then they’re going to be able to do that at home or in the classroom.”
AM: Roche began her path with Music Together while working as a music coach in the Boulder area.
JSR: “I was doing that in the community and realized that I really wanted to kind of do more of a niche.”
AM: After searching around Boulder, Roche found that there wasn’t anything like the program that she was interested in, and learned about Music Together. She then traveled to Princeton, New Jersey, where the program was founded, and trained to open her own branch in Boulder.
AM: So what is music together?
JSR: “It’s a music enrichment program for birth through five-year-olds with their parents or caregivers. We’re a research based program, so we know how children’s brains grow and why singing and dancing is so important, especially during those early years.”
AM: In several studies from the Auditory Neuroscience Lab at Northwestern University, scientists have found that exposing children to music at a young age, and having them participate in engaging music programs, will greatly increase their brain development and also helps develop language skills.
JSR: “What research tell us is that when you are exposing your child, especially the first three years of life, um, when the brain is growing so rapidly, providing a rich music environment is what’s really important for their brains to grow all those pathways.”
AM: Not only is Music Together a bonding experience for a child and parent, but it’s also a chance for other parents to bond with each other.
JSR: “It’s a place where they get to come not only be fun with their child and have a great time, but they’re creating this musical community where other adults are moving and dancing and singing as well. It’s fun, it’s a great way for a parent and a child to bond, and, and we’re nurturing amazing brain growth not only for music but for all sorts of things.”
AM: For more information about Music Together, visit www.musictogetherboulder.com. For Under the Flatirons, this is Ashley McLeod.
- Originally written and recorded for Under the Flatirons
