Playing music has always been a big part of my life, whether it was watching my cousin play guitar on the front porch of my great grandmother's house out in the country, to when I played dive venues and well known stages in Nashville, to now when I pick up my guitar and play a few chords. Korina has always had an ear for good tunes and holds the title for making the world's best mixtapes (now playlists). Needless to say we love music, and at eight months old, it is obvious Killian shares the same love.
I never took guitar or vocal lessons, at the age I should have I really didn’t have the time or thought I needed them so I didn’t try to take them. I wish I had taken a few formal lessons of any instrument or vocal class. So it’s important to me to have Killian get involved with music and learn the mechanics of it at a young age, I just don’t know when that will be exactly.
When Korina was about 8 months pregnant our amazing friend Nolan gave me Hamilton The Musical on CD for my car. It was such an amazing gift, because A. That musical is amazing and a pleasure to listen to and B. We listened to it so much that it kind of became Killian’s soundtrack, he would kick extra hard in Korina’s belly when it came on and everything. When Killian made it out to us we realized that the opening number from Hamilton calmed him immediately, still 8 months into this parenting game, if we put it on, even when Killian is going crazy and crying, he sobers up and calms down. I don’t think Nolan knows how awesome that gift was but it has truly made parenting a little bit easier, and we are so thankful to him for that!
So we have a baby boy who loves music, a dad who plays music and a mom who has brilliant taste in tunes. What's the Biemesderfer family to do? We bought a cheap red nylon string guitar and put it in Killian's room and he has free reign to bang it like a drum, flick the strings, hold it, push it do whatever with it.1 Korina and I always talked about having instruments around the house that Killian could just pick up and figure out and once he finds something that he likes the sound of the best, we can get him some lessons. One of my favorite things to do is to play guitar with him in front of me and watch him grab the strings and bang on the guitar while I play. Seeing him light up and giggle at the wonder that is music is so pure and magical to me.
I could go on about how music stimulates the brain, and how learning a musical instrument makes you more attractive, and so on but for now, I think it’s super important to give your child a chance to create some noise. Noise therapy (playing shows, having band practice, listening to music far too loud in the car, singing in the shower) is so important. We think Killian is going to be a drummer, so a small drum set is in our future, I will probably wind up eating these words the day that drum set comes into our house. Luckily I have a good friend who can teach Killian the way of the drum.
What do you think about noise therapy? Guitars and pianos laying around the house? What do you do with your kinder that stimulates their musical creativity?
Remember,
You’ve Got This!
-Dillon
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