Music Speech

Do you sing at the top of our lungs daily in your car on the way to school, in the shower, or while cleaning your house? Music is a way of life. It is a worldwide language that we can all share in and enjoy. Music is my passion. I 've been actively involved in choirs, musicals, private lessons, and other musical performances for almost all my life. I don 't think most people realize how important music is to education, work skills, and communication. The fundamentals of learning are instilled into a child at a very young age. Research has shown that involvement in music programs improves a child 's early cognitive development and basic math and reading abilities. There are schools attempting to eliminate teaching musical arts to our children. The board of education claims they must provide education by concentrating on the basic academic courses, but what they don 't realize is that music is a major part of basic education. Music as a separate and thorough curriculum can have dramatic positive changes in the learning process of young people. They call it "musical math," in which the teacher incorporates rhythm with counting and gaining a grasp on the fundamentals of math. With the rhythm, they are able to learn basic elements of math like fraction and multiplication. American children are lagging behind in their math and science abilities as compared to their foreign counterparts and music could be just the catalyst we need to catch up. Successful music students tend to possess the qualities and skills that are generally considered essential to employers in business, education and service organizations. Learning music takes extreme self-discipline and creativity. It has been shown to raise self-esteem and make society more confident in their abilities. It is an easy outlet to release frustrations to get rid of the burden on your shoulders. It uplifts and motivates the spirit and gives people a more positive outlook on life and situations. It is important to cut down on stress in our daily lives and any way that we can do that is beneficial to our health in some way or another. Musical groups such as choir, orchestra or band help bring people together as well as improving communication skills, group work, and forming peer groups. Music creates a higher standard of performance of people. Normal people settle for the standard 90%, but in a musical setting, a performance of only 90% would be very disappointing to the performer and the audience. The entire world seems to be able to communicate with music and seems to understand it enough to share their own musical interpretation. I went to seven countries in Europe a few years ago. I was involved with an Ambassador 's Choir of Oklahoma. We traveled to different churches, parks, and meeting facilities to sing to people from across the world. Our concert halls were always filled to capacity. The natives of the countries we visited always smiled, swayed, and some even danced to our music. You could see the enjoyment on their faces at every performance. Although, they may not have been able to understand exactly what we were saying all the time, they understood the musical feeling that radiated from the choir. Music is a language of it 's own and depending on how we speak it, it too can accomplish a multitude of results. Music is inescapably larger than life; it sets the tone for funerals, weddings, ball games, and many other important events in life. You do not need to be high-born or rich. For centuries, vagabonds, minstrel singers, and cowboys have passed down music from generation to generation. Music is an important and extremely useful tool in the way we learn and to deny its power is a waste of a truly wonderful resource. Music and the arts are what make life worth living and without them, people lose hold of their culture and diversity. So next time you are singing in the shower, tuning in with the best radio station, or humming to yourself while cleaning your house, I hope you realize the importance of music to everyday life.

Bibliography

Parker, Roger. The Oxford History of Music and Opera. Oxford University Press: Oxford, NY; 1996.

"The Mozart Effect: How Classical Music Improves Intelligence and Learning". Child Development Institute. http://www.childdevelopmentinfo.com/development/Mozart_Effect.htm

Bibliography: Parker, Roger. The Oxford History of Music and Opera. Oxford University Press: Oxford, NY; 1996. "The Mozart Effect: How Classical Music Improves Intelligence and Learning". Child Development Institute. http://www.childdevelopmentinfo.com/development/Mozart_Effect.htm