Tag Archives: music and movement

A Remembrance – Audrey Sillick – 1921-2014

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Audrey Sillick was born in 1921, and was 92 years of age upon her death.  She had been ill for some time, but was able to live in her apartment in Toronto throughout the last years.  Friends accompanied and assisted her in the last days.

Audrey was born in England, and spent her childhood and youth in England, India and Switzerland.  Audrey’s years in India influenced her life greatly – learning to play by herself, outside in the wonderful world of nature; studying at a fine teacher’s college and meeting Maria Montessori during her time in India; spending countless hours observing, especially of the world of animals and children.

Audrey Sillick

After moving to Canada and spending years in the United States, Audrey joined the Montessori movement, becoming founder and director of the Toronto Montessori Teacher Training Institute in 1971.  Her particular areas of expertise concerned the role of movement in learning, the process of language acquisition and the understanding of the child in nature.  Audrey influenced innumerable Montessorians through the Institute, but also through speaking and teaching engagements throughout the Montessori Community. This included Renilda Montessori, granddaughter of Maria, who taught with Audrey and Lorna at the TMI.

Audrey’s teachings are central to Musikgarten, indeed her work has influenced countless early childhood music teachers and Montessori teachers. I met Audrey in the early 1980s. Having moved to Toronto after my recent marriage, I soon was asked to teach at the Toronto Montessori School and was sent to hear Audrey’s lectures at the Teacher Training Institute there, to become better acquainted with my new environment.

What a life-changing event that turned out to be!  Audrey’s lectures were fascinating, although at first, the approach was such a new world for me, I could hardly take notes fast enough!  From the beginning of our acquaintance Audrey’s message became a stronger and stronger component of my work in early childhood music.

For the authors, teacher trainers, and teachers in the Musikgarten community, our work is unthinkable without her.  She was the central influence that has made Musikgarten such a balanced curriculum.  Through Audrey we learned about the child, we learned about nature, we learned to observe, to include movement in all of our teaching … we learned to tell stories, to reintroduce poetry to young children …. We learned! 

Audrey believed in what she called ‘subversive’ education.  With that she meant was that you have the greatest influence, when you observe where your learner stands, and offer an environment of small steps to help the learner move forward.  I often tell the story of this ‘subversive’ effect on me.  In the 1980s I knew that what I learned from her was important –so I wrote it down and included the ‘Audrey speech’ in all of my workshops.  After a few years, while teaching in Panang in Malaysia, my husband was in the room for one of my speeches.  Afterwards he said to me, you are no longer talking about what Audrey says, it has so influenced you, the knowledge has become yours to also impart.  Audrey’s influence was slow and sure!

What are my favorite memories of Audrey?

  • That very first speech I invited her to give for the very first international meeting of early childhood music teachers which I held in 1984 in Toronto – the forerunner of the ECMMA! 
  • Working on our first publication in the late 1980s.  As Audrey always told the story, I stopped by her house one afternoon shortly after she had retired, and asked her to guide me ’a little’  That positive answer turned into a working gig = shared authorship –  which we enjoyed for over 20 years!  For the first publication we worked on a very early, very cranky computer!  But had much more fun training the blue jays to come to our window to get their supply of peanuts!
  • Celebrating Audrey’s 80th birthday together with the Musikgarten Teacher Trainers in Sedona, Arizona! 
  • Audrey’s young-child-in-a-snow-suit story, through which she had us laughing and crying at the New Jersey Convention in 1988.
  • Sitting on our deck in Greensboro, deciding what kind of sandwich we would each take along on our pretend picnic? And this was going to be in our new Musikgarten curriculum?

Audrey treasured the natural world and went to great lengths to help preserve it.  Audrey’s legacy is contained in the many teachers she trained, mentored, and through the Musikgarten curriculum.

Lorna Heyge, Musikgarten

Learning to Love Music as a Family – A Parent’s Guide

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Music has the remarkable ability to enrich our lives, touch our emotions, and provide a source of joy and inspiration. But, how do you learn to love music as a family. For parents, introducing their children to the world of music at an early age can be a rewarding and fulfilling experience. Not only does it foster cognitive growth and other developmental benefits, it also instills a lifelong appreciation for the arts. Here are just a few practical ways parents can actively participate in nurturing a love for music in their children, creating a foundation for a lifetime of musical enjoyment.

How Parents Can Encourage the Love of Music in their Kids

  1. Start Early with Musical Exposure – Begin by exposing your child to a variety of musical genres from a young age. Play different styles of music in the house, whether it’s classical, jazz, folk, gospel, or pop. This exposure helps children develop a broad musical palette and openness to diverse sounds.
  • Enroll in Music Classes – Many communities offer music classes for young children. These classes should incorporate singing, movement, drumming and the opportunity to play simple, age appropriate instruments. Parent participation in these classes is important for modeling and reinforcing the love of music.
Musikgarten Class - Children Taking Turns
Musikgarten Toddler Class
  • Provide Access to Instruments – Offer your child the opportunity to explore different musical instruments. Consider starting with simple, child-friendly instruments like maracas, sticks, or bells. Encourage creativity through musical play with your child, let them experiment with creating their own rhythms and melodies. This not only boosts creativity but also helps in developing a sense of musical expression.
  • Attend Live Performances – Take your child to live music performances, whether it’s a local school concert, a community band, or age-appropriate shows. Experiencing music in a live setting can be magical and captivating, sparking a deeper interest in the art form.
  • Become a Musical Advocate – Support music in your local school(s) and music organizations in your area, and have your child participate in volunteer events. Help music teachers with volunteer support and donations to help cover items not included in school budgets.

Nurturing a love for music in your child is a gift that lasts a lifetime. By incorporating music into their daily lives, providing hands-on experiences with instruments, and exposing them to a diverse range of musical styles, parents can cultivate a deep appreciation for the art form. Remember, the key is to participate to make the journey enjoyable and encourage your child to explore the vast and beautiful world of music.

Playing Music in the Dark – How Blind Musicians Learn and Thrive

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When asked to name one famous visually impaired person, many of us will recall a musician. A lot of that is because musicians are in the public eye more than others, but it also points to the great success that many blind musicians have enjoyed. Visually impaired musicians such as Ray Charles, Stevie Wonder, Ronnie Milsap, and Doc Watson have had success across a variety of musical genres. Neuroscientists have long studied that which initially seems like a challenge to the visually impaired tends to grant an advantage in music. One determining factor is how their brains develop through the connection of music and movement.

 Brain Development in the Visually Impaired

Scientists have long known that hearing and touch are enhanced in the blind. The space in the brain dedicated to vision is made available to those senses, enhancing the capacity to hear music and touch instruments. Blind children pay much more attention to everyday sounds compared to those with full sight. One study that considered many different sources found that children who were blind at birth or an early age are 4,000 times more likely to have perfect pitch than their sighted peers.

But some kinesiologists have looked at how being blind may actually impair one’s ability to feel the beat due to lack of visual-spatial feedback. The visually impaired often move their heads or body in a different way than the rest of us in order to better access their surroundings. This movement is also a method used to trigger echolocation, just as they often use a stick to tap and listen for the sound bouncing off the ground or other objects. For blind musicians, this movement is then connected to the rhythm of the music to help them keep beat and time. Studies have also shown that individuals who were blind at birth or an early age develop greater vibrotactile abilities and have shown a higher ability to detect beat asynchrony than those with sight.

Teaching Music to Blind Children

There are still a lot of stereotypes about visually impaired children being harder for music teachers to teach. These tends to stem from the traditional method of teaching children through sheet music. But with a propensity for better pitch and beat detection, visually impaired children are likely to learn music at a greater rate with the right approach. Children’s music programs that emphasize music and movement at the earliest stages are better geared to teach blind children. The aural approach enables them to establish a foundation for playing by ear. Once that foundation is established, sheet music in braille is available for blind children and teachers.

Many visually impaired individuals have excelled in music and gone on to achieve some of the industry’s highest accolades. The part of the brain not dedicated to sight provides greater function to the other senses. Hearing and touch in blind individuals are enhanced to provide a better detection of both pitch and beat. Those abilities combine with movement to help the visually impaired better navigate the world and learn music.

Instilling a Sense of Giving in Children

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Charitable giving plummeted 10.5% since 2021. While this decline was across the board with corporations and foundations, giving by individuals fell by an even steeper amount of 13.4%, adjusting for inflation. It’s important to note that Americans gave generously during the pandemic, with record-setting giving between 2019 and 2020, so non-profits and charitable organizations can only hope this recent decline is temporary. After all, Americans have a great history of charitable donations, and one which has been passed down from generation to generation. In this season of giving, it’s important to model and teach children about the importance of giving back to others.

Tips for Raising Generous Children

From early childhood children tend to be self-involved, making sure that their immediate needs are met by the caregivers surrounding them. But as they grow older, its important that those caregivers play an important role in helping kids develop generosity by encouragement and example. Here are some guiding principles in helping children develop a lifetime of charitable giving:

  • Encourage empathy – Helping children to imaging how others feel is the starting point of generosity. Parents should seek out opportunities to encourage empathy, from everyday situations such as a sibling squabble, or in more structured giving such as participating in a food or clothing drive.
  • Set an example – Kids look to parents and other caregivers for clues on how to behave. While encouragement is extremely important, modeling generous behavior such as visiting sick relatives, volunteering at a charitable organization, or even pitching in with household chores, shows children first-hand that you really mean what you say.
  • Select a Charity – Let your children experience first-hand what it feels like to give time to a cause. Encourage them help to select a charity that the entire family can participate in, ideally one benefitting children of their own ages. When kids give to those they closely relate with, their empathy grows even stronger.

Teaching Children Generosity in the Music Classroom

Children’s music programs offer a unique opportunity for kids to learn about giving and generosity. With encouragement and guidance from the early childhood music teacher, they can learn the gift of giving in the following ways:

Musikgarten Class - Children Taking Turns
Children taking turns in a Musikgarten class.

Teaching generosity to children is a gift that they will practice their entire lives, and which others will surely benefit. Through explaining empathy, modeling by example, and providing children opportunities to give to others, caregivers can ensure that their child will be a more thoughtful and generous member of society.

What Makes a Good Early Childhood Music Program?

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The very title of this topic may seem provocative, as many childhood music educators and researchers have varying opinions on what makes a truly great children’s music instruction. There are various established and differing music teaching methods such as The Suzuki Method and The Orff Approach, or The Kodaly and Dalcroze methods. While some of these methods are more focused on the learning of an instrument, they all tend to share a core set of teaching principles. This is not a competitive comparison of any program versus another, but an analysis of the shared beliefs upon which most all music teachers and educators agree.

Core Principles of Children’s Music Education

Here are several basic, yet important tenants to teaching early childhood music education that can be found in nearly all successful children’s music programs:

Focus on the Child – This may seem blatantly obvious, but it is important to emphasize for all childhood educators not to lose the “forest from the trees,” by making the teaching method the center of attention instead of the child themselves. Focusing on the child requires a respect of each student and their individual learning journey. This important approach also touches on “Follow the Child,” one of the central principles of the celebrated Montessori teaching method. 

Music and Movement – Research suggests that encouraging movement at an early age helps to improve all kinds of cognitive as well as physical development. The area of the brain associated with motor control, the cerebellum, is also largely responsible for our learning process. The connection of both music and movement release endorphins in the brain, which helps to maintain interest and energy in a subject. Finally, movement helps children with beat perception and the development of rhythm, timing, and the motor control that will assist in music comprehension and learning an instrument.

Parental/Caregiver Involvement in Children’s Music Education – One principle shared by nearly all successful early childhood music programs is the importance of parental participation. This is often graphically represented as a triangular relationship between child, teacher, and parent. As one would suspect, the importance of parental involvement is not only beneficial to music learning, but all kinds of learning and early childhood development. Research has shown that, just as with traditional academics, parental involvement is particularly beneficial in early children’s music programs through observation and mimicry, helping to develop a better understanding of cultural ties to music, musical concepts, group social interaction, and motor skills development through the use of musical instruments.

Musikgarten Class
Parents during a Musikgarten class.

The most successful children’s music programs share several core principles that can be applied to nearly all early childhood learning. A Focus on the Child ensures that the approach respects the individuality and pace of learning that each child possesses. Music Combined with Movement helps with not only the mechanics of rhythm and timing of music, but also with cognitive aspects that encourage learning. Finally, Parental/Caregiver Involvement creates a triangular bond between teacher, child and parent which reinforces mimicry and a lifetime love of learning. All of these core principles combined with a carefully designed curriculum and supporting materials, are key to success for early childhood learning programs.

The Science of Gratitude

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Last Thanksgiving season, we considered different ways that teachers and children’s music studio owners can teach thankfulness in the classroom. Since then, more and more scientific studies have been conducted to explore exactly how gratitude works with the chemistry of mind and body. While harder to measure, the practice of gratitude and its spiritual benefits have been taught by major religions across the globe. The benefits of gratitude are numerous and affect emotional and social well-being, personality, career, and health.

Just a Few of the Many Benefits of Gratitude

Scientific studies have shown us that realizing, practicing, and demonstrating gratitude…

  • Makes us happier – Noticing what we already have makes us feel positive about our lives.
  • Increases our psychological well-being and self-esteem – It enhances our positive emotions and discourages suicidal tendencies in depressed and stressed individuals.
  • Makes us more likable and expands social connections – Gratitude improves our romantic relationships, improves our friendships, and increases our social support network.
  • Increases optimism and spiritualism – It makes us more giving, reduces our materialism, and enhances our optimism.
  • Enhances our careers and reduces work related stress – Gratitude makes us better managers by increasing patience and improving decision making while helping us to find meaning in our work, contributing to reduced turnover.
  • Improves our overall physical health – It reduces our blood pressure, improves our sleep habits, reduces depressive symptoms, and encourages exercise.

Scientific Evidence on the Benefits of Gratitude

So how do we know about these apparent positive benefits of practicing gratitude? More and more scientifically based studies are being conducted year after year, with encouraging findings. It is important to note because many of these studies are behavioral, they cannot absolutely prove cause and effect. However, most support a strong association between gratitude and an individual’s well-being. For example, a 2018 study on individuals seeking mental health guidance showed that those participants who wrote letters of gratitude reported feeling better and recovered sooner than those who did not. Hypothalamic regulation, which is triggered by gratitude and simple acts of kindness, has been shown to help with deeper and healthier sleep. Another study conducted by psychologists specializing on research into gratitude asked participants to write about events that affected them, positive or negative. The study found that those who wrote more often about gratitude were more optimistic and felt better about their lives. Finally, a 2019 study in the Journal of Happiness Studies found that there is a link between gratitude and happiness in children by the age of 5, while another found the same results in children ages 11 to 13.

The evidence for the positive benefits of practicing and demonstrating gratitude point to greater mental, physical, and spiritual well-being in both children and adults. In this season of giving thanks, showing children how to practice gratitude can help them become healthier and happier throughout their lives. Whether at the family dinner table, in social circles, or even the children’s music classroom, coaching gratitude is beneficial to both learner and teacher alike. 

How Music Instruction Reduces Screen Time for Kids

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Parents and teachers alike understand the challenges that screen time poses to children as well as adults. Prior to the Covid pandemic, kids ages 8-18 were spending up to 7.5 hours on average in front of a screen for entertainment. More than half of that time was spent watching television. COVID-19 and the lock-down made matters even worse. Despite the need to attend online classes for school, overall digital device usage increased by 5 hours, with adolescents averaging even higher at 8 hours a day.

As our children’s screen time has increased substantially over the past decade, the ill effects of it on the physical and mental well-being is being studied more and more. Pediatric health professionals and children’s educators alike highly recommend other means of entertainment for children to offset this epidemic. Children’s music education is one such means of entertainment that helps reduce screen time.

The Health Effects of Screen Time in Children

Children’s health professionals point to many issues that may arise in children that are exposed to an excessive amount of screen entertainment:

  • Impaired emotional and social intelligence.
  • Sleep deprivation and disturbed sleep cycles.
  • Mood problems such as irritability, depression, anxiety, and ADHD.
  • Poor self-image, weight problems, and body image issues.
  • Vision issues such as eye strain and myopia.
  • Neck pain and carpal tunnel syndrome.
  • Social isolation and fear of missing out (FOMO).
  • Phantom Vibration Syndrome, where a person imagines their phone is ringing or vibrating when it’s actually not.
  • Obsessive, excessive, compulsive, and impulsive use of digital devices.

Children’s Music Education to Reduce Screen Time

Pediatric health care professionals recommend exposing children to other activities to reduce their screen time as well as increase their interests in other entertainment. Teachers of children’s music education have long known the positive impacts that music classes have on a child’s well-being during their developmental years and beyond:

It is clear that as technology increases at a greater and greater rate, it will compete for the attention of humans in developed societies. Children are even more susceptible to the negative impacts of excessive screen time in their developmental years. Supplemental music lessons offer an alternative to screen time while providing all of the benefits that music instruction offers to kids – including self-imposed limitation of screen time; increased problem-solving skills, time management and prioritization; increased self-awareness and social skills, and more.

The Relationship Between Music and Hinduism

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Over the last several months, we have been discovering the inseparable relationship between music and the world’s major religions. Beginning with the connection that prehistoric worship and utility shared with rhythm and voice, we have continued our journey by exploring those links into more formalized musical forms as practiced in Buddhism and Christianity. As with these two world religions, Hinduism also has a rich history and tradition of music in worship.

The Mythological and Historical Roots of Hindu Music

Indian music, called Sangeet, has mythological roots that is associated with heavenly singers, the Gandharvas. It was decided to bestow this celestial art upon humankind, but a suitable person was required to receive it into the world. The god-sage Narada, a traveling musician and storyteller predating the second century BCE is believed to be one of the mind-created children of Brahma, the great creator. Narada was chosen as the recipient of the musical art form, which Hindus say arouses the senses and creates spiritual vibrations that enhance devotion. Repetition and chanting often found in Hindu music helps connect devotees to humankind and their spirituality.  

Hindu Musician
Hindu Musician

Teaching Music in the Hindu Tradition

From the very early days, Hindu music was considered a means of moral and spiritual redemption rather than mere entertainment. The oldest musical texts are the Sema Veda, consisting of melodies or hymns for reciting during ritual sacrifice. The process of learning to play this music is believed to closely resemble traditional spiritual disciplines. Guru Mukha-Vidya, or knowledge which must come from a teacher, is based on three divine qualities that are inherent in the musical traditions – The guru (teacher), Vinaya (humility), and Sadhana (regular and disciplined practice). This pedagogical tradition of guru transferring knowledge to the disciple is the same approach that many children’s music programs and curricula teach today.

The Evolution of Sangeet and Hindu Music

In the second century BCE, Bharata Muni, a sage who is considered the father of Indian theatrical art forms, laid the foundations for two important principles upon which Indian music is now based – raga being the melodic scale, and tala being the rhythm. The resulting nine principle “mood” or “tastes” that Bharata Muni outlined were based on nava-rasa, or the belief that the primary goal of performance and arts is to transcend the audience into another reality to experience the essence of one’s own consciousness.

Modern Hindu Music and Worship

In Hindu music, there are both ancient traditions and contemporary songs, with mysticism and dynamism being common threads. Much of this framework is provided by two main classical music forms – Hindustani, from northern India, and Carnatic, from the south. Hindu Music is also as varied as Christian Music in the US, including rock, rap, and jazz, as well as taking influences from other cultures and nations such as Arabic and British songs. Instruments have also played a major role in Hindu music. The sitar, a stringed instrument, is common in Hindustani music, in which flexibility and improvisation shape songs. Carnatic songs are beat heavy and commonly feature a drum called the mridangam. Classical hindu instruments also include the tabla, include the flute, vina, sitar, sarangi, santoor, and shenai.

Despite all of the variances in musical styles, nearly all Hindu music is considered to be divine, providing a means by which listeners and performers alike can concentrate on blessings and remember the good things in life. Its pedagogical approach to disciplined learning and practice under a teacher or guru can be seen in many children’s music education programs today. In our next post of this series on music and the world’s major religions, we will explore the relationship between Islam and music.

The Relationship Between Music and Christianity Part 1

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Throughout history, music has been inextricably linked to almost every religion across the globe. While the very definition and origin of music is hard to define, it is clear that music has been a part of the very earliest forms of worship. This is evident in each of the major religions of the world, with each having their own distinctions as well as similarities. Buddhist music has musical roots in both instruments and chanting, through flute-playing Japanese Zen Monks or Tibetan recitations of sacred texts. Although its inception does not date as far back as some of the other religions of the world, Christianity has also had ties to music since its origins. While an exhaustive chronicle of music in Christianity would fill volumes, there are some high points to mention.

Music and the Old Testament

An exploration of the relationship between music and Christianity would not be complete without starting with the Old Testament. The Bible early in the book of Genesis, describes a descendant of Cain, Jubal, as “the first of all who play the harp and flute.” When we reach the story of the Exodus Moses and all the people sing a song, the first written song mentioned in the Bible that mentions the use of tambourines and dancing to celebrate the victory at the Red Sea.

King Saul of Israel hired a young man named David to play music for him in this court. This David eventually became king of Israel, but also continued to express himself through song, writing more than 70 Psalms that are revered worship material in Judaism Throughout the Old Testament, temple worship included the use of choirs, ram horn blowers (often referred to as trumpets in the bible, but are actually the more rudimentary shofars), cymbals, tambourines, drums, and some strings instruments such as the lyre. Singing and musical instruments play an important role in Old Testament music, from Psalm 150 telling worshipers to “Praise Him” with the trumpet, harp, lyre and clashing cymbals to King David putting specific people in charge of worship music.

Music was integral to their worship.

Music and the New Testament

While as a boy, Jesus would have been exposed to the Jewish culture of his day including worship in daily life and at the festivals he attended. We do have a continuation of songs being written for worship and praise, much like the Old Testament, with Mary’s Song in the Gospel of Luke. Yet the only record of communal song in the Gospels is actually the last meeting of the disciples before the Crucifixion. Instruments are specifically mentioned in only a few places in the New Testament, such as flutes being played at Jairus’ daughter’s wake in Matthew, or trumpet that herald some end-time events including the rapture.

As Christians became persecuted after the death of Christ, they had to often worship in private, where loud instruments and praise music were not conducive to secrecy. But, this did not stop them from worshipping using music. In the book of Acts, the apostle Paul is arrested along with Silas, put in prison in Philippi, yet are still heard singing while imprisoned. Even with persecution many of the New Testament songs or hymns, such as the Benedictus, the Gloria, psalmody, and alleluias, endured and are still used in many Christian worship services today.

From praise music that was highly organized that incorporated singing, specific instrumentation and instructions for a large group to the simple act of two men singing while in prison, it is apparent that music plays an important role for worship throughout the Bible. Examples are too numerous to mention and would be hard to include in this format. In our next post we will explore the different types of worship music that have come about as Christianity spread.

The Influence Between Buddhism and Music

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We began our exploration of music and religious history by discussing the difficulty to define music and its origins in history. The earliest cultures mimicked nature for functional reasons such as hunting, so when did the evolution to synchronized chanting and drumming actually become something more? And as humans began to ponder natural wonders around them and their existence within them, worship began to play a major role in developing societies. As a start, melody and written music offers some structure of how music as we know it today was born. Some of the very earliest known forms or music, such as Seikilos Epitaph is evidence of musical worship. In the following installments of this series, musical influence of each of the five major religions of the world – Buddhism, Christianity, Hinduism, Islam, and Judaism will be individually explored. Many of these traditional religious musical forms are used across the globe by early childhood music teachers even today.

The Contradiction of Music and Buddhism  

There are very few religious forms across the world that do not have some form of music in their sacred ceremonies. However, the very character of the original Buddhist message that contends things in life with no lasting significance distract from the quest for salvation seems contradictory to the evident influence of music in Buddhism. The association of music with earthly desires led early Buddhist monks and nuns to refrain from music practice and even the observation of musical performance. In Pure Land Buddhism, however, paradises are presented as profoundly musical places in which law takes the form of wonderful melodies. Most Buddhist practices involve some form of chanting, while some make use of instrumental music and even dancing. Music can be used in Buddhism as an offering to Buddha, a means of memorizing sacred texts, or cultivating meditation.

 Different Styles of Traditional Buddhist Music

Buddhist Music is considered part of Buddhist art and varies upon the different areas of the world it is practiced. Starting from the foothills of the Himalayas, Buddhism spread across Asia where, over time its original traditional practices became refined and regionally distinct. Historical Honkyoku are 36 collected pieces of music played by wandering, flute-playing Japanese Zen monks called Komosu in as early as the 13th century. Komosu temples were ordered destroyed in 1871, but the music honkyoku remains one of the most popular contemporary music styles in Japan today. Chanting is a part of most regional Buddhism, but is very prevalent in Tibetan Buddhism, where the chants are often complex recitations of sacred texts in Tibetan or Sanskirt. Some forms are accompanied by drums, while monasteries often maintain their own chant traditions. Shomyo, a style of Japanese Buddhist Chant, features both difficult (ryokyoku) and easy (rikkyoku) styles to remember.

Contemporary Buddhist Music   

Today, Buddhist influence can be heard in all different forms of contemporary music, from jazz, rap, and classical, to C-pop. Bibiladeniye Mahanama Thero is a Sri Lankan Buddhist Monk who is also a renown spiritual music composer. Li Na is a famous Chinese singer who became a nun in 1997 and went on to produce many popular Buddhist music albums under her new name Maser Chang Sheng. Several notable western musicians practiced Buddhism and cited it as a large influence on their music, such as David Bowie and Leonard Cohen. In 2009, Tina Turner and Buddhist musician Dechen Shak-Dagsay collaborated on an album combining Buddhist chants and Christian choral music called the Beyond Singing Project.

In some Buddhist teachings, music can be considered an earthly pleasure that distracts from the path of enlightenment. Yet music has always been a part of Buddhist religious traditions, as well as contemporary social forms. As we next explore the same kind of influences on Christianity, we will start to see a strong and undeniable bond between music and the major religions of the world. Children’s music educators may find this helpful in providing this influential context in the classroom while presenting sacred and even secular music.