Music Together has developed twelve song collections to guide children and their families through 3+ years of educational, fun music content – but it’s not “Kiddie Music!”
Music Together’s music is rich, varied, and fun. We are known for “family music” rather than “kiddie music.” Our lively, engaging arrangements are loved by children and grownups alike. Parents enjoy the varied tempos, meters, and tonalities, and love to sing along. The mix of meters and tonalities is not only interesting to adults, but it enhances children’s music learning. The recordings feature a “family”—Mommy, Daddy, kids, Grandma, Uncle—that sings together, unlike the more formal choral recordings of some other children’s programs.
Music Together classes are for mixed ages.
Music Together pioneered the concept of mixed-age classes for parents and children. This teaching model is based on research showing that young children thrive and learn best when interacting with children of different ages. The mixed-age class mimics a family environment in which the youngest children watch, imitate, and learn from the older children, while the older children develop important social and leadership skills. Music Together teachers are trained to provide a smorgasbord of musical opportunities that support musical growth across a spectrum of ages and developmental stages.
Music Together includes and supports parent education and participation.
Parents are integral to the music experiences both in class and at home. Parents with no background in music can relax—our teachers are specially trained to create a safe, easy-going environment where parents can have fun dancing, singing, and playing with their children. In class, parents can observe their children’s musical growth while they develop some music-making skills of their own. Families receive a songbook and recordings each semester to support their music-making activities at home.
Music Together is non-performance-oriented.
Our classes focus on encouraging families to participate in music in a playful atmosphere without pressure to perform. We honor children’s various learning styles and temperaments, and we encourage participation by accepting and including their spontaneous responses. We also understand how important movement is when it comes to music learning—unlike some other early childhood music programs, sitting still is not required!
Music Together teachers receive quality teacher training.
…And after their teacher training is completed, Music Together teachers have access to ongoing professional growth opportunities and skills workshops. Our teachers are trained in tonality and singing, movement activities, classroom and song-leading skills, parent education, and early childhood music development observation. (In comparison, Kindermusik trains teachers mostly through online programs. Musikgarten holds workshops, but they are not required in order to teach; you can simply buy the materials.) Music Together teachers are often experts in theater, dance, early childhood education, or parenting, in addition to being musical.
Music Together is research-based.
Music Together Worldwide Artistic Director/Founder Kenneth K. Guilmartin, and his Mu-sic Together coauthor and Music Together Worldwide Director of Research, Dr. Lili M. Levinowitz, conducted their own research studies and applied the research of others from the fields of music education and early childhood learning when creating the Music Together program. In addition, the fields of neuroscience and psychology offered valuable insights into how the brain processes and organizes music material, how children learn, and how the surrounding environment can support this learning. The coauthors remain actively involved in research pertaining to early childhood music development.
Music Together is a leading innovator in music for young children.
Founded in 1987, Music Together was a pioneer in early childhood music and movement. We were also the first program to offer mixed-age classes (which many of our competitors now offer) and to emphasize and support parent participation. Because we are research-oriented, we have an abiding curiosity about children and music and an ongoing motiva-tion to further develop and refine our teaching methods and curriculum. This ensures that the Music Together program and its teachers remain in the forefront of early childhood music education.
