A Music Learning Theory for Newborn and Young Children [Hardcover]

Edwin E. Gordon (Author)

Product Details

• Hardcover: 131 pages
• Publisher: G I a Pubns; Revised edition (June 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1579990037
• ISBN-13: 978-1579990039
• Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 6.2 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 14.4 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,382,991 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

15 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Informative, if a bit dry, February 23, 2003

By 

Gene Zafrin (Sleepy Hollow, NY) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: A Music Learning Theory for Newborn and Young Children (Hardcover)

The cornerstone of Gordon's theory is audiation - hearing and understanding music when it is not played. Preparatory audiation is the one applied to children in the music babble stage (analogous to language babble), usually 0 to 5 years old. Gordon's theory proposes three types of preparatory audiation: roughly, listening and responding out of sync, imitating with some precision and coordinating singing or chanting with movement and breathing. Each type is further subdivided into stages. Most of the book is devoted to the description of each of the stages.

The theory itself is intriguing since it is the only one (at least to my knowledge) attempting to deal systematically with musical education of very young children. Intuitively, the theory makes sense: expose the children to a variety of repeating tonal and rhythm patterns and they will develop a better music vocabulary. Then they will babble through it, just like they do with language. And then they move to adjusting their singing/chanting to match breathing and movement.

The book is not an easy read. Specific musical terminology could be better understood by a layman with the help of the dictionary at the end. But the narrative reveals someone who is, perhaps, more at ease with music than with written word. Overall, the book is fairly dry. In addition, no attempt is made to seriously compare MLT with some existing well-known music learning methods, such as Suzuki.

Some good advice is given on choosing an instrument for a child. Apart from the child's physical characteristics, Gordon suggests to pay special attention to his preference for the tone quality of an instrument.

Overall, I would recommend this book for parents or teachers of music, especially the ones with some music education, but do not expect a breezy read!

5.0 out of 5 stars Music for Newborns- Do it before it is too late!, September 17, 2009

By 

Liana Reeves ""T-bone"" (Columbia, SC USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: A Music Learning Theory for Newborn and Young Children (Hardcover)

Read this book and it will make you want to sing to any kid you see! It is amazing how much music children have in them yet lose as they get older because their abilities are not developed. Read the book to help you figure how you can change that!