Music is probably the most global of all languages. All creatures make a sound the same as all living things breathe. In the days of the cavemen, tribes etc. music was a major tool for their everyday life. Songs were sung for traditional celebrations, depicting all aspects of their way of life and bringing a sense of community making them one with each other. Through their music making they would be feeling love and compassion for each other, and respect. The children would need to start somewhere, so they probably learnt information early on in life about where they come from and what their ancestors had been through, from the elders singing them songs.

When we look back to the days of the slave trade, there is one song that comes to mind, for instance, Nina Simone “Work Song”. Songs like these had come about as a way of escaping the persecution that was inflicted on them by the masters. The work songs would have made them a “force to” be reckoned with, basically saying “you can use our bodies, but you can never take our soul.”

“Music is the electrical soil in which the spirit lives, thinks and invents.”-Ludwig van Beethoven.

Songs in the classroom: Why?

Students all over the world are familiar with music, for example, a student in Thailand who has no knowledge of the English language will probably know the lyrics to a pop song like “I will always love you” by Whitney Houston. This would not have been difficult to learn if they were enjoying the sound, rhythm, and melody inspiring them to listen over and over again, therefore learning subconsciously.

I traveled all over the world as a musician and have met people with little knowledge of English, but they could recite all the lyrics to “Hotel California” by The Eagles, so I know this fact to be true.

How do we apply this knowledge?

Music can help us to remember learning experiences and information. A soundtrack increases interest and activates the information mentally, physically or emotionally. When information is put to rhythm and rhyme these musical elements will provide a hook for recall.

There are three ways we can use music to help us learn information, for example:

Active Learning Experience- This enhances learning states by playing a dramatic piece of music, if the topic is a dramatic story for instance, it reinforces the information.

Focus and Alpha State Learning-Music stabilizes mental, physical and emotional rhythms to attain a state of deep concentration and focus in which large amounts of content information can be processed and learned. Music by Bach and Handel, that is 50 to 80 beats per minute creates an atmosphere where students are led into deep concentration in the alpha brain wave state.

Memorization- Songs, chants, poems, and raps will improve memory of content facts and details through rhyme, rhythm, and melody.

Music can change the atmosphere of the classroom, enlivening or calming. It also provides a positive environment that enhances student interaction and helps develop a sense of community, a powerful tool for understanding other cultures and bonding with each other. Music can also help the students to express themselves more freely therefore expanding their horizons in a creative way, also heightening their musical intelligence. If the students are having fun they are more likely to remember more information. Music brings students together in their learning process and urges them to be more confident.The possibilities are endless because music and song heightens all senses which in turn brings people to life, therefore more open to learning and that cannot be bad.