How to identify and develop the musical genius in your child?

Could your child be the next “Indian idol junior”, “Sa re ga ma pa Lil’ champ”, “Airtel Super singer junior” or “Dance India Dance Lil’ champ” ? 

Perhaps! Provided you as a parent identify and nurture the Rahman, Lata or the Prabhu Deva in your child. Look out for skills where your child learns to play music instruments easily and is able to identify the beats and rhythm in music, as these skills act as identifiers of a musical genius. 

A musically gifted child tends to stand up and dance to the rhythm of music each time he hears it unlike an average child who is unable to maintain the same energy and tempo. If your child can dance effortlessly copying steps from the dance numbers he watches on the television set or can sing even the most difficult songs and find music in nature,be it the sound of rain or click clack of the heels, then your child is definitely the next superstar.

As a parent and as a guide it is your responsibility to discover and help in the progress of the musical genius in your child. Localturnon.com has narrowed down upon a few tips for all you parents to help you in identifying the talent in your child and boosting it up.

Observe your child’s movements

Musically gifted children have a rhythmic way of moving and as soon as you play the music you can see that they never tend to miss a beat. They tap their feet, move in a sway and keep on humming while doing their daily activities. Your child can start demonstrating these traits as early as the age of two.

Listen to your child, talk

Children who are gifted musically have an innate ability to identify sounds. Listen to your child if he talks about the sounds of rain falling on the rooftop, the sounds of birds chirping or sounds of music coming from the outdoor. Children possessing the gift of music are much more aware of the sounds than the average children.

Put your child to test

A great way to identify the musical genius in your child is to put your child to test. Purposely make a mistake in the melody while singing a song or play an instrument out of tune, a gifted child will be easily able to catch that mistake. Also see if your child can easily catch onto a tune. If your child possesses all these capabilities then you’ve discovered a star.

Let your child play musical instruments

Allow your child to play musical instruments. You can also play a melody for him and ask him to repeat the same to analyze how well he is able to reproduce it. Your child might surprise you with his ability to play complex instruments with ease and confidence.

Introduce your child to a mentor
If you do not have much knowledge about music then it shall be a good idea to introduce your child to a mentor who can analyze his musical capabilities. It would be an intelligent step to enrol your child into a music institute to let him reach his full potential. 

“We recognized our daughter Avani at an early age had an inclination towards performing arts and we thought why not let her indulge . We encouraged her to try out different dance forms like Ballet( at 2 different schools) , Kathak (Alkananda Institute of Performing Arts) and also drama at Shriram center. The idea was to let her see what all is there and then let her choose where she wants to excel.

As Avani had a flair for being on the stage we made sure she was able to pursue her interest even if it meant we had to postpone meetings, drive her to the opposite side of the town on holidays (he says with a smile)… But its been worth it … she not only enjoyed being in all these different classes but it has given her so much confidence, helped her make new friends and then somewhere it also helped in school competitions because her talent and skills stands out. We are sure that these skills would help her in the long run when she has to make a career choice  in near future .”– Arun Joshi is a Senior Managing Consultant with IBM India     and is based in NCR

Being gifted is not enough in today’s time and you need to constantly evolve yourself by practicing your art. Hence, as parents if you see the inclination of your child towards music and dance then it is very necessary for you to develop that talent in your child by giving them a perfect environment of music and dance classes where they can meet their peers and unfold constantly.

Further, the following tips can be instrumental for you as a parent to support and grow your child’s talent and his musical inclination.

-Don’t forget to ask intriguing questions to your child to open up his mind to the    wonderful world of music.
-Give your child the permission to make mistakes and take the necessary risks to  develop his musical talent.
-Don’t pressure your child to learn.Encourage them but do not push them to a point    which makes them stressful.
-Listen to your child play an instrument,dance or sing and enhance their self -esteem
-Avoid comparing your child to others.Help your child compare himself  to his own past  performance.
-Encourage your child to think about their future,be it about a professional career  in  music or higher studies in music.
-Set  aside  an area of the house for displaying the accolades  earned by your  child.
-Be a liaison between your child’s  musical talents and the real world. Help  them find  outlets for their talent.

So cultivate and boost the talent in your child today, by enrolling them to your nearest dance or music institute in order to give a strong foundation to their growth via www.localturnon.com which is India’s number one connection to music and dance institutes. So join us today to find, connect and play on.

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