Blog

  • Should My Child Take Piano Lessons?

    My love for music began with piano lessons.  In my elementary music class I remember wanting to win the note reading games my teacher, Mrs. Sprinkle, would have us play. It seemed like the kids that won these games took piano lessons.   I distinctly remember going home and asking my mom if I could take piano lessons. My older siblings had al...
  • Classical Music for Spring

    As we enter spring, we are of course teaching our children about all things new: flowers and trees are in bloom, birds are singing, everything is fresh and exciting after the bleak winter. Add some "fresh and new" into your children's music education with these pieces for spring.  SIMPLE is important here at SQUILT Music Appreciation. With ...
  • Introducing Musicals to Children

    Last summer, in an effort for my husband and I to relive our own childhood, we introduced our five children to the 1992 film, Newsies. We do things like that often… Buying the them ‘retro’ remake of toys we had when we were kids, blaring songs from our high school years that we had ‘burned’ on cds and having family movie nights of all the clas...
  • A Carol for Advent

    Making Music Memories with Children Christmas Carols are such a simple, beautiful way to make memories with your children. As we celebrate the coming of the Christ child, we also yearn for His birth with the singing of carols. These carols are a mixture of anticipation, solemnity, and even sadness.  One of the most beautiful carols is Come, Thou...
  • Gifts to Encourage A Child's Love of Music

    Do you have a child who exhibits a natural love of music?  Does your child sing, whistle, and hum (constantly!)? Do they drum on any and everything? Does listening to music bring them great joy and happiness?  If you have a musical kid you oftentimes just KNOW it, right?  For these children it is important to nurture their love and curiosity wit...
  • Happy 250th Beethoven!

    This year marks 250 years since Ludwig van Beethoven's birth. Celebrations around the world will pay tribute to this pioneer of not only the piano, but also large symphonic works.  Beethoven was also the pioneer of strong emotion in music - he took listeners from the very predictable and structured Classical Era of music - into the emotional wor...