WHAT IS MUSICA PARA MI?
New York City's original music-in-Spanish program, where very young children share the joy of music, dance, and the Spanish language with their families or caregivers, through weekly forty-five minute classes spent singing, dancing, playing percussion, and more, in a playful, supportive, total immersion environment.
WHAT'S A CLASS LIKE?
The teacher, children, and their families and caregivers sit in a circle on the floor, singing traditional Spanish-language children's songs. We use small hand percussion instruments for some songs, and move around the room (sometimes as people, sometimes as elephants or ponies!) during others. Then we dance together, followed by a jam session to music from a different Spanish culture each week (i.e. Mexico, Cuba, Venezuela, Spain, etc.). We wind down with storytime and a lullaby, and it always seems too soon to sing goodbye. Only Spanish is spoken in class.
WHAT TO EXPECT FROM MUSICA PARA MI:
First and foremost, to have fun making music in Spanish! More specifically:
Música Para Mí's musical goal is to provide children the opportunity to experience themselves as music-makers, not just as passive listeners to music made by professionals. Although the benefits of music to a developing brain have been documented in recent research, music is its own reward. A close life-long relationship with music (without the self-consciousness that so many people acquire as they grow up) begins in early childhood, and affords the individual access to both inner peace and profound joy.
Música Para Mí's linguistic goal is to provide children with a fun, Spanish-speaking social environment outside home or school, perfect either to reinforce the Spanish spoken at home by the family or caregiver, or to introduce a 2nd language at the prime time for language development, in a way that's so fun they don't realize they're learning!
WHAT'S EXPECTED OF YOUR CHILD:
Nothing! Young children aren't expected to sit attentively, clap in time, sing in tune, learn the words, or use the instruments 'correctly'. Children learn at their own pace, in their own way, and are always observing and absorbing, even when they seem not to be participating. Focusing on results inhibits the natural process of developmentally-appropriate learning, much in the same way that demanding correct pronunciation when they're first learning to speak would inhibit their speech.
WHAT'S EXPECTED OF YOU:
Your participation in class is a crucial element of your child's experience. A teacher has only a brief influence on a child, whose true role models are the adults involved in her/his daily life. When your child sees you actively participating, s/he sees it as an option for her/himself, and naturally wants to emulate you. The more you participate, the more comfortable your child will be doing so. For this reason, Música Para Mí classes are purposely not meant as drop-offs, and adults are expected to take active part in class.
I WANT MY CHILD TO LEARN SPANISH, BUT I DON'T SPEAK IT. IS MUSICA PARA MI THE RIGHT PROGRAM FOR US?
Spanish language learning in Música Para Mí takes place in same the way as the English being learned by the very young brain: simply by being surrounded by it. However, a weekly class is not enough to learn a language fluently, and works best as part of a program of exposure, rather than as a sole source (contact me for suggestions on how supplementing your child's learning).
Often adults with no previous knowledge of Spanish feel uncomfortable in a full-immersion environment. Since children are very sensitive to their parents and follow their lead, it's important that you be willing to dive in despite any discomfort, mimicking the sounds you hear and attempting to sing and speak as much as possible, using the songbook and the teacher as resources. Your efforts will be supported, encouraged and rewarded, just as your child's will!
HOW DID MUSICA PARA MI GET STARTED?
Música Para Mí had its beginnings in the fall of 1998 when a pair of bilingual Manhattan mothers contacted the director, Graciela Carriquí, to request music classes for their children & friends in Spanish. Surprised to discover that there was almost nothing available for young children in Spanish, in comparison to the variety available in English, she developed a curriculum for her own classes, which she taught in addition to her other teaching work until the demand for classes in new locations necessitated that she focus primarily on Música Para Mí. She continues to expand her offerings to meet that demand, in Brooklyn, Manhattan and Queens currently.
I'M CONCERNED THAT EXPOSURE TO A SECOND LANGUAGE WHILE MY CHILD IS STILL LEARNING ENGLISH MAY BE CONFUSING. WILL IT DELAY OR COMPROMISE HER/HIS LANGUAGE SKILLS?
A delay in children with occasional exposure to a second language is rare. Current research shows that children raised in completely bilingual environments--for instance, only Spanish spoken with one parent, only English with the other--average a 6 to 8 week delay in their language development (some children experience no delay, or demonstrate precocious speech, while others may be several months behind). Given the normal variation between children, it's often hard to know if bilingualism is the primary factor, or even a factor at all. But a possible delay is insignificant compared to the long-term benefits: above average language skills in general, as well as ease learning other languages. This is true even if they never master the additional language to which they were first exposed! Familiarity with Spanish in particular lays the groundwork for an easier understanding of other Romance languages such as French, Italian and Portuguese, as well as giving an instinctive grasp of Latin and the structure of all the languages in its family. As the language of the largest, fastest-growing minority in the United States, and especially in New York City, Spanish is the most logical choice!
WHAT KIND OF MUSIC IS USED?
With few exceptions, the curriculum consists of traditional children's songs from all over the Spanish-speaking world. Each session offers a different collection of favorites from an ever-evolving repertoire. Most are universal, although versions often vary slightly from region to region. Just like in English--some people sing "eentsy weentsy spider" while others insist it's "itsy bitsy". Ethnomusicologists agree there is no "right" version, only what's standard in the subject's area of origin.
I WOULD LIKE MY CHILD TO RECEIVE MUSICAL INSTRUCTION. IS MUSICA PARA MI FOR US?
Música Para Mí develops general music skills (rhythmic and tonal) and appreciation, in an informal group environment. If you think your pre-school child may be ready for more formal training, I suggest looking into one of the many New York City programs that offer the Dalcroze, Orff, or Suzuki pedagogic methods. For school-aged children, you can talk to the music faculty at her or his school for advice and recommendations regarding studying an instrument or joining a choir or (we do not recommend individual voice lessons for children before puberty, as the natural, unconscious instinct to mimic a teacher's sound can put unnatural strain on young vocal chords).
I LIVE IN NEW YORK CITY AND AM INTERESTED IN THE PROGRAM, BUT NO CLASSES ARE OFFERED NEAR ME.
WHAT CAN I DO?
A minimum of 6 families are needed to begin classes in a new location. If you know of some other families in your area who would be interested, and would be willing to provide some support with your knowledge of your neighborhood (in terms of possible locations, distribution of flyers and other forms of advertising), we would be happy to work with you towards that end.
WHO ARE THE TEACHERS?
Angelica Ayala has been teaching for us since the fall of 2005. She has been working with children as an Artist-in-residence at Teatro Sea in New York since 2002, taught in El Puente's Brooklyn after-school program in 2002 & 2003, and attended the Sandglass Summer Puppetry Workshop in Connecticut in 2008. She has appeared in theater, films & television in her native Venezuela, as well as Italy, France, Miami and New York City. She received an ACE award in 2008 for Best Comedic Supporting Actress for her role in "Dinner for 2" with the Puerto Rican Traveling Theater.
Natalia Bernal, a native of Chile, is a singer and songwriter who graduated with a degree in vocal performance from the prestigious Berklee School of Music, in Boston, MA. A natural with children, she recently completed her apprenticeship with Música Para Mí, and began teaching in the spring of 2009.
Sofia Tosello, from Argentina, a recent university graduate with a degree in Vocal Performance, began teaching with us in the summer of 2005. Since her singing career starting taking off in the fall of 2007, now she only subs for us occasionally, to the consternation of her many loyal little fans. She's recorded a Spanish cd which is used by children at The Language Institute on the Upper East Side, and her own cd of adult music will be released in the fall of 2009.
WHAT IS DIRECTOR GRACIELA CARRIQUI'S TEACHING BACKGROUND?
She has received her Orff Method Certification, Level 1 (early childhood music pedagogy) from the Bloomingdale School of Music in New York City, and holds a certificate from the Center for Music and Young Children in Princeton, New Jersey, for the successful completion of advanced training. She began teaching at Families First in 1996, taught Music Together in Brooklyn for 6 years, and taught a session of Music for Aardvarks as well. She was the Music Specialist at Plymouth Church Preschool in Brooklyn from 1997 through 2003, where she also worked as the director of the Cherub Choir (for 5 and 6 year olds) from 1998 to 2003. 1n 1999, she served as a special music consultant for the faculty of the Helen Keller School for the Blind, in Brooklyn. She was the music teacher at La Escuelita bilingual preschool during the 2004-2005 school year, on Manhattan's Upper West Side, and also offered an afterschool music class there.
WHAT IS HER PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE?
She is a singer and composer of contemporary Hispanic art songs. Some recent performances include an appearance as a special musical guest at GreenSpace Studio's spring season in Long Island City; Carlito's Cafe, Rose Lounge, Sugar Bar, Satalla and the Knitting Factory in New York, and Jazz at Pearl's, in San Francisco. She is working on completing her first full-length solo cd (to hear samples, visit
www.gracielacarriqui.com ).
Born and raised in the U.S., she received an invaluable informal education at home from her parents, both jazz musicians. She began private studies of classical vocal technique and music theory at the age of 15. Starting as a singer with her father's jazz band at 18 in the San Francisco Bay Area, her performing and recording career includes a three-year stint with salsa greats Willie Colón and Rubén Blades in the early 1980's. She toured the U.S., Latin America and Europe with them, has appeared as a vocalist on 8 recordings (most with Willie Colón, and other notable Latin music artists such as Hector Lavoe, Ismael Miranda, and Soledad Bravo, as well as on a jazz album made on tour in Italy with her father's band), and on numerous television and radio programs. She has also toured the Northeast with various regional opera companies; acted Off-Off Broadway and in street theater; and sung both jazz and cabaret at various nightclubs in San Francisco, New York, and Italy.