Bach to Baby Beats Rainy Day Blues

It's been a while since I posted some music on here which is a shame as our house is always filled with music. Since birth, the Playful Baby has shown a strong response to music. She stilled to listen at first then would sit in deep concentration as she got older and now throws her hands in the air or asks an inquisitive 'do?' to a new instrument.

It's hard to find things suited to our needs when you have a feisty little one who does not appreciate sitting still in a circle or having to give back musical instruments she's barely began to explore. We've found one class which is pitched just right and often go to listen to piano playing at our local train station but on Friday we attended our first Bach to Baby. It was, in a word, perfect.

The idea is to provide classical concerts for babies, toddlers AND adults. I love this. As a mum I find myself in the land of farm animals and astronauts on an almost daily basis but something as stimulating as Mozart is a rare treat. The performance is broken up into different sections, with a little vignette about what to expect in between. It was helpful in keeping the babies amused by changing the pace but also a delight to be learning something. 

We attended a concert locally, there's different venues and a regular turn over of musicians so its worth keeping an eye on their calendar. On this occasion we saw Andrew Brownell on piano and he was typical of the high caliber of musicians that perform. While prestigious and engaging, what I loved was that he remained completely calm and relaxed despite babies crawling round the piano and possibly the rowdiest audience he's ever played for. Watching a world class classical performer play twinkle twinkle was really quite sweet and utterly refreshing that it wasn't deemed beneath him. 

It's not often you get to watch someone play with such passion and skill in such an intimate setting either. I took the Playful Baby right up to the grand piano to gaze in to its cavernous insides and watch the strings go to work. While she learned about sound and pitch, I mused that I could see every micro expression on Andrew's face: all his passion and commitment to his years of studying music. It made it all the more special. 

There will be more mornings like this as it's a great way to bring music into both our lives and there's lots to choose from on the website. I especially like the fact that there's delicious cookies and Monmouth coffee for mummies to start off and plenty of time to explore and move round the venue both during and around the performance times, I could nurse and change little one easily and had I brought the pram, parked it with ease. I really approve of the loyalty card which means you get a free concert after enough attendance- that's a very nice touch.

A definite thumbs up from both of us.