Its only in recent years that I have really appreciated the advantage that I had through growing up in a very musical family. Both my mother and father were amateur musicians, my mum playing piano and dad playing jazz guitar.
Having children of my own I can see how they have benefited from having access to guitars and other musical instruments as they’ve grown up. We’ve never pushed them toward learning to play an instrument like piano or violin. Instead they’ve been allowed to develop their own interest, just as I was, and this approach has clearly been good for them.
Our youngest boy has no interest in playing an instrument of making music. He is a very keen sportsman, loves football and online gaming. However his older brother was bashing out rhythms on a toy drum kit from about the age of three. By the time he’d reached seven he was regularly jamming, with me on guitar, on his little child size drum kit.
My daughter has always like to challenge her mother and me, ever since she was a very little girl. However, in recent years she too has begun to take a keen interest in music but for her this involves DJing and playing her music so loud that it prompts our neighbours to ask if it can be turned down. Her interest in DJ equipment and modern dance music has led to her developing skills in music production using computers and it’s looking like she will progress to a music technology course at college.
I think that parental influence is a significant factor in the developing interests of our children. We’ve always tried to ensure that boundaries are clearly defined but encouraged them to be independent. As they grow through their teenage years their independence and self reliance is becoming increasingly apparent. We just wish that our daughter would play her dance music a little more quietly and stop upsetting our neighbours.