Exploring the Piano from the Age of Eight to Thirty Six Months: Implications for Infant and Toddler Musical Development

This paper reports on a longitudinal study of a young child's exploration of music on the piano from 8 months to 36 months. Unlike studies of older children playing musical instruments, this study reports on the child's natural exploration of music on the instrument, as opposed to formally taught skill acquisition directly related to the instrument being learnt. This case study suggests that it is the process of musical exploration, not a final musical product (such as being able to play a specific piece of music) that is of importance at this age in relation to musical development. A number of themes in the child's musical development emerged in relation to musical activities revolving around the piano: 1) initial exploration of sound; 2) playing the piano with a parent was a social experience for the child; 3) a sense of beat developed with musical activities revolving around the piano; 4) playing the piano encouraged singing - particularly the development of accurate pitch; and 5) hearing and being able to see the difference between soft/loud and fast/slow enabled development of the musical concepts of dynamics and tempo.