Art and the Child (Or Tuesday's Children's Concert)

When I look back over my childhood, one of the things for which I am most grateful is my parents' dedication to exposing my sisters and me to the arts. We were taken to ballets, symphonies, musicals, plays, and museums. For a girl from a tiny town in rural Iowa, I came in contact with an impressive amount of quality art--enough to make me always hungry to see more, to hear more, and to discover more art and more beauty.

My experience and interaction with art of all kinds have helped me form a two-fold plan in dealing with my kids and the arts: 1) expose them early and 2) expose them to excellence. The earlier they become conversant with art, the more likely they'll develop an interest and, hopefully, a love for art. Similarly, the more exposure to excellent art, the more likely they'll gain an understanding, appreciation, and a desire for things that are truly beautiful and artful.

I haven't always been as intentional as it sounds in trying to instill a love of the arts in my children. Or at times I may go overboard--like insisting that ALL my children, boys included, will take dance lessons. (Don't worry; their father stepped in pretty quickly.) Slowly and steadily, worlds of beauty and creativity are opening up to them through music and art. And I hope they'll come to love and appreciate various forms of art all throughout their lifetimes. At the very least, they'll have some level of tolerance and knowledge on the subject even if they aren't passionate about it.

I taught a required humanities class for two years in Texas in which we studied both visual and performing arts. Most of the class couldn't have cared less and inevitably, some sleepy-eyed kid would ask, "Why do we need to know this stuff?" By the time they're old enough to ask such a pragmatic and jaded question, ninety-nine percent of the time they are too far gone. For if a child has grown up with art and beauty (true beauty) before his eyes and floating into his ears and moving through his mind and body, he won't need to ask the question, "Why?" He already knows the answer.

"As the sun colors flowers, so art colors life."

(a quote on a program I saw decades ago while sitting in a theater, only heartbeats away from another amazing, soul nourishing encounter with art)

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You may be asking a similarly pragmatic question right now: "Why this blog post?" Well, I'll tell you . . . Sometimes art and education are nicely handed to you on a platter, say, like in a free children's concert at the local college. Yesterday, the kids and I were invited to attend a concert at Wheaton College with the purpose of exposing young kids to the instruments of the orchestra and the music those instruments make. While the program lacked a few things I would've liked to see/hear, it definitely engaged the 2,000 students in attendance and taught them how sounds are made as well as the different groups of instruments within an orchestra. It also included an enjoyable operatic soprano/baritone duet, a pipe organ solo, and an incredible marimba three-some that proved to be our family favorite. The boys both left talking about instruments they'd like to play and songs they enjoyed as well as some new and interesting things they learned. We had a great time! One more colorful flower in the art bouquet of our lives. (Yes, I did just write that! And, yes, I know how cheesy it sounds:)

And just because I love clever children's books, here are two of our favorite picture book titles centering on the orchestra:

The Philharmonic Gets Dressed (Karla Kuskin) A great description of a night at the symphony from the vantage point of the musicians as they go through the routine of getting ready for work. Excellent!

The Composer Is Dead (Lemony Snicket) A hilarious "whodunnit" with an over-eager investigator and some slightly shady instruments. This book comes with an orchestrated audio version of the story. Very cleverly crafted!

Note: In writing this post, I'm painfully aware it falls short of expressing what I've come to believe about art, creativity and the Creator. More to come on those topics in the future . . . I hope.