“…a child enters the musical culture by having a natural talent for the ‘outward signs of human communication’…is that response to communication through improvisation of music…”
-Colwyn Trevarthen & Stephen Malloch, in “The Dance of Well-being” (2000)
Sound is an often undervalued sensory perception in our lives. Visual culture has overpowered some of our other sensory experiences. Yet, while one can look away from seeing, one can hardly close our ears to hearing.
Listening and sound-making is also one of the primal ways in which babies inherently socialize with other beings, primarily the mother or figure of caregiving. Sound-making speaks to the survivability of a baby, without which their cries for basic needs such as food, warmth and shelter may not be met. Canadian soundscape composer Hildegard Westerkamp (2001) wrote,
As infants, we truly did exist inside the soundscape. We listened and we made sounds from inside that place. We were, in fact, incapable of stepping outside of it.
In this talk, Natalie Alexandra Tse, founder of LittleCr3atures, shares as a mother to other mothers about her experiences listening and sound-making with her 2 babies – 3 year old toddler Dodo and 8 month old Rhea, as well as hear learning journey through her PhD candidature where she researched into the creation of sonic experience for infants, particularly inquiring into relationships between adults and children in a sonic space.
About Natalie Alexandra Tse
Natalie Alexandra Tse (b.1987) believes in the relational nature of the Arts, to establish essential connections amongst people and their environments. As a final year PhD candidate at the National Institute of Education Singapore, Natalie investigated her creation of a music performance for babies, where theatrical elements transformed a space into an immersive experience for babies and parents alike. This is consistent with her artistic practice where she seeks multi-modal manners of experiencing sounds and the environment. She promotes her spirit of experimentation and exploration of sound through the Arts, with the belief that the Arts has the ability to develop children’s awareness of the diversity of cultures in the world, thereby developing understanding, respect and empathy for others.