Kindermusik and Keyboards: The Beginning... and around the bend

     Once upon a time (all great stories begin this way) Rita Scherer graduated with a Masters degree in piano from Kansas University. After teaching at KU and Baker University for a time, she and her husband, Mark, began a family. Amazing... but true, her son, Brett, hummed his first tune at the young age of six months. (the Campbell Soup Song: Mm Mm Good)

     She began a search for a music curriculum for young children and discovered Kindermusik. As a piano teacher she knew better than to place a four year old on a piano bench with any expectation of music being fun for long. She found the Kindermusik curriculum to be full of creative movement, playing many different instruments, singing, dancing…all the things that a young child needed to fall in love with music forever. She enrolled 45 students the first year (the largest enrollment nation wide) and was on her way to a rewarding career.

     Her children, Brett and Bryan, loved Kindermusik and as they grew, so did their love for music. Today they both play piano, guitar and percussion. Even though they're now in college, they still love to sing and dance... a Kindermusik tradition. Music has woven a magical weave of self-confidence, intelligence, and happiness into their lives... providing a link between life and successful living. There is no greater gift any parent can give their child than the gift of music… a gift that lasts a lifetime.

     In the early years, very little research had been published about the effects of music and the brain. As Rita followed the students from her first Kindermusik class through their grade school years and beyond, she was amazed at how many of them excelled above their classmates. She knew that this early childhood experience with music was impacting intelligence, reducing stress and increasing the emotional security of children in Independence, Missouri. What she was teaching was making a difference in her community.

     After 18 years of teaching Kindermusik, not only are we seeing the difference Kindermusik has made in our community, but other people realize their lives have been enriched through the power of music. Recently, a former student, now a young women and new mother, threw her arms around Rita to thank her for teaching her how to play the piano. Another new mother, who proudly announced she still had her first Kindermusik instrument, a glockenspiel, enrolled her child this fall. Rita received a letter from a student that participated in her first class of Kindermusik who is now studying voice in Paris, France. Grandparents, parents and teachers have all expressed their confidence in our music program. It has truly made a “connection” between life and learning.

     Music is a powerful tool not only for children, but also for any age adult. We are now recognizing the need to reach out in the community and provide the best possible environment for learning and the highest quality of life for the senior adult. For the first time in the Kansas City area we will bring Kindermusik into the nursing homes. The program is called Village with Seniors. A class of twelve children (all under the age of 18 months) and their parents will sing, shake and skip into the hearts of the elderly who will come to the class and participate together in music. Research shows that music can stimulate the brain in the elderly to remember names and facts, to better perform simple tasks like brushing teeth, and to promote a sense of well being and happiness.

     There is no greater reward than a smile from a child who is excited because “today is a Kindermusik day”… or a smile from a senior who treasures the 45 minutes each week when children and parents bounce into their retirement facility to sing, dance and awaken the heart with the gift of music.

And that can make all the difference!

Musically yours,
Rita Hawley Scherer