The teaching philosophy of the late Hungarian composer Zoltan Kodaly is world-renowned for its effect on young children, heightening their musical appreciation and tonal awareness with such success that their skill levels are often comparable to those of students twice their age.

     Kodaly's methods are commonly used to instruct young children across Europe, but the practice has not yet become widespread in Ireland. Only a handful of institutions offer Kodaly classes, and Rathdown Music Centre stands among that elite group.

     Mrs. Julia Carrick, director of the Music Centre, said the decision last year to provide Kinder Classes featuring Kodaly was automatic, based on its research-proven success and its capitalization upon children's developmental stages.

     "Their  hearing is the most used of all their senses. They listen to everything," Mrs. Carrick said of children under the age of 8. She said their aural inclination facilitated easy comprehension of rhythm, pitch, and overall awareness.

     "Children who go through this system of learning will be better musicians because their musical senses will be much more heightened," she said. "It's training their ear so that it's really sharp ... At the age of 5 or 6 years old, these kids are more sophisticated musically than many teenagers."

     The children are taught to identify pitches with the solfa system (do-re-mi), and to consequently equate those with hand signals. Because they already understand the differentiation between pitches, it becomes easy to automatically identify them with written notes once they become a bit older, she said.

     In addition, the classes also provide the children with the opportunity to sample different instruments, and the teacher provides educated feedback about what instruments each child may like or be best suited to pursue in the future.

     One child, who enrolled in Kinder Classes last year at the age of 5, will this year begin taking piano lessons at the Centre based on advice from her teacher.

     Her mother said she chose the Kodaly method because of its reputation and because of the importance of music in young children's lives.

     "It's well known ... as a good way of introducing music to kids," she said. "It really gives them the opportunity to explore all different types of music."

     The emphasis on an enjoyable environment also was a key factor in her decision. The mother said her daughter loved the classes, and the child's enthusiasm for music always became extremely evident when she would arrive home from the Centre.

     "She'd be jumping around the place, basically pretending everything was a musical instrument," her mother said. "She really enjoyed it. She's delighted to be going back."

     Another mother noticed a similar situation in her home after signing up her two daughters for the Kinder Classes. She said the girls spent the summer taking turns singing and sitting at the piano, pretending to accompany each other.

     "At the end of the term, when they invited the parents to come in, I was really surprised,"  she said. "They were actually tapping out beats and rhythms, and then they were singing songs."

     She said she was impressed by the sophistication of the classes.

     "I thought, basically, that they were going in and clapping to rhythms," she said. "I didn't realize that they were also sitting and teaching the children, 'This is where middle C is.'"

     She has again signed her children up for classes at the Centre and has enrolled in piano lessons herself. She also recommended the Kinder Classes to a friend of her younger daughter, based on the progress she observed in her children and their love of the classes.

     Mrs. Carrick said children's enjoyment of the 40-minute classes is yet another benefit of the programme - but stressed that it is incredibly structured and purpose-driven.

     "It's very academic, but the kids don't know that," she said. "They think it's great fun. Everything the teacher does has a specific reason to it."

     "The Music Centre will begin offering Kinder Classes twice a week this year, on Wednesdays as well as on Saturdays. Enrolment in the program already has surpassed that of last year, and registration remains open.

     Children can also sign up for the Disney Singing Class, as well as individual or group music lessons. For more information about registration or class details, please contact the Rathdown Music Centre at 01 2013938 or 01 2853133.