A Lullaby, or Cradle Song, Research Paper Example

Lullabies have been in existence throughout the human history and most of the ones sung nowadays are hundreds of years old. No matter where on earth or the year someone was born, his/her mother most definitely sang a lullaby for him/her before being put to sleep. For that reason, a lullaby is defined by its use and not entirely by its musical elements. A lullaby, therefore, can be defined as a song that is played or sung primarily to young children and babies, to sooth and calm them to sleep. In other words, lullabies are harmonious and rhymed words, which take the form of poetry and prose according to a certain melody. Generally, lullabies are sung by mothers, but they can also be sung by other relatives such as the elder sister, aunt and the grandmother among others.

Each and every country has thousands of lullabies all over its regions. Every piece of lullaby has got its own account of story, its own feelings and the way singing. Lullabies are the initial interactions between the child and mother, and are essential parts of the national culture. Almost everyone remembers them, but nobody knows where exactly they came from. The word lullaby developed from a French word “berceuse” that means cradle song. Such songs were purposely written with a rhythmic and regular pattern, which would smoothly help a child to fall asleep. This unique rhythm is repeated several times throughout the song, in order to soothe crying children or make them sleep. Within this tradition, there is also the mother’s unique kind of managing her voice by rising, softening, hardening, slowing or even fastening it according to the situation and state of the child at that moment. This way, the mother is directing the baby with the tone of her voice.

Several of the well-known lullabies have very special meaning and have been moved from generation to generation. Some of the popular lullabies whose origins are known include, Rock-A-Bye, Good Night and Brahms’ Lullaby.

Rock-A-Bye

It is considered both a nursery rhyme and a song. Cradles plunging and bough breaks seem scary to sing to children, but it is the famous and well known lullabies in the world. There are some different theories about the origin of this lullaby in the world. The first one is that written and composed by immigrants of English to USA upon seeing American native women rocking their children in bark cradles, which were hanging from a tree branch of. The second theory believes that this song was written in the early 1800s, about a certain family that lived on top of a tree, and their child slept in unoccupied out boughs. However, regardless of the lullaby’s origin, it first appeared in the melody of Mother Goose in 1765.

Good night

“Good night” is a more modern lullaby by the Beatles. It first appeared on the White Album (The Beatles) in 1968. Beatle John Lennon originally wrote this song to put Juliana, his son, to sleep. John Lennon later contributed it to the album “The Beatles”, and requested Ringo Starr, a drummer, to sing it. Knowing the song would be loaded with sentimental arrangement and tongue-and-cheek orchestration, John Lennon appropriately felt that Ringo’s humorous charisma perfectly suited the piece.

Brahms’ Lullaby

The song originated from Germany and was previously titled “Weigenlied”. It is the most admirable, popular and well liked tune in the babies’ toys. It is also popular in most cartoon programs, whereby it is used when a character in the cartoon is knocked on the head. This popular melody was originally written and composed for Faber Bertha, a young lady from Germany. She was in need of a new song to sing to her firstborn child.

The Northeast Lullaby

This is a lullaby widely known in China. Also known as the Northeastern Cradle song, it is also used as a folk song of the Northeast China. The Northeast Lullaby originated from Pulandian, which is now part of the Greater Dalian. During that time, Pulandian was called New Jin Prefecture, which was located north of Jinzhou.

Importance of lullabies

This topic is very crucial because it stands for the beginning of everyone’s lives. Everyone was once a child and a lullaby was the first song they heard. It was used either to sooth the person to stop crying or fall sleep. They are very important to lives of young children and babies because they provide them with the feelings of calmness and security. This topic is also important because it provides a chance of communication between the baby and the caregiver. The baby responds through vocalizations i.e. babbling and cooing, which facilitate singing and speech, by promoting attachment by participation in responsive interactions and loving. Therefore, giving children the precise opportunities early enough will build a strong base, which will carry them throuout their life time (Kapp, 22).

The topic of lullaby is also important because it reminds our memory of the past by building a list of our favorite lullabies. It memorizes individuals of their history, which is important since several of today’s parents are not familiar with the most famous lullabies in the world. There exist several admirable books of lullaby I the market alongside a selection of excellent lullaby compact discs. It is important to note that the lullaby in the compact discs should only be used as an aid when learning a new song. The teacher or parent’s voice must always b present.

Once a child knows that the caregiver is around, it gives him/her confidence to fall asleep. It is assumed that a child will always cry when he/she is tired or wants to sleep because they are frightened by the sense of falling asleep. Sitting and talking to a child will definitely stimulate him/her and does not allow them to fall into peaceful sleep also. Singing to a baby can assist to calm them down and give them confidence in falling asleep that can knock on to their confidence during daytime (Kapp, 38).

In recent times, there has been a logical amount of interest in the fact that a child, from birth, is more particularly wired for music. This means that there are particular neural connections that are made once a child listens to any type of music, whether vocal or instrumental. These connections are only made during the early years of a child. Once they are made, the neural connections can be used to support other senses like verbal and visual. If the connections made are more, then the higher brain capacity is opened for use. Therefore, the earlier lullaby is introduced, the greater the potential for learning for a child.

Lullabies feature rhyme, assonance, repetition and alliteration. Through repetition of the same pattern now and then by singing, strengthens the sound recognition. Speaking to a child is of an incredible value in language and speech development, but the importance of singing is always overlooked. Just as the nursery rhymes, lullabies also provide a child with the possibility of hearing sounds in expected patterns, to understand and recognize those patterns in such a way that speech alone does not.  Furthermore, these patterns can also be used by the children in practicing their sounds and tones without even knowing they are doing it.

Lullabies are not only good for the children, but also to the singer. Singing to a child is part of the bonding process, and by building a close bond between the caregiver and the child is crucial throughout a child’s life. This process can also be soothing, taking sometime out of a day’s busy activities and relax a bit. It is also advisable for a couple never to go to bed angry from any unresolved issue. A caregiver is also advisable to put a child in bed on a note of peace and comfort rather than anger. Therefore, creating time in the bedtime schedule for a lullaby means that one has to set aside anger and annoyance. Singing can be a healing activity for the singer, and alternatively a consoling way to spend the hours spent cuddling a child who is sick, whereas worry is put aside during these times.

The present life versus Lullabies

We are living in a technological time and mothers are actively and dynamically involved in duties concerning business and national production so as to make a great living for their lives. Such mothers and care givers cannot spend all the time with children because of their work. These children and babies normally listen to the lullabies and other songs as they grow up. Nevertheless, some products and songs cannot offer the feelings and warmness, which can only be created and offered by the voice, tone and influence of the mothers or the caregivers. This will definitely lead to some cruel and harsh issues when it comes to emotional relations between the child and the mother or the caregiver. This line of relationship appears different nowadays because communication and I.T promotes their distance. The purpose of this good relationship is to develop a strong attachment and bonding as well as family values, which the children can grow up in and developing good feelings. This underlines the importance of lullaby in the development of a child.

Lullabies are universal

A Lullaby is a worldwide cultural and traditional value almost in each country. Developments in technologies and changing lifestyles are jeopardizing this deep-rooted tradition. Therefore, people should develop ideas and projects underlying the significance of the lullabies in children development, and showing its contributions and necessities to the caregiver or mother to child relationship by ways of following several disciplinary approaches so as to bring a clear perspective of its importance. Even though lullabies are seen as national, regional and local, they are also a universal aspect. Lullabies’ researches will contribute and enhance continuation of this tradition. This will be helpful to schools and countries at large.

Even though singing of a lullaby is a natural thing to several people, others might need some tips on how to share them with young ones. Young children and babies’ interest in sound can be developed in several ways and from various tones, pitches, qualities, songs and rhythmical movement.

Works cited

Hasan Günes & Nadide Günes. (2012). The effects of lullabies on children. International Journal of Business and Social Science, 3(7) Retrieved from http://search.proquest.com/docview/1010401378?accountid=45049

http://www.itspottytime.com/babylullabies.html

http://www.sitnsleep.com/about/a-brief-history-of-lullabies

Kapp, Richard. Lullabies: An Illustrated Songbook. San Diego: Harcount, Brace & Co, 1997. Print.