I’m frequently searching for ways to better practice presence in each moment. One of the most helpful tools for me has been intentionally creating ambience. Ambience is about completely enveloping. It’s about creating backdrops for desired experiences. The ambience I often strive to create is one of calm and beauty that allows me to recognize the sacredness of ordinary moments. Music can serve us by ushering us deeper into these moments. It’s all rather magical. And also useful for someone who struggles to get out of their own head.
Now—I have some feelings surrounding music for children. I can appreciate a proper dose of nonsense for the fun of it, however I have a pretty low tolerance for children’s music that is obnoxious in the name of childhood. It reduces childhood to its loudness and silliness alone and there’s too much magic in childhood for that to be the case. Also, life is just too short to spend any of it listening to bad music.
Allow me to be clear that there is very little music that I would be quick to call “bad”. I recognize that just because I don’t personally enjoy it doesn’t mean I can’t acknowledge the artistry of it. But my experience has been that much of the music in the category of “children’s music” really is just that. There’s not a lot in life that I’m certain of, but I’m fairly sure I am right about this. And my main reasoning behind it is because so much of it is wholly absent of the artistry and passion that makes music so great. I don’t quite understand it, because there is an abundance of children’s literature that I stand firmly behind. But the music realm leaves a lot to be desired. I am of the opinion that they deserve good music to listen to, to enjoy, and to train their ears in beauty. That’s all I’ll say about that.
The music world can be a little bit overwhelming at times in its vastness. It’s an abundant place. I happen to be wildly passionate about the art of making playlists. We have over one hundred to suit different moods and activities. But I recognize that they can be time consuming to create. And perusing the playlists of others can be pretty hit or miss, especially in the children’s department.
So I have created eight playlists to share with you that are appropriate for children of all ages and that are also equally pleasant for adult ears. They’re very intentionally not the type of songs that cycle on repeat in your mind for days on end (with the exception of Fooba Wooba John, but that’s altogether different because it’s Burl Ives). You can listen to them as is or perhaps use them as a starting point to build your own custom family playlists.
I’m a Spotify user, so that’s where you’ll find these playlists. It’s free for anyone to create an account. Without a subscription you will have to listen to a few commercials and can only skip a set number of songs, but they should still be accessible to you for free.
A Collection of Children’s Playlists:
- For Autumn
- For Winter
- For Spring
- For Summer
- For Imaginative Play—This playlist is the one we put on in the background when we want ordinary play to feel particularly magical. It’s all instrumental, so it inspires without feeling too chaotic.
- For Movement—This playlist is ideal for dancing, jumping, spinning, running, stretching, and any other sort of high energy movement with children.
- For Creating—This playlist serves as a background for creative activities of all sorts. Whether painting, drawing, baking, writing, beading, stickering, or stamping, this music tends to awaken inspiration.
- For Eclectic Ears—Yes. This playlist is indeed over eight hours long. It’s meant to serve as a broad survey of music. It’s classical and pop and vocals and instrumental and country and metal and doo-wop and soul. It’s a celebration of the vast musical spectrum. And it’s very much still in the works.
Happy listening!
