A Developmental View of Children's Singing

Abstract

Research into children's singing has gradually gained momentum since the beginning of this century. These studies have principally concentrated on the identification of children's ‘comfortable’ singing ranges, and the identification and treatment of children who sing out-of-tune, usually termed ‘uncertain singers’ or ‘poor pitch singers’ (p.p.s.). Several investigators have commented that out-of-tune singing appears in different forms (for reviews, see Phillips 1984; Welch 1979a, b, 1985b). The aim of the present article is to discuss these findings and to suggest that children's singing has an underlying developmental process.