AD – I am always on the look out for fun and new things to do with the kids, especially the little man. We are finding he seems more grumpy if we stay in all day. He really likes his walks and new experiences. When we were kindly invited to a local Bach to Baby concert, we were all really intrigued and I was keen to see what the girls and little man would think! I knew he would probably love the music!
More About Bach to Baby and Fantastic for Families
Bach to Baby was founded by Miaomiao Yu, a renound concert pianist from across three continents. As a mother Miaomiao realised she missed being able to just pop to a music concert, so created the acclaimed concert series Bach to Baby. This is an innovative series designed for babies and their families where Miaomiao performs with internationally renowned guest artists. Miaomiao wanted to provide top quality classical music to entertain adults, while giving children the chance to hear and explore live instruments up close.
This is exactly what happens at a Bach to Baby concert, as we found out!
You can find out about where these concerts are held locally on either the Bach to Baby website or The Fantastic for Families website, which also lots of other art and culture content for your family to access. It lists theatre performances, museums, film screenings, and events at multi-purpose arts centres around England and Wales.
Fantastic for Families is an initiative by the Family Arts Campaign, a large scale, national collaborative programme led by the visual and performing arts sectors to increase levels of arts engagement by families. The campaign focuses on increasing the amount and range of high-quality content available to families, ensuring that arts and culture is both accessible and diverse, so that all families and generations can access arts and culture together.
In order to be listed on the Fantastic For Families site, venues must adhere to the Family Arts Standards, which ensure that all venues and events are accessible, diverse, and welcoming to families of all abilities and backgrounds.
This all sounds brilliant and will really encourage families to get involved.
Our Experience
All five of us managed to get out on a rainy Saturday to attend our local Solihull Bach to Baby concert. There were a range of children present from baby, to children my gremlin’s age and older. I was pleased to see it looked quite popular too!
There were refreshments to purchase, such as teas, coffees, smoothie and snacks, like biscuits.
The concert was introduced and we were told the children could move about, dance and get involved. I liked this, as there was no way my girls were going to sit still for an hour. We were told to listen and try and encourage our little ones to listen too. We were going to be treated to music from a pianist and a violinist and the concert was entitled the True Romantics. It was music that Queen Victoria had enjoyed during her reign; all really interesting.
The concert started and we were all transfixed. The music was incredible and you can see that very talented musicians are chosen to perform. It was one of those experiences when you think more than 2 instruments are being played; it sounded that good.
After a little while the girls wanted to go and sit a little closer and watch the pianist and we did just that. A lot of younger children and babies were moving around and crawling. Parents of course had to follow!
My girls listened really well and I was proud that they behaved. The concert lasted around 45 minutes which I think was a good time for little ones. At the end there was a small nursery rhyme session which my middle child loved! She loves the singing at the local playgroup that we attend. The children got really excited and had loads of suggestions of what they wanted to sing.
Overall Thoughts
We had a really good morning out and my husband in particular, really enjoyed spending some time with the little man, who was mesmerised for the whole concert. He even forgot he hadn’t had his mid-morning feed! The girls were good and sat and listened. They enjoyed watching the pianist and wanted to go and have a look at the piano when the concert was over.
We all enjoyed our first Bach to Baby experience and if you love music and still want to attend with your children, these are perfect! They may even inspire your children to get involved more with music and play an instrument.
Thumbs up from us!
Disclosure – we were provided with tickets and compensated for our time. All thoughts and opinions are our own.
Ooh this sounds like so much fun!
A definitely original and important way to bring children closer to the world of classical music, the most beautiful …
It sounds like a good little concert for the whole family to experience. Mine quite enjoy music, although we do take lessons and started a few years ago. I htin music is great for kids to listen to and learn. It’s a great way to be creative.
Attending such a concert is a great way to introduce the young ones to classical music. I like that the venue was so accessible and that children could move around as they wished and they were not obliged to sit on a chair for the entire performance.
This looks like such a great way to introduce kids to music! I love the idea of this, especially since I wouldn’t have to worry about my kids ruining other’s experiences.
This is a great idea. A concert in a relaxed setting that is perfect for the entire family. It means that there will be a big chance that more children will take an interest in learning to play an instrument.
When I get pregnant, I already plan on listening to classical music. Having the kids still attend and listen to classical music is a great way for them to learn where music started and enjoy it too. Great way to bond with your kids.
Classical music exposure is so important for children’s development. This is a lovely idea by Miaomiao Yu.
listening to some music with children as company is such a nice way to spend the day
Love that the concert is for the little ones. I love playing Bach to my kids when there were in my tummy still and whenever i put them to sleep. Such relaxing music.
It is good to surround the kids with good music from the small age.This concert sounds like a great experience for the whole family.
that must be so fun! i would really like to get to experience this kind of things too!
This is a good idea to make kids consider to appreciate music. It will also help them for their growth!
It’s so hard for my son to sit still. He would love this concert. Anyone tells him he can get up and move while he’s learning is my new favorite person. Music is something I’d love to share with him but a regular concert is just not great for him. He just wants move.