ABSTRACT
In the early years, children will probably be singing with an unforced singing sound
producing the distinctive timbre and tone of young children’s voices. As they get
older, children are hearing vocal music of many different kinds which exploits a wide
range of techniques, timbres and styles and they will become interested in this wider
variety. They are already good imitators of much of the vocal music they hear, as any
eavesdropping on playground pop song routines will soon tell. So, alongside
developing the individuality of their voice, children listen for, recognise, experiment
and learn the performance skills associated with some of these extended vocal
techniques.
