Music have a lot in common with languages. Language like music is rhythmic. Your brain will learn by a mnemonic, simply the rhythm of the language.

Music and languages a personal experience

-A personal experience with rhythm and how it is connected to music and language learning-

About 15 years ago I had bleeding in my brain, a brain lesion, which affected my memory. While being tested for memory, the tester read a sequence of random number. I could remember 5. Which is 2 digits bellow the average of 7 for short term memory, as I was having memory problems. However, when the tester read in reverse I could remember 14 digits. Which is really almost impossible for short term memory. The way I did it is I listened to the rhythm of the testers voice. The tester had a very up down animated voice. When I did this the numbers were like a song. The take away from this is learning languages with music is a great way. Not only do you have a fun song to listen to but you can mnemonically attach the words to the melody.

This is my personal observation from people I know who study both languages and music in Krakow, Poland. Many people will tell you that musicians have a gift for language, I do not believe it, at least not in a significant way. I have taught too many students to think people magically learn a language from the air. However, when musicians study a language they learn it well. This is my observation, musicians are very systematic in learning languages. They learn languages like they have been taught to learn music. How to they learn a languages? They learn it by practicing the same sequence over and over. Have you ever been outside music or piano hall when someone is learning to play the piano, they play the same song over and over until they know this sequence perfectly. They are focused determined and do not study the theory of the song they are learning too much they simply learn the song. Languages are the same way. You simply need to learn the sequences that appear in a language over and over until your target language is a reflex.

I am partial because I like classical music. However, I noticed that when I study a foreign language with classical music in the background, I can focus better. I think everyone believes they have a level of ADD (attention deficit disorder) and if you are one of those people, then try studying to classical music. Now a lot has been written about listening to Mozart and the Mozart effect, some say Bach, for me Gregorian Chants work the best when trying to learn and I want something to help me stay focused.  I think it depends on how much your brain needs to be slowed down to be able to focus. Mozart being the fastest means you focus pretty well, Baroque music is slower and your brain focuses ok but needs helps and Chants the slowest this is me.  I think my brain fuctions at a fairly high cognitive speed and needs to be put in first gear to be able to focus.  So for me to sit and study a foreign language for any period of time without me getting bored I need to be lulled into a clam relaxed stated with Gregorian chants. For me this significantly helps my ability to study. Many sites make super learning claims, I am not doing that. I am saying this works for me. I could get into the brainwave theories etc, but I would rather convey anecdotal evidence of what helps me learn a language. If anyone has any other experiences with other types of music please let me know.

Most memory masters will tell you rhythm will help you remember. Further learning a language with music is an excellent method to learn a language, for other reason besides just rhythm, that is, your brain is all about connections and music can open closed gates in your brain. I am writing a program which uses music to teach language in a specific way, If you do not believe me that music is a great way to learn a language, try taking a popular song you hear on the radio, or an old one that you have in your brain like, “Some where over the rainbow” . It is should be a musical melody that is almost stuck in your head. Now sing it in your target language. I am not talking about the the orgigincal lyrics of the song or even the lyrics in transalation, but sing any sentence in your target foreign language. For example, open up the bible and sing a verse in your target language with this tune. Monks would chant all the 150 Psalms by memory. It does not matter. You can try to sing a typical dialogue in your target language, such as “meeting and greetings”. But if you can connect the rhythm of the song to the foreign words and phrases you are trying to learn, the words in your target language will go in easier. You might even try to compose your own lyrics to the song you are signing. Music will get you to remember the words you need to learn a language.

I teach and learn languages. I have read countless books on language learning, but more important I have had years of first hand experience with language learning. There are scores of language learning products on the market from books to software to memory masters. What do I think is the best way to learn a language? Music and perhaps mnemonics. Why? Because a language is largely connected with rhythm and sound. Memory systems that are based on numbers or visualization without sound may work for other things, but are less effective for languages. Music is the universal language that acts as a memory tool, it is a natural memory system. Mnemonics is similarly effective because it connects the acoustics or sound of the word to your target language. So the best memory systems for language learning are rhythmical and acoustic, as this is the nature of language.

Music videos are more interesting than traditional pod-casts or in my opinion TV. And if you are into music this can be a way to spark your interest in a language. I think music is perhaps the best way to learn a language. It blends acoustics with rhythm with the sound of the language in a fun way. Music videos usually have beautiful captivating images. Further they meaning can be more generally interpreted, “its something about, so and so”, rather than an exact plot. Therefore, does not need a strict translation. But in the same light many of the lyrics tend to be more poetic than useful. But overall music is one of the best ways to learn a language. If you want to know how to learn a language fast, music.

Language learning gear for learning with music

When I was growing up I loved languages and I loved to liked to listen to music very much. To combine these two passions I needed gear.  The equipment ‘one-must-have’ was, then, in seventies/eighties, a tape recorder. Cassettes tapes were too new, rather expensive in Poland. A popular tape recorder was cheaper although much bigger, like a PC desktop, It was very retro. You could listen to tapes on a tape recorder but it offered a rather poor quality, no reduction system, but it allowed me to play favorite my cuts again and again.  When I had finished primary school with very good grades, my father bought me one.

Music of the 70s

And even now, to me, the seventies and eighties were the best years of music for me. I must start my story about music with an important album as ‘Dark Side of the Moon’ of Pink Floyd (1979, probably still on Billboard’s Top 200 albums). One of my rich friends bought a copy from abroad and allowed me to re-write (manually of course) the lyrics to my notebook (paper book of course, not a PC).

Paying the dues to learn a language

Then day after day, I was reading word after word, finding it in dictionary and writing the Polish meaning under the English one.

This is what it takes to learn a language blood, sweat and tears. But for me it was a more of a mission.

Some advised me to create my own dictionary by writing down the words I was finding, but I did not used this method because I thought finding a word, even the same many times, allowed me to read some other words on same page, so in fact I could learn more. I was a little obsessed.

Next I began to  analyze a whole line, the a paragraph, and the I tried to understand the meaning as a whole. There were many misunderstandings but in general I caught the ideas, and only then I could absorb full heart and soul of the group’s artistic expression.

Music was fantastic but music with lyrics ‘ shocked me, like a new religion.

My next endeavor was I had an occasion to copy lyrics of The Wall by Pink Floyd. After a month of hard work,  I translated into Polish, and again I liked it very much, although the strange messages and problems which the lyrics were about were still not for me,  I was a teen then.

Next level of learning a language with music

After two big successes, I was ready for the next level.  I had possibility to copy lyrics of the Genesis album ‘Foxtrot’. For the beginning I chose ‘Supper’s Ready’ and I totally failed  ‘.  I could translate word by word but I couldn’t find the idea. Unfortunately. So I told to myself ‘Not too quickly, son’. And then I returned to simple songs.  Undiscouraged by tactical defeats I pressed on.

Why I used pop songs to learn

For some next months I was ‘processing’ pop songs only. Many were simple and stupid, but many were very nice and some quite funny. You might  laugh, but I had no Beatles songs at that time. I worked on songs like ‘I’m Not in Love’ by 10cc, then came Donna Summer  ‘The song ‘Once Upon A Time’,  had an easier language but the text was not so silly. Donna Summer was singing very clearly, so then I started to listen carefully to her articulation. Donna Summer was good for this purpose, not complicated lyrics and rather understood singing.

I continue to learn languages with music. Now I choose wiser lyrics, but also like to listen to Abba or – the most clear articulation ‘ Susan Vega. But even after all these years, some texts are a closed book for me, too difficult to understand and then after some ‘sampling’ I usually give up.

Music worked for me to learn a language

But despite tactical defeats I won. I learned English in a large part because I translated lyrics and listen to songs.  Learning a language with music is almost a magic wand, if you are willing to work.

First contact with English music

My (Mirek) first contact with English happened when I was 13 and it was rather funny. I could say was initiated to English in a jungle. You must agree when you read the following story. It was a musical jungle.

Source of English Music

I always liked to listen to music, the main source of top hits was then for me, Radio Luxembourg (located in London) and I really was a faithful listener, every  night for many hours. I did not understand what they were talking about but I tried to understand names and titles of songs, I still wonder how could I be so stupid to believe they used classic text book proper king’s English.

Slade and Music

I shall mention some examples to let you know what I mean. My first favorite group was Slade. Now I know their name, but then I tried to looked it up in one dictionary after another, for any similar words and I could not find anything, so I tried to watch the records covers and what I could see made me surprised more. First their album I saw was Slayed, then later I saw Slavde, then Sladest, no word could be found.

Music Lyrics

So I gave up the name and started to analyze titles (it was much too early for lyrics). Again with Slade “Cos I luv you”  no idea although I started to catch something, then “Weer all crazee now” and “Look at last nite” the idea appeared like lightning ‘ those stupid bastards do not use orthography. So then I started to think out. What would a poet have if he was writing his poem’.

Easier Music to learn English

The conclusion was, I had to find something easier. One day I was watching a video clip of a country American song, “I’m walking the floor over you.” I saw a sad man walking up and down in a small shack, probably thinking about his girl. Then after the song Polish speaker translated the title ‘ I am walking on the floor in a room which is located one floor higher than your room. I was shocked because that shack had only one floor! And he was not moving on the attic as there was none. And probably no basement. So I said to myself ‘what a stupid jerk, I must check everything by myself’.

Polish – English dictionary

The next step was to beg my parents to buy me at least small English -Polish dictionary, I had to use reasonable cause as the first answer was ‘you don’t need it!’. So I talked a while about my deep interest in English and finally I heard ‘OK’. And from this event I had to practice what I was talking about previously, to show my parents that I was reliable and honest.

Babies learn from their parents not from TV

Babies learn from their parents not from TV.  In fact some accelerated DVD language learning for slows babies progress.  DVDs are good for children and great for adults but for babies, they respond really only to real live humans, in other words, their parents.  If they hear it from their parents it has meaning for the baby.  To learn a language it has to be meaningful.  If you want your baby to learn a language than speak to them.  I think a baby hears about a million words by six months years old.  Hearing these words the baby is able to organizes the language in their brain.  But to watch TV or radio there is no real context for them to organize it.

Put in that perspective, that a baby hears a million meaningful words and sentences, if you are an adult and want to learn a language, you have to listen over and over to something that is meaningful to you.  This is why I created language learning with music because you can listen to a song a thousand times until it sinks in. I also want to create learning languages with the Bible as this is meaningful to many people.  A baby listens to millions of words that are real and meaningful, so do not expect to study for ten minutes a day using some run of the mill program or book and be fluent in your target language.

Last night I went to ‘Havana Blues’ at the movies. I watched it in Spanish with Polish subtitles. The film was about two musicians in Havana.  A large part of the movie was music and singing in Spanish.  By the end of the movie I was able to learn a few spanish words, not as much from listening to Spanish, but by hearing the Spanish music lyrics, during the movie. If you have never tried to learn a language with music, you should. It is really one of the few magic bullets for learning a language.