Lullabies are songs that lull the baby to sleep. The music is soothing with no high pitches or octaves. Straight tones are used and one does not be a exponent of fine arts while singing a lullaby. Rock the baby in a cradle or oscillate to and fro with the child in your arms. Hum a little, pat the back of the child and send all sings of reassurance that you are around.
‘Rock a bye baby or Hush a bye baby’ is a perfect lullaby to little children. Hindi lullabies or ‘loris’ are very meaningful and so is the ‘Angai geet’ in Marathi. Most are humming tunes that lure a child to gentle sleep. A simple tune or simple humming also gets the babies to understand that it is time to sleep. Lullabies work excellently when tried as a routine and help the mother wean off the baby. During emergencies too the care giver can easily replace the mother by humming a few tunes.
‘Row Row row your boat, gently down the stream, merrily merrily merrily, life is but a dream’ is a simple soothing line and hummed slowly is a perfect lullaby. The tone has to altered to a low pitch and hushed whispers so as to not excite the child. For tiny infants ‘Baa Baa Black sheep’ works too and the ultimate trick lies in the ‘Twinkle Twinkle little star’.
They say to beget sleep one needs to resort to counting sheep. The idea must have originated from the lullaby ‘Little boo beep, lost her sheep’. ‘Wheels of the bus goes round and round’ can also serve as a soothing melody if hummed correctly. ‘Pease porridge hot, Pease porridge cold, Pease porridge in the pot, Nine days old. Some like it hot, Some like it cold, Some like it in the pot, Nine days old’. The porridge lullaby is a simple theme which can be later narrated as a story.
Nothing can beat the soothing tone in a carol and other devotional songs. ‘Silent Night, Holy night’ is another divine song to caress a child to sleep. Try ‘Wee Willy Winky’ for a change. The traditional Hindi film songs particularly like ‘Nanhi Kali sone chali, Chanda re soye teri maina’ are classics. ‘Kannum puti orangua neeye’ in Malayalam which means the baby sleeps with her eyes shut tight is a touching song narrating the emotions of parents of a new born. ‘Ravi gela re sodhuni aakashala’ and ‘Neej maza nandalala’ are excellent lullaby songs in Marathi.
Children do not discriminate between languages or melodies. Their innocence is cherished through simple tunes and meaningful lyrics that convey love and sweet dreams.
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