Communicating Without Words

Before infants have words, their interactions with caregivers take on a musical quality.

This can be observed in the rhythm of their gestures, the pitch changes in their vocalisations (we hear it in their cooing and babbling), and the melodic phrasing of their expressions which exists in connection to the turn-taking musical dialogue between caregiver and infant. Babies love to hear their caregivers’ voices, whether that be talking, humming, or singing. These voices are recognisable to babies from an early age and are learnt in the womb.