One year ago, we started working on a Global Lullaby Library Project and it was a very interesting ride. This Idea that started as a fun cultural transmission also taught us more than we could imagine. It is quite a well-documented field. We will share here some of those discoveries.
Lullabies may be the most primal form of music, possibly originating back to the ancient time in human evolution when we first needed to care for infants who are born in an essentially helpless state.
The oldest known lullaby is a Babylonian lullaby found inscribed on a clay tablet about 4000 years old.
A Lullaby is a song, with or without music, performed for children. Often utilized to help children fall asleep or calm them during times of distress. Melody is one of the things that sticks out for lullabies.
They are likely the first love songs children hear.
“ In comparison, in a lot of other song types, such as dance songs, you would see rhythm as being more of a driving force,” explained Connie Bainbridge, who co-led research in the Harvard Music Lab.
Many lullabies possess a peaceful hypnotic quality. They have simple tones with short repetitions and long pauses between sections. Interestingly across diverse cultures these characteristics are consistent.
Lullabies are carried across borders carrying traces of those who came before us and will carry traces of who we are long after we are gone.
Studies suggest that lullabies, dance songs, and, to a lesser extent, healing songs, share enough features across cultures to be universal features of human behavior