Why are baby lullabies always played at such high pitches and why do babies seem to like the high pitch songs?
In: Biology
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From doing some reading, there doesn’t seem to be a single accepted answer. But there are theories.
1) High pitches may be easier for babies to distinguish from other sounds
2) It may be that they like the sound of their own voice and thus also prefer other sounds of a similar pitch
3) High pitches may come off as less aggressive
https://www.parentingscience.com/baby-communication.html#:~:text=It%20could%20be%20that%20it’s,his%20or%20her%20own%20voice.
Interesting side note: The first interval we learn as children is the descending minor third – think playground chants like “Engine engine number nine” or a crowd singing “Air Ball” at a basketball game. It appears to be “hard wired” into us, and is found even in isolated tribes with little or no contact with the outside world.
i have a degree in music education. when we teach music to elementary schoolers, especially younger kids, we were taught that singing in their own vocal range makes it easier to copy, in theory (in practice they do just fine with an octave lower, though some kids do have problems trying to shove their voices low to copy). i’m sure it’s a similar concept with babies; their voices are relatively high so they respond to higher pitched songs. additionally, it could just be cultural; we often speak to babies in high pitched baby voice so it might feel natural for caretakers to also sing high up, on top of knowing songs and nursery rhymes that are high pitched.
truthfully though, “high” pitched singing is usually in the female (and those without dropped voices) mid range without breaching the head voice (a more floaty range where vibrations aren’t felt as much in the chest, amplified by the sinuses, usually starting from A above middle C to like D or E above third space C, in music terms). Maybe babies like higher pitched songs because mommy is usually singing it? obviously could change drastically from person to person or type of parent structure (ex: two dads).
TLDR: high pitched isn’t actually near the top of the human vocal range at all, rather in the middle of most un-dropped voices (female and adolescent usually) and song choice could really be more cultural: lots of nursery rhymes are in the same vocal register and we might just copy them.
It sounds less like a threat, sounds similar to their own voices, makes them pay attention longer than most adult voices (because they dont sound “right” to babies) and the “happy” tone sounds more attractive than the “meh” tone that adult’s voices have.
Remenber, babies dont understand what we are saying and dont have the finesse to see the diference in tones in adults voices, and “baby talk” tends to be super exagerated. They just know it sounds happy and friendly and that means this person is a friend.
Have a look at baby’s head. It’s small. Everything in it is small. This includes their ears. It is easier for babies to hear and listen to higher pitched sounds, because of the physics involved. As they grow up, the bones of the skull get bigger and start to fuse, their heads grow, the ears develop to their “average size”.
It is simply easier for the to hear and process higher pitched sounds. Human brains don’t like it and get frustrated when they can’t understand and process something. Try communicating in a space where it is hard to hear the other person, and you’ll realise how frustrating and exhausting it is. Or try wearing ear plugs and listening to someone, it gets really irritating. Well the same applies to babies, they like things that are easy for them to hear and process. Just like every human.
If I recall right, Teletubbies was the first show to scientifically design every aspect of it, to appeal to babies and toddlers. Especially when it came to sound engineering. Sounds were chosen so that they were clear and easy for a small humans to hear and process.
In my experience with kids, which includes my two kids, several nieces/nephews, and countless cousins and friends kids, pitch isn’t extremely important, it’s more about tone. I have a pretty deep voice, and I sound weird if I try to make it high, like unnatural and forced, but if I almost sub audibly growl while saying soothing nonsense words and making goofy faces, I am a master at calming down upset kids. To me it’s all about tone. Well and movement. Most upset babies that I’ve dealt with enjoyed being gently jostled until they feel better, or at least fall asleep.
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