The Music Gene

Do you think we are predisposed to certain talents as a result of genetics, or is it really a case of nurture over nature? I was thinking about this this evening, after Ethan's attempts at trying to play "Jingle Bells" on Aidan's music keyboard tonight.

As always, I had a quick look on Wikipedia to no avail, so I broadened it to Google. Of course, there are a number of so called articles on the debate, and I guess like anything on the Internet, some are valid, and some are not. An Indian Online Newspaper's Biotech section discusses the issue, as does another article from the San Francisco Chronicle on Perfect Pitch. Some say there's an influence, other's don't. It appears to be still one of the "Great Unanswereds!"

I consider myself somewhat musical. I played the guitar from a young age, played the trumpet as a nerd in the school band, and had my spate as a keyboard player playing synthesisers in a cover band. I mainly play guitar now, and try to sing badly like Elvis or any number of 80's cover variants. Of the kids, Aidan seemed to have the most aptitude towards music, and he does sing a mean "Advance Australia Fair", our National Anthem.

So to Ethan. He must have Anth's gene. He was going at it, smushing all the keys at once in an industrialised version of Jingle Bells, singing in a monotone that perhaps would have been more suited to an avant garde Bauhaus session than a kid's bedroom at home.

Ciao For Now, Musical Angry Dad.