Lullabies accompany many of us since childhood. Mom and dad, maybe even the grandparents have certainly sung for you. Do you still know the gentle melodies that used to put you to sleep?
If you want to help your child fall asleep with lullabies and thus wish him a nice evening and good night, you should know the most important lullabies.
Songs for babies and children are also something for parents who may consider themselves unmusical. Because they are performed so softly, you don’t need a perfect singing voice for them. There is no need for instrumental accompaniment anyway.
Therefore, if you want to sing a lullaby at the crib, you don’t have to be a professional or memorize long lyrics. The melodies are usually catchy, the verses short and memorable. Also, lullabies don’t always have to be serious.
Do you dare to try lullabies like La Le Lu or Guten Abend, gute Nacht? Find out here the most important information about the musical accompaniment for falling asleep by the most important person in your child’s life: You!
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This Is Why Lullabies Make Us So Happy
Singing lullabies to your baby for the first time may take you back to your own childhood. For generations, babies all over the world have been sung to sleep – by mothers and fathers, grandparents, aunts and uncles, or siblings.
Even though lullabies can be found in many different languages, they have some characteristics in common. Simple language and catchy melodies are the basic framework of a beautiful lullaby.
After all, children should understand what they are being sung to. Babies who cannot yet grasp the words are calmed by the gentle tone sequences and the familiar voice of the performer, and can eventually sleep better.
It is not for nothing that the best-known lullabies are slow pieces that are sung neither particularly high nor particularly low.
The simplicity of lullabies is at the same time their secret: the brain can come to rest and the soul is literally caressed.
Also interesting:How Lullabies Help The Little Ones Fall Asleep
Many babies and children have problems falling asleep. This can be due to the numerous impressions of the day. Sometimes it is also developmental spurts or illnesses that prevent the little ones from sliding from wakefulness to sleep.
Parents are usually anxious to get their children to bed as quickly as possible. But if you are still stressed from the day, the little ones will feel it too.
Lullabies can help to relax yourself and your offspring if they become a daily bedtime ritual.
It has now been medically proven that lullabies, when performed directly, can lower the heart and breathing rates of infants.
The slow tempo of the lullabies, which is lower than baby’s heart rate, and the familiar voices help children settle down better.
Especially for crying babies, parents singing can be distracting at first and soothing in the long run. Simply playing lullabies, by the way, has no comparable effect.
But even if your baby is teething, it will be soothed.
Even if you have a child with bedtime fears at home, you can make the good night fun with a lullaby. This also reduces the fear of the night.
To sing lullabies to your child, you should create a pleasant atmosphere. As an accompaniment to falling asleep, your musical performance is best done right by your baby’s side bed or when you cradle your baby in your arms.
In any case, the lullaby is the last step before falling asleep, so that a gentle gliding into the dream world is possible. Make yourself as comfortable as possible for singing. Maybe you have a chair next to the crib?
Do you already have a suitable extra bed for your baby? Find out more about the Fabixax crib.
But even if you lie next to your child to fall asleep, you can sing well. For the first attempts, lullabies that you yourself have heard several times and know well are suitable. Don’t worry about lyric hangs and wrong tones!
Your baby won’t tell anyone and even older children will enjoy the moment they have with just you. And if you run out of words, maybe the good night will be especially funny!
Beautiful Lullabies In German
But which lullaby should it be? All over the world, songs for falling asleep are about children being protected and being able to rest. But some songs also open up imaginative worlds that inspire dreaming.
Don’t you have an idea for a good night’s sleep that is funny or loving? Are you missing the memory of the most beautiful melodies of your childhood?
Then here are some tips for beautiful lullabies.
La Le Lu
Good evening, good night
Sleep, little child, sleep
Do you know how many little stars
The moon has risen
The flowers are asleep
Sleep, my little prince
Who has the most beautiful lambs
Twinkle, twinkle, little star
Sandman song
One of the most famous lullabies in German is certainly La Le Lu, which has become very popular due to the performance of Heinz Rühmann in 1955. Most people can sing at least the first verse.
Here are the lyrics again, in case you are not familiar with La Le Lu:
La Le Lu
Only the man in the moon is watching
When the little babies sleep
So you sleep tooLa Le Lu
There are two shoes in front of the bed
And they’re just as tired
They’ll go to sleepThen the sandman comes
Quietly he enters the house
He’ll choose from his dreams
The best of his dreamsThen the sandman will come
He’ll come quietly into the house
He’ll take his dreams
The most beautiful of his dreamsLa Le Lu
Only the man in the moon is watching
When the little babies are sleeping
So you sleep tooLa Le Lu
There are two shoes in front of the bed
And they’re just as tired
Now go to sleepLa Le Lu
Only the man in the moon watches
When the little babies sleep
So sleep you too
Another of the best known and most popular children’s songs in German for snoozing is Schlaf, Kindlein, Schlaf. This piece is even much older than La Le Lu, the melody dates back to the 18th century. Do you still know the lyrics?
Here is the first verse of Schlaf, Kindlein, Schlaf:
Sleep, little child, sleep,
The father is tending the sheep,
The mother shakes the little tree,
A little dream falls down,
Sleep, child, sleep.
Lullabies Made Easy
Now you have learned or rediscovered some lullabies and want to sing them to your baby? If you are familiar with the melody, you can simply start.
If you only remember the first verse, repeat it several times when you feel most confident. For the first crib audition, this is perfectly fine. It’s more about familiarity and being able to empathize with the situation.
This way, your child will quickly enjoy being sung to sleep by you. It’s best to stick to one or two lullabies for the evening, so as not to introduce too much unrest into the evening routine.
The classic versions don’t go down well? Then try a good night’s sleep with a funny interpretation.
You would like to sing lullabies to wish a nice evening and good night, but have trouble remembering the lyrics? Or the melodies of the lullabies are no longer familiar to you?
One possibility is to rewrite verses for the good night in a funny way. If you get stuck after the first verse, just make up the next lines yourself.
Or you can insert your child’s name into the lullaby. That way, the good night is sure to be fun!
Not quite as creative? Many parents also use the opportunity to sing along to lullabies on YouTube. With these songs, the lyrics are faded in, so you can’t do anything wrong when singing.
Different variants either play only the melody, while the lyrics are displayed in the video. Other lullabies on YouTube, on the other hand, feature vocals that you can simply join in with.
Even inexperienced singers will gain confidence in performing at the crib.
Make sure that you do not set the music quite so loud, so that the lullaby really contributes to calming and does not excite.
It doesn’t always have to be nursery rhymes in German when the little ones go to bed. In bilingual families, it often happens that one parent tells a story about the night or sings a song in his or her native language.
In some cases, the melodies even sound the same in many places in the world, only the lyrics have been translated into another language. There are also many lullabies in English, Spanish, Italian and other languages that you may never have heard.
If your child is to learn a foreign language in later years, lullabies are a good way to start practicing.
Lullabies Are Not Just For Babies
By the way, you don’t have to have a baby or toddler at home to sing lullabies. Adults also like to wish a good night especially funny.
If you want to say good evening and good night to your loved ones, you can do it with funny pictures and sayings suitable for sleeping and send them via smartphone. Singing to another adult also works, of course.
Pregnant mothers and fathers-to-be also like to sing a little lullaby to the baby in their tummies at dinnertime to get it used to their own voices.
It’s okay to say good night in a funny way, after all, it’s only the little person who’s listening to you!
Some adults even like to sing themselves a lullaby when they are plagued by insomnia or simply can’t fall asleep.
In this way, familiar melodies from one’s own childhood help to leave the stress of the day behind and reduce the jumble of thoughts in one’s head. If you prefer it more contemporary, just listen to modern lullabies for adults.
These can be current instrumental pieces, ballads with soft vocals or restrained electronic songs. However, avoid high tempos so that the calming effect does not turn into the opposite.
Whatever type of lullaby you choose – we wish you a nice evening and good night!
Sources
https://www.sternschnuppe-kinderlieder.de/kinderlieder-texte/184/LaLeLu
https://www.sternschnuppe-kinderlieder.de/kinderlieder-texte/182/Schlaf-Kindlein-schlaf
