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When Susan Ornitz , created by students at CU鈥檚 College of Music, she was floored. Her 7-month-old daughter Zoe loved it, too.听

鈥淪he was so excited. She just started squealing. It was like she knew it was written for her,鈥� said Ornitz.听

In December 2020, Ornitz agreed to participate in CU鈥檚 Colorado Lullaby Project, a program pairing student musicians with new parents to create a custom song for their little ones. Over the course of several collaboration sessions, mother and musicians used details about Zoe 鈥� her nickname, favorite stuffed animal and emerging personality 鈥� to craft a very personal song.听

Months later, though Zoe has grown, the song (titled 鈥淟ittle Wild Thing鈥�) is still special for the mother-daughter duo.听

鈥淲e still love to sing it together on our stroller walks,鈥� Ornitz said. 鈥淚 didn't think of it as something that was going to be so memorable, but it鈥檚 such a special thing to us now.鈥澨�

The Birth of the Project

The project began in New York City in 2011. As a part of Carnegie Hall鈥檚 community engagement programs at Jacobi Hospital in the Bronx, composer and teaching artist Tom Cabaniss was working with HIV/AIDS patients in the pediatric unit when he heard murmurs about teen moms in the OB-GYN unit having a difficult time connecting with their newborns.听

鈥淚 wondered what would happen if we could help these mothers create their own lullabies for their children,鈥� said Cabaniss. 鈥淲hat kind of bond would that forge?鈥澨�

Ten years later, Carnegie Hall鈥檚 Lullaby Project has a 鈥� including CU Boulder 鈥� across the globe. From Slovakia to Alaska, each iteration is unique. Some partners work with mothers in birthing centers, others in correctional facilities.听

鈥淭he diversity of lullabies themselves can be so wide, and the expressions of the project can be equally wide,鈥� said Cabaniss. In 2017, he had been toying with the idea of finding a research partner when CU鈥檚 Rene茅 Crown Wellness Institute and the College of Music鈥檚 Entrepreneurship Center for Music called, asking about the project. He was thrilled.听

Together, they formed the Colorado Lullaby Project. The pilot program kicked off in 2020 under the direction of Grace Law (MMus鈥�21), a graduate assistant with the Entrepreneurship Center for Music, with the help of Anne Fritzon (MPsych鈥�20; PhD鈥�24), a graduate student in clinical psychology.听

Under the project鈥檚 model, student musicians help parents write the music, while the Crown Institute studies the effects of lullabies on the parents鈥� mental health, wellness and social connections.听

Mother and Musician

Lullaby creation takes place over several sessions with the child鈥檚 mother, father or guardian and involves the creation of musical motifs, lyrics and melody.听

Ornitz knew she wanted an Americana vibe in her song 鈥� an acoustic, roots-style tune that felt rustic and homey. From there, they began weaving relevant details into the lyrics. Though she doesn鈥檛 identify as a 鈥渃reative person,鈥� the team made the songwriting process accessible through various creative exercises.听

For example, the team often asks parents to write a letter to their child. The personal nature of the letter helps give the artists insight into the parents鈥� world and shapes the lullaby鈥檚 message.

In Zoe鈥檚 鈥淟ittle Wild Thing,鈥� the 鈥淰iking girl鈥� symbolizes a phase where she made little growling sounds. 鈥淢y husband called them her 鈥榁iking noises,鈥欌�� said Ornitz.听

The song goes on to reference various animals, a nod to Ornitz鈥檚 occupation as a veterinarian and her daughter鈥檚 beloved stuffed animal collection.听

The term 鈥渓ullaby鈥� is used broadly for the songs. 鈥淚t doesn鈥檛 always have to be very calm and soothing. Some parents end up writing something upbeat to get their kids focused. It鈥檚 flexible, and they don鈥檛 have to fit in some certain box,鈥� said Law.听

This was true for Ornitz. 鈥淲e kind of decided we wanted it to be a wake-up, happy type song,鈥� she said.听

鈥淚t's an equal collaboration, but we really try to empower the parent to create something that reflects what they want,鈥� said Law.

Ultimately, the project is rooted in empathy 鈥� creating a lullaby with a parent is a practice of deep listening.听

Pivoting During a Pandemic

The university鈥檚 pilot season of the Lullaby Project was scheduled to kick off during the 2020 spring semester 鈥� until COVID-19 hit.

鈥淲e were slated to have all of our sessions in person,鈥� said Law. 鈥淥nce the pandemic happened, our team was still determined to make it work.鈥澨�

They quickly reworked the model. Instead of meeting with mothers in person at birthing centers, everyone tuned in via Zoom, sometimes with team members logging in across the country.听

鈥淲e had to think about how to imitate an in-person musical experience through the internet, still have it be engaging and still have people feel like it was a really gratifying experience,鈥� said Law.听

CU was the first national or international partner to implement the project digitally. Some parents even expressed a preference for the virtual model.听

鈥淚t鈥檚 much more equitable in a way that parents don鈥檛 have to travel, and they don鈥檛 have to find child care. They can do it from the comfort of their own home, and they feel really comfortable,鈥� said Law.听

Findings and Future

Nearly all caregivers who completed the program reported a positive experience with the Lullaby Project at CU.听

Researchers from the Crown Institute found families showed improvements in social connections and decreased loneliness. The lullabies also improved symptoms of depression and anxiety. Many parents reported the lullaby had a positive impact on their relationships with children, partner or family.

鈥淭hroughout the pandemic, there鈥檚 been a collective sense of hopelessness,鈥� said Law. 鈥淭his gave parents something to be excited about and to look forward to. Many felt like they were strengthening the relationships with their families and their kids.鈥澨�听

鈥淓specially with COVID and the challenges of being a new mother, the project made me feel special,鈥� said Ornitz.听

The Colorado Lullaby Project has served over 60 families to date. Law plans to make this program available every fall and spring and have continuous enrollment for both students and parents or guardians to be engaged in the project.听

鈥淭his is going to be a long-standing program for us,鈥� said Law. 鈥淥ur plans are to really hone in how we鈥檙e doing it here and be able to spread it to other universities to reach more families.鈥�

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Illustration by Marion Deuchars