Learn to speak Italian with Italian songs

Tastes differ, sure, but everyone loves songs. We start listening to them when we’re children and we keep doing that while we’re growing up, passing from a certain musical genre to another.

For us songs can be a way to relax, to make a proposal, to boost our energy, and so on.

But how many of you actually know that songs can also help you learn foreign languages and cultures?

Let’s see why Italian songs can help you both learn to speak Italian better and learn some aspects of the Italian culture.

RELAXATION

Music and songs naturally reduce anxiety and blood pressure. And when you’re not stressed you generally learn better and faster.

MEMORY

Research has shown that songs seem to facilitate information retention. In fact, thanks to the presence of melody, rhythm, repetitions, and rhymes, songs allow an involuntary mental rehearsal. In short, you keep repeating part of a song without knowing why, learning in this way entire sentences and improving both Italian vocabulary and grammar.

COLLOQUIAL SPEECH

In Italian songs you can find Italian colloquialisms and everyday expressions that you’re not aware of. So, listening to songs is a good and pretty funny way to learn to speak Italian and Italian slang.

PRONUNCIATION

Sounding like a native Italian speaker is one of the most difficult part when learning Italian, especially if you’re an adult. Indeed, as an adult you’ve acquired your own accent, accent that is really very difficult to change.

That’s the reason why, language teachers usually focus on improving your clarity of speech and your pronunciation, not on trying to remove your accent.

Italian songs are the perfect method to learn how to pronounce Italian words easily. In fact, listening to songs allow you to both pay attention to tone, rhythm and beat, and to imitate more easily Italian prhases and sounds.

ITALIAN CULTURE

In many songs you can find some aspects related to the Italian culture too, from social and political life to historical events and geographical descriptions.

So, Italian songs aren’t only perfect to learn to speak Italian but also to learn something more about Italians and Italy!

ITALIAN SONGS AND SINGERS TO CHOOSE

When learning, motivation is essential. So, don’t choose Italian songs that bore you to death.

If you really want to choose some Italian songs to listen to, then choose some songs of the musical genre you most like, if possible. I said “if possible” because if your favourite genre is rap, you might have a lot of problems understanding the text, since Italian rappers’ speech speed is generally very fast.

Here are some famous Italian singers you can check if you want to try to learn to speak Italian with songs:
Mina, Jovanotti, Vasco Rossi, I Modà, Gianna Nannini, Adriano Celentano, Claudio Baglioni, Elisa, Gianni Morandi, Arisa, Gli 883, i Negramaro, Laura Pausini, Andrea Bocelli, Fiorella Mannoia, Stefano Bollani.

What about you?
Did you learn to speak Italian with songs? Tell us your experience.

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Credits

Original image by Splitshire