Baby Mozart [VHS] [Import] (1998)

「モーツァルト効果」と呼ばれるものがある。子供にこの音楽の巨匠のメロディーを聴かせると、言語能力、3次元的空間感覚、創造性、記憶力などが向上するという考え方だ。ちょっと信じられないかもしれないが、実際に幼児がこの刺激に反応する様を見ればすぐに納得できるだろう。
このビデオはBaby Einsteinの製作者が作ったシリーズ作品（Baby Einstein, Baby Bach)で、ビブラフォンや電子ピアノ、時には鉄琴を使った軽やかで活気ある音色に視覚的な刺激を加えたものだ。メロディーとともに、画面ではくるくる廻るコマや左右に揺れる波、やわらかい赤ちゃん用のおもちゃやモビールなどの色鮮やかな画像が流れる。
1~36か月の子どもに見せるといいと言っている保護者団体もあるが、赤ちゃんが早くからTV漬けになることを危惧する親たちは単純にCDを買い求めているようだ。（Doug Thomas, Amazon.com）

It's called "the Mozart Effect," the notion that exposing youngsters to the melodies of the maestro can improve verbal ability, spatial intelligence, creativity, and memory. It's a pretty big leap of faith to understand that effect unless you personally see a toddler react to the stimulation. The Baby Einstein folks have a series of tapes (Baby Einstein, Baby Bach) that add visual stimulation to the bouncy recordings (using vibraphone, Rhodes electric piano, and even a glockenspiel). The melodies are heard against colorful imagery of spinning tops, wave machines, soft baby toys, mobiles, and the like. Several parenting groups and magazines have heralded the tapes for children 1 to 36 months, but the Orwellian aspect of introducing babes in arms to the TV screen may cause many to just pick up the CD. --Doug Thomas

Music selections include:

Piano Sonata in C, K. 545, 1st movement
Piano Sonata in C, K. 330, 1st movement
Variations on "Ah vous dirai-je, maman," K. 265/300e
Concerto for Flute and Harp in C, K. 299, 1st movement
Piano Sonata in A, K. 331, 3rd movement (Rondo Alla Turca)
Piano Sonata in C, K. 545, 2nd movement
Sonata in D for Two Pianos, K. 448, 1st movement
Divertmento No. 17 in D
Piano Sonata in B-flat, K. 570, 3rd movement
Piano Sonata in F, K. 533, 3rd movement
The Magic Flute, K. 620, Papageno arias No. 2
Symphony No. 41 in C, K. 551, 4th movement

The top-selling video of the Baby Einstein series, Baby Mozart is a playful, imaginative introduction for infants and toddlers to the music of Mozart. Mozart's music, timeless and lovely, has been shown to affect people of all ages in positive ways. Little eyes will light up at the images of brightly colored toys and visually captivating objects while little ears will love the carefully arranged, child-friendly bits of music and amusing sound effects. For infants and toddlers from 1 to 36 months of age.