• WeBop! At Jazz at Lincoln Center

  33 W. 60th St., nr. Broadway; 212-258-9922; jalc.org/webop

  No pandering, no nursery rhymes, no saccharine kiddie music. Teachers at Jazz at Lincoln Center—all schooled in early childhood education and musical or jazz performance—make sure kids and their parents get an authentic introduction to the genre by grounding sessions in true jazz. (“A-Tisket, A-Tasket” and “My Favorite Things”—the Ella Fitzgerald and John Coltrane versions, respectively—are on the playlist.) And not just taped music, either: Each workshop ($330) features live musicians, usually a pianist, and every fourth and eighth week, a jazz quartet accompanies the merriment. Classes are keyed by age group from 8 months to 5 years, and each one works through various instruments and musical principles (swinging, tempo, call-and-response, riffing). Little ones can also hone their natural improvisation skills, learning from such greats as Duke Ellington, Dizzy Gillespie, and Lady Ella herself. Graduates can keep the music going at home with a newly issued WeBop! CD.

From the 2012 Best of New York issue of New York Magazine