Language Nursery
| "Language Nursery" | |
|---|---|
| Baby Einstein episode | |
 2004 DVD cover | |
| Episode no. | Episode 1 |
| Directed by | Julie Aigner-Clark |
| Narrated by | Julie Clark (English) Freda Guetarni (French; 1997-2000) Valérie Siclay (French; 2000-2004) Gabriele Rewis (German) Lynne Albertson (Hebrew; 1997-1998) Iris Zinger (Hebrew; 1998-2004) Miyuki Tayaka-Paisley (Japanese; 1997-2000) Miho Mettais (Japanese; 2000-2004) Ludmilla Zaitsev (Russian) Erica Silva (Spanish; 1997-2000) María Fernanda Morales (Spanish; 2000-2004) |
| Editing by | Ralph Heigl Bill Clark |
| Original release date | January 31, 1997 |
| Running time | 28 minutes |
"Language Nursery: Voices from Many Lands" (originally titled Baby Einstein) is the first video in the direct-to-video edutainment series Baby Einstein. It was released on January 31, 1997.[1]
The video was created by Julie Aigner-Clark, the founder of The Baby Einstein Company, who was unhappy with the media catered toward children at the time and desired to make something for her daughter, Aspen.[2] The video received mostly positive ratings from newspapers and other press reviews and sold over 100 videos within the first week of the video's release in stores.
The video features nursery rhymes, alphabets, and counting sequences in seven different languages: English, French, German, Hebrew, Japanese, Russian, and Spanish, to the visuals of toys by several manufacturers and images, intended to stimulate an infant's brain[3], along with other natural sounds and music.[1]
Development and production
[edit]Clark stated that she desired to create a video board book, with images and toys against black and white backgrounds, as opposed to animation which Clark felt her daughter could not focus on as well.[4] Research she read indicated that infants were able to respond to and produce sounds from all languages at six months, but that the ability was gone by one year as children often only hear one language,[5][6] and thus the repeated exposure to the sounds benefit the brain's auditory cortex.[7]. She also stated that she had read a Newsweek article discussing the benefits of exposing a child to classical music and the sounds of foreign language. Clark went to a nearby language school and hired mothers to do the readings in their native tongues in a tone in which they might speak to a baby,[8][9] replacing the original Spanish speaker with a Mexican restaurant worker due to the original voice actress not being conversational enough. The initial video shoot cost Clark and her husband, Bill, $15,000 for the first video shoot ($31,000 in 2026).[10]
Video guide
[edit]| Language | Narrator | Voiceover/Music[11] | English Translation | Type | Visual (with manufacturer if toy)[12][13] | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1997 | 1998 | 2000 | 2004 | 1997 | 2000 | 2004 | ||||
| English | Julie Aigner-Clark | Hello! | Greeting | Bear in the Box (Ambi Toys) | ||||||
| N/a | Baby Einstein Theme | N/a | Song | Opening Titles | ||||||
| N/a | Fishbowl (zoomed in) | Fishbowl (zoomed out) | ||||||||
| German | Gabriele Rewis | Leise, Peterle, Leise | Quiet, Young Peter, Quiet | Nursery Rhyme | Red, black, and white patterns | |||||
| N/a | Old MacDonald Had a Farm | N/a | Song | Roly Poly The Friendly Calf (Iwaya) | ||||||
| Russian | Ludmilla Zaitsev | 1-20 | Counting Sequence | Rock-A-Stack (Fisher-Price) | Stacking Wooden Rings (Schylling) | |||||
| N/a | Sesame Street Express Ride-On Train (TYCO) | Fantasy Train Set (LGB) | ||||||||
| Japanese | Miyuki Tayaka-Paisley | Miho Mettais | あいうえお (Aiueo) | Alphabet | Liquid Motion Tumbler (Carlisle) | |||||
| English | Julie Aigner-Clark | Jack and Jill | Nursery Rhyme | The Funny Barnyard (Dah-Yang Toy) | ||||||
| Hebrew | Lynne Albertson | Iris Zinger | נומי נומי (Numi, Numi) | Sleepy, Sleepy | Four flowers | |||||
| German | Gabriele Rewis | Backe, backe Kuchen | Bake, bake a cake | Bright Starts Musical Mobile (Kids II, Inc.) | ||||||
| Spanish | Erica Silva | María Fernanda Morales | Hola! | Hello! | Greeting | Bear in the Box (Ambi Toys) | ||||
| French | Freda Guetarni | Valérie Siclay | 1-20 | Counting Sequence | Cardboard Bricks (Rolyco) | |||||
| Russian | Ludmilla Zaitsev | Wiegenlied, K. 350 (Bernhard Files)[a] | N/a | Lullaby | Spell Candles (LadyRobyn) | UFO Flash Lamp (Distributed by various companies) | ||||
| Japanese | Miyuki Tayaka-Paisley | Miho Mettais | 江戸子守唄 (Edo No Komori Uta) | Edo Lullaby | Dreamland Babies Doll: Harmony (Mattel) | Groovy Girls: Cicely (Manhattan Toy) | ||||
| Girl Doll (Baby Gap) | Tidoo Doll (Corolle) | |||||||||
| Raggedy Ann (Applause) | ||||||||||
| Betsy Wetsy (Ideal) | Corolline Doll (Corolle) | |||||||||
| N/a | Sesame Street Express Ride-On Train (TYCO) | Fantasy Train Set (LGB) | ||||||||
| Spanish | Erica Silva | María Fernanda Morales | Oye! Mira! | Hey Diddle Diddle | Nursery Rhyme | Wiggly Caterpillar (Blue Box) | ||||
| German | Gabriele Rewis | 1-20 | Counting Sequence | Spiral Lamp (Kenart) | ||||||
| French | Freda Guetarni | Valérie Siclay | J'avais | I Had | Nursery Rhyme | Baby's Music Box Animal Carousel (Shelcore) | Musical Push n' Go Merry (Tomy) | |||
| Hebrew | Lynne Albertson | Iris Zinger | האבי בייבי (Habi, Beybi) | Hush, Baby | Fun Links (Kids II, Inc.) | |||||
| שלום (Shalom!) | Hello! | Greeting | Bear in the Box (Ambi Toys) | |||||||
| אלפבת (Aleph-bet) | Alphabet | Alphabet | Foam Learning Blocks (Lee Chyun) | ABC Big Blocks (Schylling) | ||||||
| Spanish | Erica Silva | María Fernanda Morales | Brilla, Brilla, Estrellita! | Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star | Nursery Rhyme | Red, black, and white patterns | ||||
| English | Julie Aigner-Clark | Humpty Dumpty | Curious Creatures:Busy Starfish (The First Years) | |||||||
| French | Freda Guetarni | Valérie Siclay | Alphabet | Bright Starts Musical Mobile (Kids II, Inc.) | ||||||
| N/a | Wind-Up Musical Lamb (Batnam) | Lily Lamb (Eden) | ||||||||
| Sesame Street Express Ride-On Train (TYCO) | Fantasy Train Set (LGB) | |||||||||
| Russian | Ludmilla Zaitsev | Маленькие гуси (Malen'kiye Gusi) | Little Geese | Nursery Rhyme | The Funny Barnyard (Dah-Yang Toy) | |||||
| German | Gabriele Rewis | Kinderpredigt | Children's Sermon | Seeding Colorful Pinwheel (IKEA) | ||||||
| English | Julie Aigner-Clark | 1-20 | Counting Sequence | Wind-Up Musical Teaching Clock (Fisher-Price) | Tick Tock Musical Clock (Tolo Toys) | |||||
| Japanese | Miyuki Tayaka-Paisley | Miho Mettais | こんにちは (Konnichiwa!) | Hello! | Greeting | Bear in the Box (Ambi Toys) | ||||
| French | Freda Guetarni | Valérie Siclay | Little Bo-Peep | Nursery Rhyme | Bright Ball (Playskool) | Pupsqueak Puppy (Learning Curve) | ||||
| Jellybeans | ||||||||||
| Curious Creatures:Busy Starfish (The First Years) | ||||||||||
| My First Christmas Bear (Eden) | Sherbert Pig (Eden) | |||||||||
| Leggy Larry the Octopus (Jolly Toys) | Lamaze Octotunes (Learning Curve) | |||||||||
| N/a | Do You Know the Muffin Man? | N/a | Song | Wooden Xylophone (Plan Toys) | ||||||
| Spanish | Erica Silva | María Fernanda Morales | Alfabeto | Alphabet | Alphabet | Precision Gyroscope (TEDCO) | ||||
| Hebrew | Lynne Albertson | Iris Zinger | 1-20 | Counting Sequence | Fishbowl (zoomed out) | |||||
| N/a | Sesame Street Express Ride-On Train (TYCO) | Fantasy Train Set (LGB) | ||||||||
| Hebrew | Lynne Albertson | Iris Zinger | שיר משחק (Kulam) | Everyone Clap Hands (Game Song) | Nursery Rhyme | Rock-A-Stack (Fisher-Price) | Stacking Wooden Rings (Schylling) | |||
| English | Julie Aigner-Clark | Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star | Spell Candles (LadyRobyn) | UFO Flash Lamp (Distributed by various companies) | ||||||
| Japanese | Miyuki Tayaka-Paisley | Miho Mettais | 1-20 | Counting Sequence | Red, black, and white patterns | |||||
| Russian | Ludmilla Zaitsev | Тише Малыш (Tishe Malysh) | Hush, Baby | Nursery Rhyme | Julie Aigner-Clark's hand | |||||
| French | Freda Guetarni | Valérie Siclay | Bonjour! | Hello! | Greeting | Bear in the Box (Ambi Toys) | ||||
| German | Gabriele Rewis | Alphabet | Alphabet | Rock ‘n Roll Tops (Maui Toys) | Whirlwind Air Powered Gyro-Top (Uncle Milton) | |||||
| Hebrew | Lynne Albertson | Iris Zinger | לך לישון (Laila Tov, Yedidi) | Good Night, My Friend | Nursery Rhyme | Sleigh Bells (ChimeScapes / JW Stannard) | Wind Chimes | |||
| N/a | Metronome (Wittner) with red sticker | Metronome (Wittner) with yellow sticker | ||||||||
| Spanish | Erica Silva | María Fernanda Morales | 1-10 (1997–2003) | Counting Sequence | Shake ‘n Shine Rattle (The First Years) | |||||
| 1-20 (2004) | ||||||||||
| English | Julie Aigner-Clark | Little Miss Muffet | Nursery Rhyme | Sesame Street Express Ride-On Train (TYCO) | Fantasy Train Set (LGB) | |||||
| Girl Doll (Baby Gap) | Groovy Girls: Cicely (Manhattan Toy) | |||||||||
| Japanese | Miyuki Tayaka-Paisley | Miho Mettais | 桜 (Sakura) | Cherry Blossoms | Bell pepper | Banana | ||||
| Peas | ||||||||||
| Carrots and celery | Apple | |||||||||
| Russian | Ludmilla Zaitsev | Алфавит (Alfavit) | Alphabet | Alphabet | Cat | |||||
| German | Gabriele Rewis | Hallo! | Hello! | Greeting | Red German Hat | Alpine Hat with Quill (Rubie's) | ||||
| Mini Plush Duck Rattle (Brio) | Baby Einstein Duck Plush (Baby Einstein / Kids II, Inc.) | |||||||||
| Japanese | Miyuki Tayaka-Paisley | Miho Mettais | 虹 (Niji) | Rainbows | Nursery Rhyme | Floppy Fairy Tales: Hey Diddle Diddle Plush Cow (Eden) | Cow Jumped Over The Moon Plush (Eden0 | |||
| English | N/a | Closing credits; Aspen Clark playing with My First Playset (Battat) | ||||||||
Releases
[edit]Baby Einstein was released on January 31, 1997, in the baby-centered store The Right Start.[3] The original tape was advertised as offering "visual multilingual experiences that will increase your baby's capacity". In October 1998, Billboard reported that Baby Einstein had sold 40,000 copies since its February 1997 release, primarily through the Right Start catalog and stores associated with Gymboree. Julie Aigner-Clark said she preferred smaller specialty retailers because the $15.95 video was largely "selling itself" without extensive marketing support.[14]
The video went through several re-releases. The first was in 1998, where some transitions were changed as well as the Hebrew narrator, Lynne Albertson, being replaced by Iris Zinger. Another re-release was in 2000; aside from being released on both VHS and DVD, German narrator, Gabriele Rewis, re-recorded her dialogue, Japanese narrator Miyuki Tayaka-Paisley was replaced by Miho Mettais, and French narrator Freda Guetrani and Spanish narrator Erica Silva were both redubbed by Voice Productions International, respectively; the images of carrots with parsley and pepper were changed to an apple and banana.[15]
A 2001 re-release saw the video retitled "Baby Einstein - Language Nursery", and the 2003 cover saw the video changed from the original starfish logo to a caterpillar.[15] In October 2004, along with the following nine videos created by Clark, were revised by Disney, replacing several toys and changing the credits to credit the toy manufacturers. The video was retitled "Language Nursery - Voices from Many Lands".
Reception
[edit]Baby Einstein was recognized by several publications. Reviewers were cautious about its claims about child development. In spring 1997, Parents' Choice gave the video an Approval Award.[16] Other reviewers questioned whether exposure to foreign languages would actually achieve Clark's goal of creating greater brain capacity but still concluded that infants would enjoy the video.[16] Parenting offered an assessment in November 1997 with reviewers stating it was difficult to determine whether the video was successful in building connections in the auditory cortex, however, reported that the infants used as reviewers were "transfixed" by it.[17] The magazine subsequently included Baby Einstein in its Video Magic Award recipients.[18]
Following the video and company's wider attention, critics began examining its infant developmental claims more. An August 1998 article in Thousand Oaks Star expressed skepticism about whether such stimulation could produce intellectual acceleration, with pediatrician Paul Reisser saying that it might instead simply make for an interesting study. Citing developmental research, he emphasized interaction between parents and children and cautioned against trying to place infants into a framework before they were developmentally ready.[3] The following December, The Tennessean framed these developmental benefits as claims made by the video's creators and proponents rather than independently established effects.[19] Pediatricians likewise in April 1999 argued that educational material presented early could be helpful but said the potential of the human brain remained uncertain.[20]
Notes
[edit]- ↑ While once attributed to Mozart, as his KV. 350, "Wiegenlied" (Cradle Song), this work is now often credited to Bernhard Flies, an amateur composer who was around 15 years old when the work was composed. Originally written in German, here it is sung in Russian. Originally sung in the key of F major, here, it is transposed to B-flat major.
References
[edit]- 1 2 "Baby Einstein, unique multilingual developmental video for infants, released at Atlanta Maternity Fest Intelligence". February 1, 1997. Archived from the original on 18 August 2000.
- ↑ DanielsatDU (2014-10-07). Julie Clark, Creator of Baby Einstein speaking at Voices of Experience. Retrieved 2026-08-18 – via YouTube.
- 1 2 3 Lamb Gregory, Kim (August 31, 1998). ""High-tech baby sitting"". Thousand Oaks Star. p. 30.
- ↑ Opportunity Coalition (2018-10-23). Opportunity Coalition October 2018: Full Video. Retrieved 2026-08-18 – via YouTube.
- ↑ Baby Einstein 1997 VHS two minute discussion
- ↑ "The Baby Einstein Company - Reviews & Awards - Little Linguists". babyeinstein.com. Archived from the original on 2000-08-18. Retrieved 2026-09-19.
- ↑ Simons, Janet (December 28, 1999). "Mozart on the brain - Critics say benefits of classical music are overblown". Boca Raton News.
- ↑ RG Einstein (2023-05-26). I interviewed Julie Clark Interview (TBEGP Archival Footage). Retrieved 2026-09-14 – via YouTube.
- ↑ Cotliar, Sharon (March 20, 2000). "MOTHERS OF INVENTION: Sometimes being a new mom can spawn new ideas, which just might make someone a small mint" (PDF). Time Magazine. Archived from the original (PDF) on 16 August 2000.
- ↑ "Julie Aigner-Clark". CNBC. 2012-04-11. Retrieved 2026-08-18.
- ↑ Language Nursery DVD parents' guide
- ↑ "Toys In Videos". babyeinstein.com. Archived from the original on 2008-07-24. Retrieved 2026-09-18.
- ↑ Language Nursery 2004 DVD Menu, Toy Chest
- ↑ "The Baby Einstein Company - Feature Stories - Mom's Baby Vids Sharpen New Minds". babyeinstein.com. Archived from the original on 2000-08-18. Retrieved 2026-09-19.
- 1 2 Wikiguy97 (2024-03-10). Language Nursery: The complete changelog. Retrieved 2026-08-18 – via YouTube.
{{cite AV media}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link) - 1 2 "The Baby Einstein Company - Reviews and Awards - Parent's Choice Approval Award". babyeinstein.com. Archived from the original on 2000-08-18. Retrieved 2026-09-19.
- ↑ "The Baby Einstein Company - Reviews and Awards - Smart Fun". babyeinstein.com. Archived from the original on 2000-08-18. Retrieved 2026-09-19.
- ↑ "The Baby Einstein Company - Reviews and Awards - Parenting's Video Magic Awards". babyeinstein.com. Archived from the original on 2001-01-29. Retrieved 2026-09-19.
- ↑ "Makers claim video can give your baby's brain a boost". The Tennessean. December 1, 1998. p. 29.
- ↑ Klimcke, Al (April 19, 1999). "Can developmental videotapes help produce Baby Einsteins?". Courier-Post. p. 38.