Earlier this year, New Scientist magazine published an article suggesting that children learning a tonal language such as Mandarin may be more likely to develop musical talent. This got me thinking. After all, if true, surely China must be the perfect place to exploit it?

It’s no secret that children relate to music even while in the womb, and that toddlers pick up foreign languages with relative ease. But is there a link between the two? Kristin Koh of Beijing’s My Little Mozart Studio thinks so. “Music is a useful aid in language learning and development,” she says. “For example, the long and short rhythm and pitch nuances in chants and nursery rhymes can help improve a child’s natural inclination to catch on,” she says.

It is for this reason that Koh always encourages parents to sing to their children during daily conversations and interactions. “If a child has a difficulty learning something, it always helps to put it to a song,” she observes.

Sarah Peel Li, Director of Music Programs for LaFaFa Education International and host of Beijing's Kindermusik with Sarah, says that music also helps children develop their key listening skills. “Listening is the first language mode that children acquire; it provides a foundation for all aspects of language and reading development,” she says.

So what about the flip side? Will learning Mandarin turn my son into a musical genius?

“There has been some fascinating research that points to real links between speaking tonal languages and musical ability,” Peel Li says, but ultimately, it’s up for debate.

Dr. Daniel Levitin of McGill University says the tentative conclusion is that most people have excellent pitch memory, but their ability to express that memory diminishes if they do not speak a tonal language or did not study music at a young age.

So there you have it—don’t stop your kids’ Mandarin lessons or they may end up tone deaf just like me.