In honor of Juneteenth, please check out the link and see the roots of African American music. With so many limits on those who were taken in the Transatlantic Slave Trade, music was one of the outlets that remained open to create. I find it so interesting that songs changed not just singer to singer but also day to day, making the music for whatever suited the specific circumstances. Happy Juneteenth!
https://www.si.edu/spotlight/african-american-music/roots-of-african-american-music
Ready for a change in the music curriculum? It’s summer and a perfect time to try something a little different.
Some fun ideas to add to your repertoire: pop songs or movie/video game music, challenging songs like longer, more advanced classical pieces, or even just a piece of music you’ve always wanted to try. A few resources to guide you along the way are musicnotes and musescore. Google is also a great resource for finding items like Minecraft theme songs, Taylor swift sheet music for easy violin, and more. If you’re not sure what you’re looking for, ask your teacher.
Below is an example of a song my son likes from Roblox, and he learns to play percussion with this and other similar pieces.
Every month MTMS has one theme for the lab portion of the lessons. For June the theme will be Beethoven’s Orchestral Music. Beethoven’s composition style bridged the gap between the Baroque era and the Classical era. There is also a focus on his Fifth symphony (also known as the world’s most famous symphony), the first one he did in a minor key. Listen in, and ask your students about what they’ve learned from it. Thanks, Stephanie (our lab lead), for the cool theme this month!
One of the fun things I remember about summer with preschoolers was taking them to music classes. Did you know we have them here at MTMS? Sadly my kids think they’ve aged out of that, so if you have a three to five year old with an interest in music – consider this a summer adventure idea.
Our classes are in Gahanna on Saturday 10-10:50am and Polaris on Wednesdays 3-3:50pm. During class, expect to sing, use rhythm sticks, piano, and occasionally drums. There will be quiet time to explore music through listening, coloring, and craft activities, and dancing for that time when energy is strongest. There will also be a chance to play boomwhackers, recorders, guitars, violins, or bells. We enjoy preschoolers finding what music makes them happy.
In the Music Lab this month: We’re learning Counterpoint in the Composition Station!
Melody is a single line of notes that can be played by itself or with another
line of notes. Harmony is a single line of notes that is played with another line of notes. Counterpoint is the relationship between two or more melody lines that are played at the same time, creating harmony.
In learning about counterpoints, our students are finding both melodies and harmonies. A choir ensemble can have up to 12 harmonies, and an orchestra may have as many as 36! Some instruments can play only one line (clarinet, flute, trumpet), while others can play many at the same time (piano).