I'll Be Bach

We have began to dive right into our composer of the month in music at CFES.  This month we learned about one the most famous composers of all time, Johann Sebastian Bach.  3rd-5th grade students listened and watched Bach's music being performed.  Students knew a lot more of Bach's compositions than they previously thought. They were familiar with pieces such as Bach's "Toccata and Fugue in D minor," which they often think is spooky movie music but was actually composed for church services.

Many students were also familiar with Bach's wonderful "Cello Suite No. 1."

In class I often like to show students other ways that artist have taken classical composer's music and turn it into something new and exciting.  One artist who does an amazing job with that is Bobby McFerrin. Bobby McFerrin is known for his hit "Don't Worry Be Happy," but he is actually a very accomplished musician in many other aspects.  He performs all his music a capella and the only instrument that he uses is the human voice.  This is a video of him performing a Bach motet with the audience's help. 

And as always the Piano Guys. 

Ask your child what they learned about Bach.  Where was he from?  How many kids did he have?  What period of music did he compose in?  

Mustang Chorale

  Mustang Chorale is starting back up for another year of great music making!  If you are or have a 4th or 5th grade student interested in Mustang Chorale a form will be sent home this week and I will also attach it to this post.  We have rehearsals every Monday from 2:30-3:30.  One of the requirements is to have a ride that can pick you up promptly at 3:30.  Students are picked up in the back of the school at the music room. We will begin rehearsals Monday, September 12. You must turn in your permission slip before you can attend Mustang Chorale.  Permission slips are due September 19. I will not accept any more students after that date.  If you have any questions please feel free to contact me.  I look forward to seeing you at rehearsal.  

Click here for Mustang Chorale Permission Form

YEE-HAW!!!!!

    In 2nd-5th grade we learned about songs of cowboys and the Wild West.  There is a rich history of music and melodies that come from the time of cowboys moving cattle along the dusty trail.  In second grade we learned two songs, "Lone Star Trail," and "Ragtime Cowboy Joe."  When learning about "Ragtime Cowboy Joe," we discussed what the genre of ragtime was watched several videos of player pianos and ragtime music.

Maple Leaf Rag

Player piano playing "The Entertainer."

    Third grade learned two cowboys songs named, "Railroad Corral," and "Texas Cowboy."  4th and 5th also learned cowboy songs and talked about Will Rogers and his rope tricks. Ask your child what their favorite cowboy song was. 

From High to Low and Low to High

    In first grade we learn about pitch and how it can move from high to low and low to high. I often use songs to teach different musical ideas and knowledge. I used a song about a frog called, "The Little Green Frog," to teach about pitches that go from low to high. We then learned a song called "Leaves" to learn about songs that have pitches that go from high to low.  First grade did a wonderful job singing and moving to these newly learned songs.

The Little Green Frog

Leaves

Fifty-Nifty

    Can you name all 50 states?  Can you name them in alphabetical order?  That is something that the song, "The Fifty Nifty United States," helps our 3rd-5th graders learn.  It seems like a very daunting song but they learn it very quickly and it becomes one of their favorite songs to sing.  Below is a video of the song.

    The composer of this song may come as a surprise but the Georgia native, Ray Charles,  We talked about who Ray Charles is and some of his big hits.  Hopefully this song will help our kids know the names of our states and hopefully next our capitals. 

Drumming in Music

Drumming In Music

   Last year the wonderful CFES PTO came to me and asked if there was something I would like for my classroom.  I told them that I would love to have a classroom set of djembes and they made it happen.  

   We are already using them in our classes and below you can see a short video of 5th grade using them along withe song, "Haida."  

   It's going to be a great year in music. I am going to try very hard to keep my blog updated this year with what is happening in music class. If you have any questions or comments please feel free to contact me. 

TIMBER!!!!! No, I said timbre.

    Timbre is likely the most common mispronounced word in  music vocabulary.  Timbre is pronounced tam-bur.  Timbre is the unique quality or tone colors of sound.  In other words, it's how you know the difference between talking to your Mom or Dad on the phone.  Even though you can't see them you can tell by the timbre of their voice who they are.  In fourth and fifth grade class we listened to several different styles of singing from all over the world and describe their timbre.  We came up with a list of words that we could use to describe these different timbres.  A few of our description words were:

High

Low

Rough

Smooth

Dark

Bright

Nasally

Loud

Soft

Warm 

Big

Small

Straight

Vibrato

Harsh

Shouting

    The singing selections that we listened to were not what the students were used to hearing and we talked about how we had to listen with mature ears.  Our first selection came from the European country, Bulgaria.  One quality of Bulgarian vocal music is harmony created by singing notes very close together, producing a special ringing sound.  The students used the words high, full, complex, and straight to describe the timbre.  Click the link below to watch a video of the singing.

Click to hear the Bulgarian Women's Choir.

    Tuvian Throat singing is a style of singing that has been in existence for thousands of years.  Men from Tuva will sing in a choomej technique that originated in Mongolia.  They will change the inside shape of their mouths to make the higher and lower pitches sounds.  Students thought this style was by far the most different sounding singing technique.  They described the timbre as, high pitch, rough, loud, and unique. Watch the video below to listen and see this throat singing technique.

  Click to hear the Tuvan Throat Singing

    We listened to several other styles such as Native American Powwow singing, opera singing, and traditional choral music.  The kids really enjoyed listening to all the different timbres of the world. 

    

Ms. Mary Mack-Mack-Mack!

    Who doesn't remember learning and playing a few clapping games with your friends at recess?  In 2nd grade this week the students learned, "Ms. Mary Mack."  The Ms. Mary Mack clapping pattern is very simple it goes like this:

1. Cross your arms, hands on shoulders.

2. Pat your thighs

3. Clap your hands.

4. Clap your partner's right hand.

5. Clap your hands.

6. Clap your partner's left hand. 

7. Clap your hands.

8. Clap both of your partner's hands.

Repeat

    "Ms. Mary Mack," went great with our music vocabulary word tempo.  Tempo is how fast or slow the music is or the speed of the music. With each verse we sang, our singing and clapping would grow faster or faster. Which brings us to our next vocabulary word, accelerando.  Accelerando means that the tempo grows faster and faster.  Give "Ms. Mary Mack" a try.  

Lets Do the Twist! The Peppermint Twist!

Third grade got its twist on this week by learning about the "Peppermint Twist."  We started to talk about the style of rock and roll and its origins.  They were all surprised that this is what was considered rock and roll in the 1950s and 60s.  The "Peppermint Twist," is the lesser known twist dance.  Chubby Checker's (the kids loved that name)  is the much more famous and well known of the twists dances.  In 1961 Joey Dee and the Starliters had a hit with the "Peppermint Twist."  You can watch them perform the hit below.

Our kids had a great time learning the dance and song. 

High and Low

In our kindergarten and first grade classes we have been learning about the word pitch.  In class we learn how high or how low a sound is.  In first grade we learned two songs that has the melody going from low to high and one that goes from high to low.  I also love to use stories that can connect with our music standards.  I always love to read the story of The Three Little Pigs.  We discuss which characters would have a high pitch voice and which character would have a low pitch voice.  My favorite version that I am reading to the class is a book called, "The Three Little Pigs and the Somewhat Bad Wolfe."

If you're a teacher reading this, try to find a book that you can connect with the standards.  If you're a parent ask your child if they can tell you what pitch is in music and who would have the high and low pitch voices in the Three Little Pigs.  

Calypso!

Calypso!

The beautiful island of Trinidad. 

In our 2nd-5th grade classes we have been learning about calypso music.  We discussed how this style of music has it's roots on the beautiful islands of Trinidad and Tobago.  We found these islands using Google Earth  and learned about where it is located.

2nd grade learned a calypso song called, "Cookie."  This was a fun call and response song that they enjoyed dancing and singing to. 3rd grade calypso song is "Gypsy in the Moonlight."  In all our classes we learned about the steel drum or as some people call it the steel pan.  This instrument originated in Trinidad and Tobago when the islanders discovered they could bang on steel oil barrels and create different pitches.

We watched someone play, Under the Sea, on the steel drum. 

We also watched how they make steel drums by hand. 

In 5th grade the students learned about the King of Calypso: Harry Belafonte. He had many hits in the '50s and we learned one of the most famous, Day-O (The Banana Boat Song). 

Harry Belafonte, The King of Calypso.

One of our favorite things we saw was Belafonte's appearance on the Muppet Show, where he sang The Banana Boat Song. 

Harry Belafonte performed his hit song on the Muppet Show.

We loved learning our calypso music and we have many more to learn over the coming year!

Come Join Mustang Chorale!

   

     Mustang Chorale is starting back up for another year of great music making!  If you are or have a 4th or 5th grade student interested in Mustang Chorale a form was sent home last Monday and I will also attach it this post.  We have rehearsals every Monday from 2:30-3:30.  One of the requirements is to have a ride that can pick you up promptly at 3:30.  Students are picked up in the back of the school at the music room. We will begin rehearsals Monday, August 25. You must turn in your permission slip before you can attend Mustang Chorale.  Permission slips are due August 25. I will not accept any more students after that date.  If you have any questions please feel free to contact me.  I look forward to seeing you at rehearsal.  

CLICK HERE FOR MUSTANG CHORALE FORM

Swing Your Partner

3rd grade had a great time learning a square dance to, "Alabama Gal."  They did a fantastic job.

Getting Started on the Ukulele

    We started learning our C and C7 chords and everyone is doing great.  The kids are working very hard and they get better with every class. More updates to come and hopefully a video soon.

2nd Grade Musical

The Bear Went Over the Mountain

January 16th at 6:30 at CFES

    This year in second grade we will be performing the music, "The Bear Went Over the Mountain."  We are finally going to see what he could see.  Second grade classes will be working on the music all year long and will be performing it on January 16th at 6:30.  I send home more information closer to the end of the year but if you have any questions please let me know. 

UKULELES!!!!!!!

    I am so very excited about what is happening in 4th and 5th grade this year.  Our awesome administration here at CFES helped our music room get a classroom set of ukuleles!  Chick Music, one of our Partners in Education, helped get us a great deal on Alfred's Kid's Ukulele set.

    I will keep everyone up to date on how our new instrument adventure is going in fourth and fifth grade.  Hopefully we will have a class full of Iz Kamakawiwoʻoles when we are through. 

AND WE'RE BACK!!! (I've been busy, I promise)

    Sorry for the lack of new stuff on my blog here at CFES but it has been a REAL busy start to the school year.  My wife and I welcomed our new little girl into the world, Tabitha Ann. She was born on the morning of August 30th and it has been an amazing few weeks.

I took a few weeks off to be with our family as we adjusted to life with two little girls in the house, my other little girl Collette is now 2 1/2.  I was also honored with a great surprise the day before we welcomed Tabitha into the world.  The amazing people I work with voted me Teacher of the Year.  

It's been a great few weeks for me and my family.  I am very excited about what this year has in store for us here at CFES and I will try to keep this blog updated with what is happening.  If you need to contact  me my email address is: mlawing@oconeeschools.org.

5th Grade Music Critics Part 2

This our second installment our 5th Grade music critics.  Our listenings  were inspired by the musical group The Piano Guys.  We listened to two very very different pieces and then watched how the Piano Guys did their own versions of the songs.  

 Our first listening is one of the most famous classical pieces of music ever written.  Which most of us have heard again and again at weddings, it is Pachelbel's Canon in D.  This piece, surprisingly to me, got many more thumb ups than thumbs down. The 5th graders used words like: flowing, relaxing, boring, repetitive,  and one said it made them think of a waterfall on a snowy day.  Please enjoy both the original version and the Piano Guy's version of Pachelbel's Canon in D.  

The second Piano Guy's inspired listening was theme from the famous T.V show turned movie called, Mission Impossible.  It is one of the most recognizable themes in TV and movies.  The kids gave a huge list of other movies they have heard this theme in.  Enjoy the original version along with the Piano Guy's twist on this classic theme.  

Grab Your Partner!

In third grade we have just discovered the fun of square dancing.  I even made boys and girls dance together (they acted like they hated it but they secretly loved it.)  Fun was had by all as we danced to an old American folk song named, "Alabama Gal."  

Come through 'na hurry

Ain't I rock candy?

I don't know how how!

I showed you how how!

Grab your partner!

The Reviews Are In

The reviews are in and Pirates the Musical was a huge success!  Congratulations to all fifth graders for a fantastic show.  

ARR!!!!