Studio3Music Blog

Posts Tagged ‘kindermusik’

Nov
10

A New Holiday Tradition

Posted in Family, Symphony Concerts, Things to do, Things We Love

Oh, I love Christmas…the beautiful wreaths, the cookies, the carols, the bows ribbons and wrappings, the Yorkshire pudding. I love decorating the Christmas tree, and shopping and rehearsing for Christmas Eve mass, and I love going to mass on Christmas Eve, and singing all the beloved old carols and the new ones, too. I love making my lists of gifts and deciding what to get for my family (except for my husband’s dad – he is so hard to shop for!) And I still wait anxiously to open my own gifts. (Although I may have recently joined the same category as my father-in-law…)

It’s the traditions that make Christmas and any holiday or special event stand out in our memories. Would it be Easter without dyed eggs and chocolate bunnies, or the Fourth of July without hotdogs, apple pie and fireworks, or a wedding without rings? The answer: of course it would, but it might feel kinda funny, especially at first.

But every one of today’s traditions, once upon a time, were new additions to a time honored event. “Joy to the World and “Silent Night” had premiers and were the new kids on the block. They had to worm their way into the hearts of the people and become a tried and true Christmas tradition. So over time the traditions of all our beloved holidays have changed.

I’ve added a new tradition to my Christmas – the family concert at the Symphony. So a part of my Christmas preparations now is writing a script (and it’s all new this year) creating props, (all those are new, too) picking the music, (all new- well, all new old music, I guess is the better way to say that) and writing new music that none of you have ever heard before.

I’ve been deciding what kind of wacky things the Story Fairy will say and do, and wear on her head, it’ll be all new wackiness, but she’ll still be bossy (that’s traditional, after all) figuring out what Stacey and Michael will argue about and who gets to cry (Stacey is so funny when she cries…) crafting a story- yes, it’s all new and working with the arranger (he’s new!) and the illustrator. She stays the same, thankfully! I’ve grown accustomed to her style, and love her work, which will be –don’t be shocked – all new. And we are adding a new twist. We have invited a choir to join us for the story… there will be lots of voices singing out with Christmas and Hanukkah spirit.

Things are starting to move quickly now in our quest toward an all new Holiday Symphony Serenade Show. The illustrations have already been sent to the photographer. The arranger is working on the lullaby this weekend, our first read through was on Sunday, and Michael and I will begin building a very large Menorah in our garage sometime this week. The Story fairy will be welding the Shamash – you just can’t miss that!

If you’re reading this and you feel kinda mystified, then you need to add our concert series to your Holiday Traditions. Your children will love it and you will love it. It’s a great way to spend a Saturday morning. There will be group singing, of course, and a bounce, and some giggles, great harmony, a steady beat and a story and a snuggle. If you now exactly what I’m talking about, get your tickets right here…. ‘cause it’s ALL NEW…..

-posted by Miss Allison, who will see you in the lobby after the show!

Tags: kindermusik, Miss Allison, music, Things to do

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Nov
6

synCOpaTION – Tickling the Brain

Posted in Child Development, Music and the brain, Village

Syncopation means an unexpected change in an established rhythm or beat. In simple terms – syncopation means that the weak beat gets the accent or emphasis. You’ll often hear syncopation in African or Latin music, or jazz.

Take a standard American march like Stars and Stripes. A march has a steady, predictable beat. If you were to clap along, you would automatically clap on beats 1 and 3(unless you were the tuba player – who has the syncopation on beats 2 and 4).

Our brains love steady beats, because the brain loves to find patterns and sequences. In fact, if you listen to music that has a steady, predictable beat (like that march I mentioned), after a while, your neurons actually begin firing at the same rate as the beat of the march.

But as humans, we like patterns only up to a point. After that comes boredom, and we stop paying attention. But when the pattern changes, we begin paying attention again. Syncopation tickles our brains, so to speak. Our brains search for the new pattern, and the sense of unpredictability that comes with change is fun and interesting to both your brain and your soul.

Think about it – when you hear syncopated African or Latin music or Jazz – it makes you want to smile and move, right? The beat is unexpected and interesting. Take a listen to Leroy Anderson’s “The Syncopated Clock”. In Village class, we’ve been listening to the jazzy Hop to It. That’s syncopated, too.

But what does this have to do with your little one? Let me explain. You want your child to eat a wide variety of foods, to like an assortment of flavors, textures, colors and shapes. Even if they ask for the steady, predictable mac-n-cheese and chicken nuggets every night, you still want them to have a balanced diet.

The same is true for music. Our children need a variety of musical experiences. Life is richer and more interesting with a varied diet of music. And some brain tickling.

-posted by Miss Analiisa, who has been feeling rather bored the last couple of days, and feels in need of a brain tickle in the form a new project of some sort.

Tags: brain, kindermusik, listening, Miss Analiisa, music

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Nov
4

Sharks Love Music, Too

Posted in Bits and Pieces, Child Development

My son Jude should have been a shark for Halloween. He, like a shark, cannot stay in one place for longer than 5 seconds at a time. He is constantly moving. As a mother of two, Giana (5) and Jude (2) I have to say, my boy has taken me to a whole new level of parenting… and fitness.

When I started teaching for Studio3 I was pregnant with my son. I have always had sharks in my class, both boys and girls (there is no gender bias for being a shark). I saw caregivers running after them, fretting that they were not participating in class. I always told them the same thing, “Let them move. They are learning what they need to learn, how they need to learn.”

I also pontificated about Howard Gardner’s theory of multiple intelligences. I had devoted a good portion of my thesis in graduate school to his theory that human beings have nine different kinds of intelligence reflecting different ways of interacting with the world. This results in the need for different modalities of learning. I assured them that their children are kinesthetic learners who need to move to absorb information. It was easy for me to say. I had seen it in my classroom for years while teaching other people’s children. It wasn’t my child. I couldn’t empathize. Then, Jude came along…

At first, he was his sweet little baby self in Village with Miss Allison. Cooing, drooling, clapping on command, essentially the most darling baby on the planet, right? As a shark, Jude never walked. He crawled and then started running. I couldn’t believe how quickly those little legs could go. I would be sweating bullets just making sure he didn’t launch himself off of our front porch.

We moved him up to Our Time around 17 months. He knew Miss Allison, he LOVED Miss Allison and yet his shark-like qualities could not be reined in by Miss Allison. The other children would be circle dancing their tushies off and Jude would be climbing the cubbies. The other children would dance beautifully with the scarves, while Jude would be opening and closing file cabinets. I felt like he was being disruptive. Why was I bringing him to a class where he wasn’t participating? Was this for him or me?

About the second or third week into Our Time, something very strange happened. We were in the kitchen and Jude started singing. He’s always been super musical, so this wasn’t surprising, but then he started to do something with his hands. He was singing and dancing “Liza Jane”!

As the weeks continued Jude kept showing us what he learned when we got home. He would take sticks and sing the hello song. He would drum and sing “Aiken Drum” with the freeze on the word moon. I wanted to cry with joy (in fact I think I did a couple of times). It was working! My advice worked for my kid too! I felt validated. Dang, I’m smart!

Now my little shark is two. He’s a mover, a shaker and an Our Timer. He still moves around while Miss Allison is teaching, but I know he is learning what he needs to learn, how he needs to learn. Parents of sharks, unite and surrender! Let them move and they will show you what they learn.

-posted by Miss Steph, momma to one shark with ants in his pants who likes to dance.

Tags: kindermusik, Miss Steph, music, parenting

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Oct
19

Ben. Autism. Kindermusik. Dancing. Miss Allison. They’re all connected.

Posted in Bits and Pieces, Things We Love

The big question of what I would be when I grew up was not such a big question. I’d known since before I went to school that I wanted to be a teacher. Occasionally I get an AFFIRMED stamp on that decision, and on those days my heart just sings. Last week, on Tuesday morning, October 4th at about 10:55, I had one of those moments.

I have this little guy in that Our Time class. His name is Ben, and he’s been in class with me since before he was born. I actually think he was in class before his mother even knew she was pregnant. After he arrived on the outside of mom, he came as a tag along in a car-seat with his older brother, and when he could sit up, he came to Village (you don’t have to wait that long… come before they sit up!) and now he is coming to his second year of Our Time. So he’s less than three years old and has been in class longer than that.

Ben and I have a connection that I can’t quite explain… so when his mom came to me last fall and said Ben had been diagnosed somewhere on the Autism spectrum I was literally shocked. Not this child, who is so lively and connected, who smiles at me and hugs me and makes eye contact and snuggles into my shoulder so tight that you couldn’t slide a piece of paper between us. Nope. I couldn’t see it… ‘cause Ben and I are connected.

But I started watching him with other folks and I did notice that he only makes eye contact with his mom and me in class. He doesn’t touch anyone but the two of us, and he doesn’t really interact with the other children, and the other moms are treated like shadows on the wall. He is very interested in the activities, but on his terms. So after the shock wore off, I began to understand. It didn’t change anything, ‘cause Ben and I are, well… we’re connected.

Last week in class we we’re doing the Keel Row, just like we always do after we’ve found Lukey’s Boat (Because you dance a Keel Row on a boat- duh!) But I wanted to add a level of personal connection to the communal experience of the dance so I asked the parents to call out to the children across from them and to use the child’s name when we go in and out of the circle during the refrain. The song is highly patterned- intro, verse, refrain, interlude, verse, refrain, and interlude, verse, refrain, refrain. So, there are exactly eight times in the song where the parents were calling out the kids across from them.

Last Tuesday was a running in and out day for Ben; this means he dashes into the action, watches for second or two, or maybe longer, and then dashes back out. Sometimes back to mom, sometimes to a spot of his choosing. I know sometimes he’s watching, sometimes he’s absorbing, but not actively focused on what’s going on. During the dance he ran around the outside of the circle. I could tell he was aware of what was going on, because he knew when to back up so that no one stepped on him when we were backing out of the circle.

But what happened next was so unbelievably wonderful. As we came out of the circle for the second to the last time, Ben dashed in to the middle of the circle, threw his arms up in the air and beamed at the whole class. I took the opportunity and shouted out for everyone to say hello to Ben as we came in; I fully expected him to dash out of the circle before we got there. We all headed back in, the whole class shouting “HI BEN!” and he squealed with delight and wriggled with obvious joy, even jumping up and down a bit. And he made eye contact with a goodly percentage of the class and was a complete member of the community. My heart swelled… my eyes got teary. I blinked hard and did a Scarlet O’Hara,“ I’ll think about it another day” because we we’re about half way through class. I still had plenty of work to do and no time for tears.

So I pulled out the memory and thought it about on the way home- and I realized something really important; not only did Ben choose to make a connection with his class in a socially huge way, he knew when to do it… he knew the pattern in the song, knew it was the last chance to be a part of the dance, knew when he needed to be in the center of the circle and knew how to say “MY TURN” with out any words. I got all teary again… no matter how far away he seems sometimes, he’s not. He’s right there, and he’s getting it. This was only the 4^th time we’ve done the dance in class, and he knew what the pattern was, knew this was a safe place and that he could take that leap of faith to join the community.

Today, Ben danced the WHOLE dance. Standing right next to his mom. He kicked, he went around, he went in and out- he squealed with delight, he made eye contact with other adults. When we read the “Pete and PJ” he Wishy Washy Whee’d with the group, right on time, every single time. And his WHEEEEE! was whole-heartedly spectacular.

And later, when he came to drop off his big brother for his class, he gave me the sweetest hug, with his head on my shoulder, and a pat.

-posted by Miss Allison, who says, “Here comes that stamp- AFFIRMED! I so made the right decision back when I was five and decided to be a teacher.”

Tags: kindermusik, learning, Miss Allison, sensory child

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Oct
16

Worked out your intercostal muscles today?

Posted in Child Development, Education, Imagine That, Things to do

Every time you breathe, you are engaging 11 muscles – the big abdominal muscle sheath, your diaphragm, as well as the ones between your ribs. (Those are the intercostal ones.) You don’t even have to think about breathing.

What happens if you don’t work out your grownup body? You know the answer to that. But do you know what could happen if your child doesn’t work out those 11 muscles and their lungs? Their breath control will be affected. Why is that a big deal?

Breath control is directly related to the ability to speak, sing, or read a complete sentence. Poor breathing (mouth breathing or shallow breathing) can cause high blood pressure. Optimal breathing helps promote weight loss, as oxygen burns fat and calories. (Maybe that one is more for the grownups!)

Breathing well is the key to sleeping well and waking rested. Breathing provides 99% of your energy. When playing a wind instrument, a good tone is almost entirely dependent of good breath control, although a good instrument helps!

Only one third of lung capacity is used in normal breathing. Think about the Swiss freediver who held his breath underwater for 19 minutes and 21 seconds! I’ll bet he was using his full lung capacity.

Now that you understand that you need good breath control, here are a couple of ways to promote it with your preschooler this week.

Straw Painting

I was going to do a whole picture/explanation thing here, but I found a craft blog that did it beautifully, and who doesn’t like a linkback? So, here you go. Tons of fun. And I think that you grownups should try it, too. I’m going to.

Slide Whistle Play

If you have a Kindermusik Imagine That student at home (and you have a preschooler, you really should have them in Imagine That – shameless plug, here), then pull out your slide whistle. (Or, get thee a slide whistle if you don’t! Either plastic or metal works great.)
Learn the song Windy Weather. It’s #14 on your See What I Saw Home CD 2. Or, download it here. (But you really should be enrolled in class…)
Now, sing the song, rather than playing the music. That will allow you to control the tempo and change the words.
Start with the slide all of the way pulled out. Sing “Windy weather, windy weather, when the wind blows…” Then blow into the slide whistle, as you push the slide up.
Now change the last words to “We all fall down together.” Then blow into the slide whistle as you pull the slide down.
Now sing it slowly, sing it fast, sing it quietly, sing it loud. The loud and slow versions are where breath control really comes into play. You have to control your breathing by letting out a little air at a time, in order to make it through the louder blow, or the slower pull on the slide.

Now for a little bit of inspiration. Think that slide whistle is not a “real instrument”? Just watch Tom Goslin (a professional guitar player who is well known in the pit orchestra world) perform the Allegro from Sonata in C major for viola da gamba and Continuo by Carl Frederic Abel. (He played cello and viola in Bach’s court orchestra. Abel, I mean. Not Goslin.) You guessed it – on slide whistle.

-posted by Miss Analiisa, whose hero (because she’s a low brass player), is Arnold Jacobs, the one-lunged tuba player, who was the principle tubist for the Chicago Symphony Orchestra for 44 years, and not surprisingly, was an expert on breath control.

Image: Worakit Sirijinda / FreeDigitalPhotos.net