Inspiring video's of Rossini's fun music!

Enjoy some pieces done by Gioachino Antonio Rossini! The composer of the Blue Bugs' puppet show, Fox Hunt!

Barber of Seville (Il barbiere di Siviglia) Overture - An Italian comedic opera


And a performance by good ol' Bugs and Elmer :)


William Tell (Guillaume Tell) Overture Finale or Let's Play Music's Fox Hunt!

Happy Thanksgiving!

I hope you all have a wonderful Thanksgiving with the ones you love!

5 Fat Turkeys are We
We slept all night in a tree
When the cook came around,
we couldn't be found
and that's why we're hear you see!

What else is hiding the tree?! Sol, sol, do! In the Red Balloons' version anyway :)
In this video version found on youtube, it's the Green Turtle Shells' pattern, sol, la, ti, do!

Puppet Show - "Hoedown"!

Aaron Copland

In the 2nd year of Let's Play Music, we study a piece by Aaron Copland! He was born, the last of 5 children, in New York in 1900. He learned to sing and play the piano from his oldest sister, Laurine. At 11 years old, Copland wrote his first opera! When he was 15 years old, he decided that he would become a composer. He composed many songs inspired by poetry and art work of the 1920s. When he was older, his compositions were inspired by movies and politics. He liked to paint pictures with his music. Our Hoedown puppet show comes from a ballet call, "Rodeo".

It's fun for the kids to see what instruments are playing each theme. How 'bout that marimba?!

Puppet Show - Waltz of the Flowers

The Red Balloons have been performing a puppet show to Waltz of the Flowers! Waltz of the Flowers is a piece in the familiar ballet The Nutcracker, usually appearing around Christmas time. The video doesn't have a caterpillar, bird, or a mean cloud, but I think you're children will still love it! 

Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky 

Tchaikovsky was a Russian composer of the Romantic era. (May 7, 1840 - November 6, 1893). Doesn't the music and ballet just sound romantic?

I've Been to Harlem

The Bell Practice for I've Been to Harlem in Lesson 6 says to play the bells while you play each verse! In this video, Carson and I play and sing the Major verse then switch the bells and do the Minor verse.

V-A-L-E-N-T-I-N-E

This is a special Valentine from Miss Genny that I also gave out to my students. Carson and I colored and played it this morning! That's me playing at the end of the video, but Carson will have fun learning it!

View a Demonstration video of Let's Play Music!

Solfeggio: The Language of Music

Solfeggio (pronounced with a soft g) is great for music education! But why? Why do we sing it in every Let's Play Music class?

Maria in the Sound of Music teaches us, "When you read you begin with A, B, C.  When you sing, you begin with Do, Re, Mi." See for yourselves!

I'll be publishing a little mini series that'll help explain why we do so much solfeggio in Let's Play Music! None of this is originally from me. All the credit must be given to the founder of Let's Play Music, Shelle Soelberg, who wrote the guide. So with permission, I'm just sharing it with you! Come back Monday when we'll begin the series of "Solfeggio: The Language of Music", with "The History of Solfeg" and "Variations in Syllable Names"!

PROKOFIEV - Romeo & Juliet - Ballet

Or, in the 3rd year of Let's Play Music, Monsters puppet show!
I loved this! But kinda missed the drama of the alligator chomp :)