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Piano & Music Resources at your Fingertips!

February 26th, 2022

Susan Paradis Piano Teaching Resources

(susanparadis.com/)

Grades 2-8, with parental supervision

Looking for printables for practice and activities to supplement your music studies, specifically piano? Then check out this website from classroom music specialist, Susan Paradis. Visitors will find loads of great teaching ideas and colorful printables to add fun and interest to their music class.

When arriving at today’s link, click the “Free>Teaching Aids” menu to access the various freebies. Here you’ll find:

  • Flash Cards
  • One Minute Club Cards
  • Staff Paper
  • Recital Programs
  • Certificates
  • Assignment Pages
  • Binder Covers
  • Practice Aids
  • and a lot of other free things teachers like!

There are so many wonderfully created resources here you will want to add this website to your bookmarks.

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Learn to Play the Guitar

January 29th, 2022

Andrew Keppie: Kids Guitar Zone

(www.kidsguitarzone.com/)

Grades 3-12, with parental supervision

Kids can learn the basics of playing the guitar with these free lessons from Andrew Keppie. Lessons are presented through short video presentations that focus on one concept at a time.

Lessons start with the basics and single-string songs and progress through more complex chords. Lessons include:

  • Lesson 1 – the parts of a guitar, how to hold a guitar, tuning a guitar and reading a tablature
  • Lesson 2 – Learn to play some songs on one string including “Smoke on the Water”, “The Peter Gunn Theme”, “Summer Lovin'”, “Mary Had a Little Lamb”, and “Seven Nation Army.”
  • Lesson 3 – Play two string songs such as “Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star”, “Blister in the Sun”, and “Jingle Bells” chorus.
  • Lesson 4 – Three string songs include “Happy Birthday”, “Beat It”, “If You’re Happy and You Know It”, “Old MacDonald Had a Farm”, “The Wheels on the Bus”, “The Skye Boat Song”, “1 2 3 4 5 Once I Caught A Fish Alive”, “Baa Baa Black Sheep”, “The James Bond Theme”, and “Jingle Bells” the verse.
  • Lesson 5 – Songs on 4 strings are “La Bamba”, “Jack and Jill”, “Yankee Doodle”, “The Farmer in the Dell”, and “The Pink Panther Theme.”
  • Lesson 6 – how to play chords and read chord windows
  • Lesson 7 – Play “Wild Thing” with three chords.
  • Lesson 8 – Using three chords, learn to play “Yellow Submarine” and “Shake It Off.”
  • Lesson 9 – Learn to use power chords to play “Beat It.”
  • Lesson 10 – Learn to play a simple version of “Gangnam Style.”

Most lessons include multiple videos and accompanying downloadable PDFs. Select the “Kids Guitars” link in the menu for some information on selecting a guitar for your student.

If you have a child interested in playing the guitar, this website will provide a good starting point.

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Christmas Music & Audio Stories

December 18th, 2021

Feels Like Christmas – Free Christmas Music

(feelslikechristmas.com/free-christmas-music/)

All grades, with parental supervision

Listen and/or download free Christmas music from independent (indie) artists at this website.

Choose songs in the following categories:

  • Contemporary Instrumental
  • Contemporary Vocals
  • Traditional Instrumental
  • Traditional Vocal

There are hundreds of selections, many of which are originals written by the submitting artist. Select a song and when the page opens click the play button on the player to hear the song online. Found a song you absolutely love? Download the MP3 to add to your holiday collection by right-clicking on the download graphic to the lower right of the player. (Please note that the downloads are for personal listening use only. Be sure to read the “Use of This Music” page for specifics.)

In addition to the Christmas music, click the “Audio Stories” link to find a selection of Christmas stories including:

  • Hans Christian Anderson’s The Little Match Seller
  • Luke 2:1-20
  • Twas the Night Before Christmas by Clement Moore
  • Santa’s Poem
  • Mrs. Claus Saves Christmas
  • My Granddad Helps Father Christmas
  • Mouse in the Honeysuckle

And don’t forget to check out the “Christmas Sounds” page to hear Sounds of Santa, sleigh bells, and more.

We hope this website will add to your holiday fun.

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Create Your Own Music Composition!

November 20th, 2021

Incredibox

(www.incredibox.com/)

All grades, with parental supervision

Become the conductor of a group of animated human sound machines and express your musicality through this free, fun, and easy-to-use interactive program. Sponsored by a graphic design and mixed media studio, Incredibox lets you record your music composition to share with friends.

When you get to the site, click the TRY WEB VERSION button and then select from versions:

  • Alpha
  • Little Miss
  • Sunrise
  • The Love

After making a selection, click the “i” information circle at the right to see the HELP menu and understand how it works. When you are ready, press the PLAY button. You’ll see animated male characters. Drag and drop different effects, beats, melodies, and voices (from icons located below the animation screen). As you drop them onto the character, it will dress the character in a new outfit and demonstrate the effect. Continue until you create a musical piece that appeals to you.

Click the three-line menu circle at the left to explore the Reset, Auto, and Record buttons. It takes a little experimentation to get proficient at creating compositions, but the fun is in exploring and testing the possibilities.

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Music Lessons & Resources from Carnegie Hall

October 23rd, 2021

Carnegie Hall: Music Educators Toolbox Resources

(www.carnegiehall.org/Education/Programs/Music-Educators-Toolbox/Resources)

Grades K-5, with parental supervision

Discover a variety of music lesson plans and resources at this page from the larger Carnegie Hall website.

Plans are arranged by grade level and focus on the fundamentals of music including “rhythm, meter, singing, form, dynamics, articulation, tempo, pitch, and performing.” Each plan provides all the needed information and resources to use in the classroom as well as downloadable assessments and more. A sampling of plans includes:

  • Exploring the Sounds Around Us – Kindergarten students listen to a selection of audios and use a downloadable, colorful worksheet to identify the sounds and then answer thought-provoking questions to increase sound awareness.
  • Dynamics Hide and Seek – First graders will enjoy playing this variation of the “Hot and Cold” game. Instead of using “hot” or “cold,” students sing either forte or piano to help the seeker locate the hidden object and learn these musical terms.
  • Classroom Thunderstorm – Kids in second grade will enjoy learning musical terms such as accelerando, ritardando, crescendo, decrescendo and accent while creating a human thunderstorm with sounds they create.
  • Goldilocks Sings – Third graders learn how posture affects their singing using the characters from Goldilocks and the Three Bears as examples.
  • Listening for Contrasts in Genre – Students in fourth grade discover how expressive musical qualities in music work together like a recipe to create different genres of the same song.
  • We’ve Got the Blues – Fifth grade children learn about the unique facets of blues music focusing on musical scales.

Even though the plans are geared towards a specific age group, they could be adapted for other grades and can serve as a supplement to any music program.

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History & Performing Arts with Bob Hope

October 9th, 2021

Library of Congress: Bob Hope and American Variety

(www.loc.gov/exhibits/bobhope/)

Grade 5 and up (approximately), with parental supervision

The Library of Congress offers this free online presentation of the life of entertainer Bob Hope and the history of American Variety entertainment including Vaudeville, Radio, Movies, Television, and more.

Using photographs, illustrations, and text this exhibit provides a biography of Hope’s career that provides fascinating historical information about the performing arts as well.

When you get to the website use the menu located under the title, “SECTIONS” that includes:

  • Early Life – Find out where Bob Hope was born, his real name, and how he got his start in show business.
  • Vaudeville – Discover Hope’s journey through vaudeville and get some terrific insight about what made this artform so popular.
  • Motion Pictures – Learn about the country’s transition to film making and the role of Hope’s series of “Road” pictures from 1940-1962 with Bing Crosby and Dorothy Lamour.
  • Joke File – Explore Hope’s theft-proof joke vault with more than 85,00 pages of bits, sketches, and jokes created by his team of comedy writers.
  • On The Road: USO Shows – Read about Hope’s 50-years of performing variety shows for U.S. troops.

This interesting exhibition about Hope’s life provides keen insight into American history, culture, life, and values. It may springboard interest in watching some of Hope’s films that the whole family may find entertaining. You can rent DVDs of Hope’s “Road” pictures such as Road to Singapore and Road to Rio. Your public library may have them as well.

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