BONJOUR !!

Here is my French class music video of our song Bonjour. The grade 5-6's did an amazing job multi tracking their voices, one at a time,  onto the sound track and then acting the scenes. The song is an original which only used known vocabulary. Here's the odd-sounding translation:

Hello, here is my little song

Hello, my song is not very long

Hello, listen up my friends

My song is not yet finished

Oh, not yet finished,  Oh not yet finished

Speaking French every day, it goes well, but it's hard

Today, I don't know , how do you say  "oh la la"?

Oh, oh la la.   Oh oh lala

I like candy and I like fries, I like counting up to eight

Today is Friday, tomorrow I stay in my bed

Oh, in my bed. Oh, in my bed.

Oh, now it's finished, Oh now it's finished

Clearly MUCH superior in French!

Grade 3 Melody Writing Contest Winners

Congratulations to the three winners in our grade 3 recorder melody writing contest. Sadie, Matthew and Klane were all voted as Best Melodies by their classmates. Based on sensible melody lines, form and ideas, these three hit all the right notes.
In first place came Sadie's composition which she wrote, performed and recorded. Please listen to it by clicking:
 HERE

No offence taken. Grade 6 Chicken Song.

This week I wrote a little piece for grade six that I thought was entertaining to play but with enough repetition built in that we could successfully nail it in one period.  I happily presented the selection, we worked on it and after the first run-through, one of the students said " Not to be rude or anything, but it sounds like a chicken song". Naturally, I was crushed  ;)    Sensing that I may have been mortally wounded, another said " Yeah, but we should call it the awesome chicken song".

I agree! It's pretty clucky. Click  HERE  to hear the Chicken Song.

Grade 5-6 Class Makes a Video

 

What fun, the combination of music and technology...so many opportunities. Here is the grade 5-6 class recording of the Acadian Lullaby. The Acadians, from France,  were the earliest European settlers in the Canadian maritime provinces. Many were forced to disperse to other parts of  North America, including Louisiana, after the British expulsion of these people in the 1700's. Our home town has many connections to the Acadians.

Rocky Mountain

Do  do   do  do   do remember me!
Grade 5 recorded Rocky Mountain today.....sight reading the notes!
Click HERE for an cheerful earful.

100 Days of School!

LINK IS FIXED!



For the young it must seem like a 1000 days....but we've hit the mile stone, 100 days into the 2010-2011 year. Click HEREto listen to Grade 1 cheerfully sing all about it. Their song says it all:

One hundred days of school, One hundred days of school

it's time to say Hip Hip Hooray

One hundred days of school

We're very proud to be, a learning family

Let's honor everyone in this community

100 days taller and there's room to grow, 100 days smarter and there's more to know

One hundred days of school, One hundred days of school

it's time to say Hip Hip Hooray

Recorder Recording

Grade 2     makes it's first ever WWW Debut! Can't imagine life without Hot Cross Buns, good 'ole HCB. That icon of three note tunes never gets stale. There's actually quite a bit to it: 4 measures, 17 sounds, quarter notes, half notes and eighth notes, ABA phrase form not to mention playing with 20 others and holding it all together after 1 hour of instruction. So...well done grade 2! Congratulations on learning your very first melody on the recorder. Here it is, recorded as is:

Hot Cross Buns


Now on to the      Fabulous grade 3's    . We're playing with two hands as of early this month.  That means we're playing the full D Major scale.  Is it ever great to have access to the thousands of melodies possible with the full Major scale! We recorded two today. The first is Mozart's

"Ah Je Vous Dirais Maman"....the theme from his variations. Better Known as Twinkle Twinkle (DEAD LINK) star. It features low D, E and F#::
But we are not merely sedate classical parlour musicians...have a listen/dance/toe tap/air guitar (or air recorder) to
Recorder Rocks

Grade 2 Starts Recorder

Our recorders arrived! A big thank-you to all the parents for supporting this aspect of the music program by buying a recorder.  The class was thrilled when our parcel arrived from Empire Music

The recorder is a REAL instrument...not a toy! Grade 2's will soon appreciate this ( and so will their families...promise!). Our amazing Grade 3's are into their second year of playing and I thank them for their musicianship and for giving grade 2's an idea of just how beautifully the instrument can be played.

We started this week with the basics, posture, breath and playing patterns and rhythms on notes B and A. Next week...........Hot Cross Buns!

The instrument has been around for centuries in pretty much the same form. The oldest surviving one (above), the Dordrecht Recorder, dates from the 13th century.

There's much to know about the recorder. Some in depth reading can be done here .

Want some music to play along with on a snowy day at home? 

The recorder comes in a variety of sizes, we play one of the smaller ones...the soprano.  Perhaps we should have all bought one of these:

Yes, It's real!  It's a contra sub bass recorder! How would you get that in a back pack?
 

Grade 5-6 Makes a Recording

Dead of winter but we're on safari with the fabulous grade 5-6 class. Here they are reading and playing the D Pentatonic scale based SAFARI...

Download the Safari  mp3   Right Here

Winter Term at Tatamagouche Elementary Music

What an amazing Christmas show!  Thanks to the professional  approach and super enthusiasm of the students, the generous support of the audience and to Sharon United Church for the Facilities.

New in the music room!! Replacing the much-loved but overworked 15 year old keyboard are two new ultra high tech digital keyboards. The Yamaha DGX-640 and the workstation arranger PSR-S910

Both will enhance our music making and music education for a long time to come. Judging by the number of lunch hour pianists...both will be put to good use. Now, finding the time to learn what all those buttons are for.......

Upper elementary return from their concert repertoire hiatus to musical literacy through ukulele and I'm thrilled with the progress in sight reading and playing. We're following virtuoso James Hill http://www.ukulelejames.com/ method book:

James Visited our school last year and gave both classes and a concert....ukulele hasn't been the same since.