Answer to last Wordless/ful Wednesday: Steel pan/drum
Today, steel pans are made from flat sheet metal and molded into the shape of a bowl using hammers. Steel pans today are tuned with electronic tuners and need to be tuned 1-2 times a year. Steel pans are made into soprano, alto, tenor, and bass pans. They can be played solo or in a steel pan band. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Steelpan
Below is an example of a steel pan:
(Felix Walroud on the Steel Pan)
This song is so beautiful and this little 4 year old girl is amazing!!
Sleep Well, Little Children
A.Bergman L.Klatzkin
Sleep well, little children,
wherever you are;
Tomorrow is Christmas
beneath every star.
Soon the snowflakes will fall
and tomorrow you'll see
Every wish, one and all,
waiting under the tree.
Sleep well, little children,
pleasant dreams through the night;
Tomorrow is Christmas,
all merry and bright.
Soon you'll hear the bells ring,
time for dreams to come true
As the world wakes to bring
Merry Christmas to you.
1. Music Mobiles are great for new babies because they introduce music to your child in calming way. Your baby can look up at the mobile and easily fall asleep to the wonderful sounds! Some popular ones are the Jungle Tales Mobile and the Tiny Love Symphony-in-Motion Mobile.
2. The Munchkin Mozart Magic Cube is a great toy because it teaches babies how sounds are made by letting your baby push the buttons to add and subtract instruments in many different songs. This cube also teaches about tempo through the flashing lights.
3. Drums and egg shakers are fun for babies to use because they expose babies to real-like instruments, and they keep your babies entertained! 
4. The Baby Grand Piano--Laugh and Learn is a lot of fun for babies because it is interactive and teaches babies about pitch through the piano keys. This piano will also teach your baby about tempo, colors, counting, and music styles. There is an interactive music book attached to the piano for you baby to flip through.
5. The Toddler Orchestra comes with 2 shakers and a tambourine that are easy to hold and use. All three instruments make a different sound that will keep your baby entertained. The Toddler Orchestra uses the same materials and toning methods that are used in professional instruments.
3. Play Guitars are always fun for kids to play with and to hold. I would make sure to buy a play guitar that resembles a real guitar. Some I would recommend are Elmo's Rock and Roll Guitar and the Big Rock Guitar by Little Tykes because they require your child to make a strumming action with their hand and to push the buttons on the neck to get different sounds. 
4. The Phonics Radio is a fun toy because it plays 30 songs and teaches letters and phonics. There is also flashing lights and a volume control.
5. Recorders are great to get for your children because they are easy to blow in. When my son was 1 year old he figured out how to blow in a recorder the first time he played with it! I would recommend buying a recorder by Yamaha because they will last a long time and are durable.
1. Bongo Drums from First Act are handmade wooden lap drums with authentic skin drum heads. These drums also come with rims that stay in tune! You can also find other styles of bongo drums on amazon.com.
2. A sing-along CD player is a fun way to introduce your children to singing and to karaoke, because your children can sing into a microphone while listening to music. Your children can also sing with a sibling or a friend!
3. Mini piano's or electronic keyboards are fun for kids at this age because they are as close as you can get to the real instrument! Mini pianos come with non-tip benches and music to play.
4. The First Act Electronic Drum Pad is a digital drum set that features 16 drum voices and 30 drum patterns. There are drum sticks provided also! This drum set is recommend for kids ages 6 and up, however, I bought this for my 2 year old for Christmas because I can set the settings for him and let him hit the pads with sticks--which I know he will love to do!
5. The 12-Key Pipe Xylophone is a fun instrument for kids or adults and comes with 12 aluminium pipes. This xylophone is made of solid black walnut and pure maple hardwood, is very durable, and comes with a music book and mallets. 
1. Music Lessons are a great present to give your children for Christmas. Most parents start their children in piano lessons around 8 years old. For most other instruments parents start their children around 10 years old (although you can start children in music lessons at many ages.) Click here to read about starting your children in private music lessons and how to find the right teacher for your child. 
2. Buy a music instruction book and a music instrument is another alternative to private music lessons (although it is better to get music lessons to avoid creating incorrect playing techniques.) You can go down to a local music store and ask about what music books are good to use for your children and what brand of instrument to rent or buy. 
4. Everybody loves to get a new CD for Christmas. You can find Cd's on amazon.com. You can also go to lyrics.com to read the lyrics and to see if they are clean.
5. Tickets to a music concert can be a very exciting gift and can make a great stocking stuffer! A good way to find out if your child's favorite music group is coming to your town is to look at the group's touring schedule on their website (all music groups have a website.)
Answer to last Wordless/ful Wednesday: Double Bass
Below is an example of the berimbau playing in capoeira:
4. Imitate different styles of music through dance. Play many different styles of music for your kids to dance too. For example, turn on a waltz and have your kids waltz around the room. Turn on the nutcracker and have your kids dance like a ballerina. Turn on a march and have your kids march around the house.
Answer to Last Wordless/ful Wednesday: Contrabass Trombone
(Anchorage Symphony)
Did You Ever See a Turkey?
(Video from Cullen's ABC's)
For this song make 4 feathers out of construction paper:
Feather 1: Red
Feather 2: Orange
Feather 3: Yellow
Feather 4: Brown
Lyrics:
Did you ever see a turkey,
A turkey, a turkey,
As he struts around the farm yard,
With feathers so bright.
With red ones,
And orange ones,
And yellow ones,
And brown ones,
Did you ever see a turkey,
With feathers so bright.
I am participating in FMM.
Shivery Yells
Music Lesson: Solfege
(Julie Andrews in The Sound of Music)
What is solfege?
Solfege is an important part of learning to read music and is a technique used to teach sight-singing or sight reading. Each note in solfege is sung to a different syllable do, re, me, fa, so, la, ti, and each note has a corresponding hand sign (as seen in photo below).
To teach your child solfege do the following:
1. Sing do (doh) to the first pitch of any major scale (i.e. if you choose the major C scale, C would be your first note).
2. Now, sing and sign do with your hand (as seen in photo below).
3. Have your child sing and sign do. If needed, help mold your child's hand into the do shape until he or she can sign do his or herself.
4. Continue to teach your child every solfege sign and syllable.
5. Note: Solfege is a great way to introduce music to your baby!
Solfege Pronunciation:
Do = Doh (For the C scale you will sing C pitch)
Re = Ray (For the C scale you will sing D pitch)
Me = Mee (For the C scale you will sing E pitch)
Fa = Fah (For the C scale your will sing F pitch)
Sol = Soh (For the C scale you will sing G pitch)
La = Lah (For the C scale you will sing A pitch)
Ti = Tee (For the C scale you will sing B pitch)
Today's music craft can be played as a guiro (first photo) or a cabasa (second photo).
Materials Needed:
This great craft idea was from http://www.canadianliving.com/.
The Anchorage Symphony's Halloween Family Concert is in one week, on Friday October, 31 2008 in the Atwood Concert Hall. Have your kids wear their Halloween costumes and get ready for 4 floors of trick-or-treating after the show!
Teach your child the following lesson:
Biography:
Beethoven was one of the most influential and respected composers of his time and played a key role in bridging classical and romantic music. Beethoven was a composer and played the piano in the 1700’s. He was born in December, 1770 and grew up in Bonn, Germany where he lived with his parents and 6 brothers and sisters (although 3 of his siblings died after infancy).
At age 8 Beethoven had his first known public performance on the piano, and at age 14 he started playing the organ for a choir. When Beethoven was 17 years old he went to Vienna, Austria to study with Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. After Mozart died Beethoven started studying with Joseph Haydn.
When Beethoven was about 27 years old, he may have gotten tinnitus (ringing in his ears caused by infection or loud noises) which caused him to eventually go deaf. Although Beethoven was devastated from his hearing loss, he figured out that he could hear the music through vibrations from his piano (which is why he was still able to write music).
Beethoven’s Music:
Scholars have divided Beethoven’s musical works into three periods:
During the first music period, Beethoven was finding “his personal voice.” He wrote: string quartets, piano sonatas, piano concertos, and symphonies. Here is an example of music Beethoven wrote during his first music period: Beethoven's Symphony No. 1
During the second period, Beethoven wrote: an opera, symphonies, piano concertos, and quartet music. The second period is known as Beethoven’s independent period because he was known as one of the best pianists and composers of his time. Beethoven became friends with some of the richest and noble families in Vienna. He gained prominent devoted fans such as Prince Lichnowsky. Beethoven would often make the Prince wait in the waiting room on purpose so he could compose music! Here is an example of Beethoven's second period music: The Eroica Symphony
During the last period, Beethoven’s music became reflective. He started to use variations (new rhythms, new meter, new tempos, new embellishments, and new figurations) in his music. Although Beethoven had bad health and family struggles during this period, he still managed to write some of his best musical works during this time. Here is an example of Beethoven's third period music: Beethoven String Quartet Op. 131
