What We're Listening To...

The children have been asking for new and exciting music (I guess our own stash is boring now....), so here are a few favorites that we've enjoyed and that I would recommend both for musical and kid-friendly reasons.

In choosing music that my kids listen to, I feel like I'm a 'health-food-nut-parent' who will only say yes to something my children want if there is a redeeming healthy aspect about it.  There are so many children's music CD's out there with poor singing and very un-inspiring canned music going on in the background. I often shudder when I hear these...


When you're choosing music for your kiddos to listen to (that music will also do its part in shaping their musical appetite and understanding), listen for good quality singing, use of real instruments not (entirely) computerized music and creativity in the songs. In the instance of kids' songs, if they are tied to familiar characters or stories, they may be more memorable and enjoyable for your little tot.


OK, here's our current playlist:

  1. Sesame Street "Kids' Favorite Songs 2" 

I love this CD. The Sesame Street gang is hilarious and the music is so creative and so well done. The boys had many favorites on this CD and wanted to listen to it all the time, multiple times for a while. Mommy and Daddy were laughing at parts too. I love that because of Sesame Street's great talent, they have real live musicians who make the music so much more vibrant and enjoyable. Awesome.

2. Trout Fishing in America: "Big Trouble"

As I referenced in this post, we really like this duo. They're two very creative and able musicians who enjoy being silly and having fun with children through music. This particular album of theirs contains the ever-fun, "Nursery Rhyme Polka" (Throw It Out the Window), but there are a lot of other creative songs that quickly became favorites here too. Just don't explain too much about the song, "The Cat Came Back." :-)

  3. Sesame Street: "Kids' Favorite Songs" 

Well, there was a "Favorite Songs' 2" so there must be a "Favorite Songs" 1!  I intentionally put this one in the #3 spot because it's a little more challenging for Mommy's patience with Elmo and Big Bird's loud voices throughout many songs, but it's just as popular with the kiddos as item #1 in our list...  The music is still very good and very descriptive... worth giving it a try! The boys especially love Elmo and Snuffy in "Row Row Row Your Boat" when they're trying not to sink because Snuffy is so large).  I just think that "Favorite Songs' #2" is better. Just my opinion. :-)


So, go to your library and check these out (Yes, remember that the library has MUSIC too?!) and have a blast with hearing your kids learn some tunes.

Any album favorites you'd like to share??

What we're listening to... in the car!

Isn't our society amazing? Never before has there been such an ability to multi-task! A few-hours' ride to the beach can become an educational experience instead of just a "when will we get there????"-fest.

K will sit and listen to music, stories, etc. often, but in the car, he really seems to zone in on what is going on with the materials. Little J picks up what he can. He's a rather silly lad and will laugh out loud at a word or sound that he thinks is funny.

So, on our most recent rides hither and tither as we get the most out of these last few weeks of summer, here are three listening materials that are getting good mileage on our trips:

"Elmo and the Orchestra" by Sesame Street

 This Sesame Street CD has Elmo and Big Bird meeting up with an orchestra made up of "little birdies" who take them on a musical tour as Elmo tries to remember one very famous symphony he had heard before. The hubs and I appreciated the humor throughout... like the conductor, Leonard Birdseed and the famous pianist Barbara F. Seville... but this is probably the boys #1 requested listening in the car recently. K loves the "storm" piece (from Beethoven's 6th) and J loves the "fast drums" song (Khachaturian's Sabre Dance).   We got this out of the library, but will be purchasing it soon!


"Peter and the Wolf" (Book adapt. by Janet Schulman)

There is no shortage of adaptations of the story of "Peter and the Wolf." It is a tale set to music by Sergei Prokofiev in 1936 on a commission for him to create a 'children's symphony.' Although this piece was not received with much enthusiasm at its first performance (much to the composer's chagrin), it has continued to be performed and loved by children for many years and is one of the most popular pieces of music of the 20th century.

We've been listening to the narrated CD that comes along with this book. The illustrations are very folk-like and I love that the instruments assigned to each character are included throughout.
One spoiler for some will be that the story is adapted from the original... like, the wolf gets taken back to the forest, not the zoo; and the duck gets coughed up, rather than stay in the wolf's belly.
(I'll do a future post on more Peter and the Wolf options someday, I hope....)


"The Carnival of the Animals"  Text/Narration by Jack Prelutsky

Again, a very famous work for children, Saint-Saens "Carnival of the Animals" is a very creative piece with a variety of musical pictures that mimic the animals (or non animals.... like a piano). This book is narrated by the esteemed Jack Prelutsky (who also narrated the Harry Potter audio book series), with is admirable vocal inflections. The illustrations are intriguing and inviting, the rhyming text flows poetically, and the music is, as always, descriptive and joyful.

So, enjoy those long car rides and pick up a few of these to open up your kids' minds to the creative genius in these musical selections.
Enjoy!

What We're Listening to....

I thought I'd make a few posts about what recordings we're listening to recently... (above pic of K singing with his "little buddy teddy"). As our kids' preferences change, there will be different music coming in and out of their ears, but whatever they're listening to should do GOOD things for their musical aptitude.... not destroy it (i.e. good quality singing with age-appropriate lyrics, varied and interesting melodies, etc...).

Most kids are drawn to other kids' voices, but not all - my niece, for example, prefers hearing grown-up voices. My kids love to hear kids sing, so here are the two CD's we're currently getting the most mileage out of recently (and singing around the house most often):

The Broadway Kids Sing Broadway - more info: Here.

This one is in the car and the boys look forward to rides in the car so they can sing and laugh with this one. Being broadway songs, there is an occasional word or two that some might want to avoid for little ears, but overall, we love this one. They also have a "Best of Broadway" one that's pretty good too.

Songs That Jesus Said - Keith and Kristyn Getty - more info: Here.

One great thing about music is that it can be a tool for reinforcing character qulaities that you are trying to develop in your child through the message of the lyrics. So, if you want some new faith-based songs for your child to learn other than "The B-I-B-L-E, yes, that's the book for me..." (wonderful though all those songs are!), this is a great one. Great, quality vocals, creative melodies and great messages throughout.


What are some of your favorites?

I "heart" Pandora

There are a lot of wonderful things about modern technology... and pandora.com is one of them.
This week has been busy and intermingled with sickness, so our days are not as structured as I would like... but, never fear! I can still increase my child's musical understanding thanks to places like pandora!

Who doesn't use pandora? Anyone? It's been around for years now, but if you haven't used it yet - go try it.
You type in a genre or composer and then it crafts a radio station based on that type. And, it just keeps playing (there are a few advertisements along the way but they're not bad at all).

How can you use this mighty little tool to influence your kiddos musical minds?
Try creating stations that are different than the music you typically play for them, or music that will open up their palette to new and wonderful sounds.

My recommendation today? The Johann Sebastian Bach station.
Now, we are self-proclaimed classical music nerds here.... but that's certainly not ALL we listen to. But, we LOVE classical music and even though this love does not always come naturally for most kids, introducing it to them little bits at a time opens their minds up to the sheer beauty of music in ways that are not afforded by our catchy, pop culture.

So, while your kids are playing and you are folding laundry or working on a project, try out a classical station on pandora. Even if you they protest with "this is boring" (gasp!), it is SO IMPORTANT to put great things before our children's eyes and ears to allow them to experience wonderful gifts like incredible music that has lasted for hundreds of years.

(And... for those of you thinking about piano, etc. lessons in the future, it will help them to love that experience more if you have already whetted their appetite for that genre!)

Other suggestions:

• Type in a favorite Classical piece of yours into pandora - one from your own childhood or current likes - just stay away from tricky things like.... John Cage at this early time (or anytime... just kidding... sort of...) 
•  Try something fun like bluegrass, Natalie MacMaster, Celtic Fiddle Festival, Salsa Clave, etc.. 

Have fun!