String Update and Assignment

After two weeks with no lessons (ahh!), we were finally able to start properly learning some of these tunes :)

Fourth Graders

4A, 4B, 4C:  All fourth grade students finished learning Strings Will Rock You.  It sounds fantastic!   We also began to work on Final Countdown, and got up to measure 16.  Next week, we will start their featured 4th Grade piece, the Surprise Symphony.

Assignment for 4th graders:

• D Scale
• Final Countdown - review what we did in lessons today, then see if you can read ahead on your own up to measure 32.
• Strings Will Rock You

Fifth Graders
5A and 5B:  The fifth graders have also been spending time on Final Countdown.  The 5th grade violinists even made it all the way up to rehearsal 44...wow!  Next week will will start a new combined piece, the Blue Danube Waltz.

Assignment for 5th graders:

• D Scale
• Final Countdown
• Strings Will Rock You

Here are some videos to check out...they are not exactly like the pieces we are playing, but listening to them will help you get the tunes in your head! :)

Strings Will Rock You - 4th AND 5th Grade

Surprise Symphony - 4th Grade ONLY


Final Countdown - 4th AND 5th Grade



Blue Danube Waltz - 4th AND 5th Grade  (the part we are playing starts at 1:39)

...And last but not least, here's a video of our viola/cello/bass group practicing their accompaniment part to Final Countdown:

Weekly Review 1/23 - 1/27

This week, the first grade students have continued their Peter and the Wolf unit by watching the movie! We don't watch movies often in music class, but this one is a great way for the students to connect the story with the music.  Next week, they will be finishing this unit with a fun and exciting activity!

The second graders learned about the fourth instrument family - the woodwind family.  We read the book so the students can become more familiar with the main woodwinds in the orchestra: the flute, clarinet, oboe, and bassoon.  They also learned about the saxophone, but it is more typically found in a jazz band and not an orchestra.  Then, they celebrated Chinese New Year by learning a song called "Xin Nian Kuai Le." Once they could sing the song, we added accompaniment on the xylophones and  bongos.

The third grade students went on an amazing field trip this morning!  We visited Cary Hall in Lexington to see the Lexington Symphony perform.  They played music that dates back to the Medieval Period, and worked their way through music history...all the way up to Star Wars by John Williams!  Here are some photos from their trip:

They also took their notation test, and all of the students have passed!  Congrats!  Next week we will be starting to play the recorder.  If your child already has a recorder, please have them bring it in next week.  Thank you!

The fourth graders finished their chords unit this week.  Some of the students even played a chord accompaniment to Shake it Off!  It was a lot of fun.



The fifth grade students completed their chords unit as well!  They really enjoyed performing an accompaniment to A-Ha's Take on Me.

In chorus, we finished downloading the rest of our music and started rehearsing the new songs.  Most of the classes got to the end of the Fugue for Fast food, and the fourth graders can now sing all of Peter Piper!  The fifth graders voted on their featured song (which will be I Have a Shadow), and we started working on our combined song with a slower tempo - Listen to the Rain.

We hope you have an amazing weekend!

Weekly Review 1/17-1/20

It was a short week in music. Here is what we did.....

In first grade, students finished the Peter and the Wolf listening map activity.   Each part of the map included a fun activity, such as drawing the different characters and identifying different instruments. Here is list of all the character in the fairytale. Each character in the story represents an instrument and has a musical theme:

• Bird: flute
• Duck: oboe
• Cat: clarinet
• Grandfather: bassoon
• Wolf: French horns
• Hunters: woodwind theme, with gunshots on timpani and bass drum
• Peter: string instrument

The second graders learned two new instrument families this week:  the brass family and the  string family.

Common Brass Family Instruments:

Trumpet
Trombone
Tuba
French Horn
Baritone

Common String Family Instruments:
Violin
Viola
Cello
Double Bass
Guitar

Next Friday, Jan. 27th, our third grade students will take a field trip to Carey Hall to watch the Lexington Symphony perform. We will leave at 9:15am and will be back by 11:30am. Dressing up is highly encouraged! We will also have our recorder test on Tuesday and Wednesday so don't forget to study! Everything that you need to know is on the study guide!

Our fourth graders practiced playing chordal accompaniments to, "Auld Lang Syne" while the fifth grade students practiced playing chordal accompaniments to the famous 80's hit, "Take On Me." Here is a video of Mrs. Weinberg's class performing, "Auld Lang Syne" while Mrs. Warford's class is singing the song:

In chorus, both grade levels completed the fun food song, "Fugue for Fast Food." Fourth grade students also finished learning their grade level song, "Peter Piper." 

We hope you all have a wonderful weekend!