Orchestra Star Wars Project & Lunch Party Photos

After our spring concert in early May, the orchestra got started on a fun project. First, they spent a few weeks learning an arrangement of music from Star Wars.

Then, our lesson room transformed into a recording studio! It was so much fun to record them playing, and a great way to document all of their progress on their instruments. The following week was spent planning our video, and then it was time to shoot!

One full orchestra rehearsal and a day of lessons were spent filming on stage and in the lesson room. We even got to borrow the green screen from the library!

Here's their completed project:



The students were able to watch the video yesterday at our annual end of year lunch party. Then, we headed outside to eat in the sun and play on the playground. It was such a fantastic day!

5th Grade Musical Showcase

*Please check back to this post - we will be updating it all week with photos and videos from the Musical Showcase!

Orchestra Photos 2018!

Today, we did our yearly orchestra photo shoot.  This has become a fun tradition for the Memorial Orchestra, and a great way to end the year!

As always, we'll start with the most serious...

Then things get a little crazy...

After we took photos of the whole orchestra, some students wanted individual and small group shots:

You can download the full-resolution shots here: Orchestra Photos 2018

Links to previous orchestra photo shoots:
2017
2016
2015

All-Town Chorus Concert

Below is a video of our 5th graders performing at last month's All-Town Chorus concert. Way to go! :)

Weekly Review 5/28 - 6/1

Happy Friday!

This week in music, the first and second graders reviewed the Orff instruments. They did a great job remembering both the instrument name AND the size name! Below is a list of the instruments they played:

• Soprano Xylophone
• Alto Xylophone
• Bass Xylophone
• Soprano Metallophone
• Alto Metallophone
• Bass Metallophone
• Soprano Glockenspiel
• Alto Glockenspiel

After a quick review of the proper mallet technique, they were ready to start playing some music! We practiced alternating our mallets and going up and down the scale. First graders played a simple bass line to accompany Hot Cross Buns, and second graders learned how to play the melody! We can't wait to extend this unit next week!

The third graders have been preparing for their recorder and violin concert, which is next Tuesday, June 5th at 8:30 for parents of third grade students. Please make sure your child is prepared with their instrument(s) and all music that day - as well as Monday for our dress rehearsal.

The fourth graders performed their book compositions for the first graders and kindergarteners! Below is a video of Olshaw's class performing Knuffle Bunny, and Gonzalez's class performing Jabuti.

The fifth graders reviewed the C and G chords on the ukuleles, then practiced the A minor chord and the F chord. Armed with 4 chords, they are ready to play along with MANY folk and pop songs! This week they played along with Skip to My Lou, Thunder, I'm Yours, and Riptide.

Here is Ms. C's class practicing Riptide:

Have a wonderful weekend!

Weekly Review

It was a busy week in music. Our second and fifth graders had performances. Congratulations to both grade levels!

First grade students watched, "Tubby the Tuba." It is about an unhappy tuba leaving an orchestra in order to search for his own melody. Next week we will continue to play the Orff instruments- the xylophones, the metallophones and the glockenspiels. 

Congratulations to our second grade students who put on a wonderful Memorial Day performance! They did a fabulous job singing and looked adorable in their patriotic attire. 

Third grade students are busy practicing for their recorder concert on Tuesday, June 8th. They should be practicing all the belt song that they have passed plus Skip to My Lou. If you have any questions, please don't hesitate to ask!

Our fourth grade students are busy working on their compositions. We have so many creative and talented students. We can't wait to watch their performances next week. Each class will perform for a first or second grade class. 

Our fifth grade students were so excited to learn the Ukuleles this week. We learned four chords- C, G, a minor, and F and how to switch between the chords. Skip to My Lou was the first song we learned and the song helped us practice switching between two chords. We ended our Ukulele time with Jason Miraz's famous song, "I'm Yours." Here is Mrs. Burns class playing the chords:

We held our First Annual All Town Concert on Tuesday night. It was such a wonderful experience to hear the elementary, middle school, and high school chorus perform. There was even a house band which two of our former Memorial students are now part of. Thank you to the students who participated that night. It was a memorable experience. Here are some pictures of our time:

Have a wonderful long weekend!