The Music Box

Latest Episodes:

Dynamics Dynamite Oct 08, 2020

Show notes

We'll explore the world of dynamics (how loud or soft a sound is) with a big box of fireworks! KA-BOOM! You’ll hear some very special pyrotechnics and learn some special words to describe dynamics.

***

National Standards incorporated:

Understanding the relationships between music and other arts, other disciplines, varied contexts, and daily life.
Understanding rhythmic and melodic ideas
Demonstrating knowledge of musical concepts

***

Additional resources:

Music Theory for Beginners: Dynamics
Dynamics Example
Music-Go-Rounds Dynamics Activity Guide

***

Donate to support this and future seasons of The Music Box.

1+1 = Etude Oct 01, 2020

Show notes

You'll learn about how math is used to make music! Just like chopping vegetables in half, you can chop notes in half too.

***

National Standards incorporated:

Understanding the relationships between music and other arts, other disciplines, varied contexts, and daily life.

Understanding rhythmic and melodic ideas
Demonstrating knowledge of musical concepts

***

Additional resources:

Musical Notation – The Quarter Note, the Half Note, and the Whole Note
Music Lesson – Steady Beat
How to Read Music –Episode 4: Counting and Clapping

***

Featured music:
Ninja Re Bang Bang: Kyary Pamyu Pamyu

***

Donate to support this and future seasons of The Music Box.

A Short Pause Sep 24, 2020

Show notes

So many people in our community are grieving and reacting to current events related to the Breonna Taylor case. Out of respect, we’re going to postpone today’s episode until next week. We’d rather direct your attention to what’s happening in our city now.

You can follow the news coverage from our sister station WFPL, and we’re putting some links below for how to talk with your family about racialized violence, justice, and equity. And don’t forget, there are lots of past episodes of The Music Box you can check out anytime in our podcast feed. Go listen to some music you love today, and we’ll be back with you next week.

How to talk to kids about racism, racial violence and police brutality

Racism and Violence: How to Help Kids Handle the News

How to Talk with Kids About Racism and Racial Violence

Women's Writes: A History of Women Composers Sep 17, 2020

Show notes

So many of the composers we usually learn about in school are men -- but that's only telling half the story of who writes the music we love.

***

National Standards Incorporated:
Analyzing the elements of music (including form) of musical works, relating them to style, mood, and context, and describe how the analysis provides models for personal growth as composer, performer, and/or listener

Understanding the relationships between music and the other arts, other disciplines, varied contexts, and daily life

Understanding how music is informed by the structure, the use of musical elements, and context (such as social and cultural)

***

Additional resources:
The Story of Music (BBC)
History of Women in Music
The Birth of Jazz
Scat Singing Explained and Example

***

Featured music:

Felix Mendelssohn: A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Op. 61, Incidental Music, No. 9 Wedding March (Boston Symphony, Seiji Ozawa)

Fanny Mendelssohn: String Quarter in E-Flat Major: IV. Allegro molto vivace (Quatuor Ebene)

Igor Stravinsky: Firebird Suite (Chicago Symphony)

Ethel Smythe: The March of Women (Chorus and Orchestra of the Plymouth Music Series, Philip Brunelle)

Duke Ellington: Cottontail

Ella Fitzgerald and Duke Ellington: Cottontail

Pete Seeger: Freight Train

Elizabeth Cotten: Freight Train

The Chicks: March, March

Beyonce: Brown Skin Girl

Annie Lennox & Aretha Franklin: Sisters Are Doin’ It For Themselves

***

Donate to support this and future seasons of The Music Box.

The Treble Troubadours and the Bass Balladeers Sep 10, 2020

Show notes

It’s our Season 4 premiere! We return to the fantasy world of Arpeggio with a tale of two very different performing groups and how they learn to get along.

***

National Standards incorporated:

Exploring and demonstrating awareness of music contrasts (such as high/low, loud/soft, same/different)

Applying personal and expressive preferences in the evaluation of music
Understanding how to perform music with expression

***

Additional resources:

The Music Show Episode #4: We’re Gonna Sing High, Low, and in the Middle

Elements of Music: Dynamics

***

Donate to support this and future seasons of The Music Box.

The Giant and The Fairy Jul 16, 2020

Show notes

We’re wrapping up our season with a very special story, featuring a magical land full of extraordinary creatures. And you’ll learn a few new things you can do with your voice too!

***

National standards incorporated:
Singing, alone and with others, a varied repertoire of music.

***

Additional resources:
Solfege Hand Signs
Solfege Scale with Hand Signs
***

Donate to support this and future seasons of The Music Box.

Meter Wars! Jul 09, 2020

Show notes

We’ll learn about meters in music, also known as time signatures, using math. You'll be able to hear the difference between 3/4 and 4/4 and understand how to read a time signature. Then… it’s an epic battle between time signatures! Who will win??

***

Featured musical excerpts:
The Beatles: Yellow Submarine
Dionne Warwick: What the World Needs Now
Rodgers & Hammerstein: My Favorite Things from “The Sound of Music”
Post Malone: Sunflower
Queen: Another One Bites the Dust
Pentatonix: Waltz of the Flowers
Elton John: I’m Still Standing
Beyonce: Love On Top
Anthony Gonzalez: Un Poco Loco from “Coco”
***

National Standards Incorporated:
Reading and notating music

***

Additional resources:
Rhythm Lesson
Musical Meter!
Time Signatures, Bars and Barlines
Worksheet: Time Signatures
Worksheet: Note Types and 4/4 Time

***

Donate to support this and future seasons of The Music Box.

Kandinsky Can: How Art and Music Collide Jul 02, 2020

Show notes

Artists and musicians can inspire each other's work, even though they use different materials and techniques! We’ll learn about some of the ways that art and music intersects, and we’ll take a turn being inspired ourselves.

***

Featured musical excerpts:
George Gershwin: An American in Paris, New York Philharmonic conducted by Leonard Bernstein
Jane Ira Bloom: Jackson Pollack, from Chasing Paint: Jane Ira Bloom Meets Jackson Pollack
John Cage: Sonata V, from Sonatas and Interludes for Prepared Piano, performed by Giancarlo Cardini

***

National Standards incorporated:
Understanding relationships between music, the other arts, and disciplines outside the arts
Understanding music in relation to history and culture

***

Additional resources:
Wassily Kandinsky: 100 Famous Paintings Analysis and Biography
Jackson Pollock: 100 Famous Paintings Analysis and Biography
Pablo Picasso: 150 Famous Paintings, Bio & Quotes by Picasso
A Sunday Afternoon on the Island of La Grande Jatte

***

Donate to support this and future seasons of The Music Box.

Who Plays What? Jun 25, 2020

Show notes

This is the final episode in our mini-series about songwriting: we’ll explore how instruments are used to tell stories in sound — most specifically, in movie soundtracks! You’ll be sure to hear a few familiar tunes here, and you’ll never watch movies the same way again.

***

Featured musical excerpts:
John Williams: Star Wars Main Theme, from “Star Wars” Original Motion Picture Soundtrack
Hans Zimmer: …To Die For, from “The Lion King” Original Motion Picture Soundtrack
John Williams: Hedwig’s Theme, from “Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone” Original Motion Picture Soundtrack
Opetaia Foa’i, Lin-Manuel Miranda, and Marc Mancina: We Know the Way, from “Moana” Original Motion Picture Soundtrack
Rachel Portman: Tino, from “A Dog’s Purpose” Original Motion Picture Soundtrack

***

National standards applied:
Listening to, analyzing, and describing music*
*Understanding relationships between music, the other arts, and disciplines outside the arts
Understanding music in relation to history and culture

***

Additional resources:

“Tino” from A Dog’s Purpose
10 film composers you should know -- besides John Williams
Female composers are trying to break film’s sound barrier
THE POWER OF MUSIC IN FILM - How music affects film
Moana: On-set visit with Lin-Manuel Miranda, Opetaia Foa’i & Mark Mancina

***

Donate to support this and future seasons of The Music Box.

Name the Place and Time Jun 18, 2020

Show notes

This is the second of three episodes on songwriting. This week, we’ll learn about how songs help us celebrate special occasions (hint: it involves cake and candles) and also how songs can make us feel strong in the face of hard times. We’ll hear some examples about songs that bring people together, and we’ll write our own verse to a well-known call-and-response song.

***

Featured music:
B.B. King: Why I Sing the Blues
Aretha Franklin: A Change Is Gonna Come
Pete Seeger & the Song Swappers: We Shall Not Be Moved

***

National standards incorporated:
Singing, alone and with others, a varied repertoire of music.
Composing and arranging music within specified guidelines.
Improvising melodies, variations, and accompaniments.
Understanding music in relation to history and culture.

***

Additional resources:
Songwriting With Kids
How To Teach Children to Write Songs
Sing Me A Story - Songs and Stories for Kids in Need

***

Resources for discussing current events with your kids:

Race Talk: Engaging Young People in Conversations About Race and Racism (Anti-Defamation League)

75 Things White People Can Do For Racial Justice (Medium)

How White Parents Can Use Media to Raise Anti-Racist Kids (Common Sense Media)

Resources for Talking About Race, Racism, and Racialized Violence With Kids (Center for Racial Justice in Education)

***

Donate to support this and future seasons of The Music Box.