Introducing Classical Music to Kids Part 1
Have you ever wondered where to find some new ideas for introducing your child to classical music? We have all heard of the upbeat Hooked On Classics CDs. And most likely you have also heard of the Baby Einstein classical CDs for kids, such as Baby Mozart and Baby Bach. While these are all wonderful CDs and ones your child will certainly enjoy, there are many other resources out there which you may also want to explore.
This blog will be the the first in a series of three in which I will be sharing some wonderful ways to introduce the world of classical music to your child. Both this blog and the second in this series will feature amazing websites you will definitely want to visit. In the final blog, we will explore some creative hands-on activities which can be done at home or at school, enabling children to experience the magic of classical music!
The first is a website called The Children's Group. Here's their link: http://www.childrensgroup.com/ They provide some wonderful CDs for children and offer tons of soundbites for each of the CDs. You can scroll down to the bottom of the home page and see many of the CDs which the Children's Group offers. Then click on the "Music Store" link to find even more selections. There were three CDs which I found there that I would like to highly recommend.
The first CD is called Tchaikovsky Discovers America. It features music from Tchaikovsky's masterpieces: Swan Lake, The Nutcracker, Sleeping Beauty, 1812 Overture, String Serenade, and First Piano Concerto. These are weaved together with American folk classics as well as some spirituals and ragtime favorites. There is also some narration regarding the life of the composer, Peter Ilyich Tchiakovsky and his travels to New York to play at Carnegie Hall. It is a unique CD in that it provides a great deal of historical information about that time period, the life of the composer, giving the child a new perspective on the music he or she is hearing. Children both young and old will enjoy hearing the exciting narration with the dramatic musical selections.
Next up is the CD The World's Very Best Opera for Kids... in English! This CD offers a wonderful variety of music from well known operas such as Madame Butterfly, The Barber of Seville, Carmen, and Rigoletto. It will certainly spark the interest of the young child as he or she explores all of the capabilities of their own voice with the different types of vocal ranges and types of operatic singing they hear in the music. One of the truly special aspects of this CD is that it also offers five karaoke style tracks with which your child (or any brave adult) can sing along with on the instrumental track. What a treat for any budding opera aficionado!!
Finally, the CD Peter and the Wolf, was a childhood favorite of mine and one which I feel should be a standard in every child's CD collection! This incredible musical story was created by the composer Sergei Prokofiev who both composed the music and wrote the text. It is the story of a young boy named Peter and different instruments or musical themes identify each character in the story. For example, "the bird" is played by the flute, "the duck" is played by the oboe, "the cat" is played by the clarinet, and so on... For more info on the actual story of Peter and the Wolf, go to: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peter_and_the_Wolf This CD also includes some additional narration about the composer's life and special things to listen to in the music.
You will have a truly wonderful time listening to soundbites of these CDs and introducing them to your child! Come back soon to read about another great website with even more ideas for experiencing the world of classical music. See you soon!!
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