Intermediate Music: Sing and Learn!

In this ongoing, drop-in class, we will learn and practice your learner’s favorite songs! Each month the students and I will choose a set of three songs. Then we will spend one week focusing on each song. To do this, we will work through the lyrics–understanding the story the song is telling, uncovering any repeating patterns and discussing how they inform the structure of the song as a whole. Next we will practice the melody using our voices, and I will demonstrate the relationship between notes using a keyboard or glockenspiel (students are encouraged to bring their own instruments to help with this process, but it is not required).

In this class, students will learn about:
- how to use their voices as musical instruments
- pitch matching and musical intervals
- internal beat and rhythmic patterns
- the story (or stories) that each song tells
- how to have fun making music

Although the song we are learning about will change from week to week, the structure of the class will remain the same. First we’ll warm up our voices with some simple soundmaking exercises and tongue twisters, then we’ll start looking at the words of the song and how they shape the melody and  rhythm. As we do this we will also sing our way through the song several times, giving learners plenty of chances to practice. 

For the final meeting of the month, we will bring together all three songs we’ve talked about, for an all out sing-along with a few short reminders about some of our key learning moments from the previous ‘deep dives’ into each song. This will also give learners who may not have been present for earlier classes the ability to participate fully and still gain an understanding of key topics.

Since this is a new class, I have pre-selected songs for us to work on during the first few weeks:

Week of 07/08: The Itsy-bitsy Spider
Week of 07/15: One Sun, One Light
Week 0f 07/22: Down By the Bay
Week of 07/27: July Roundup (all the above songs)

Week of 08/03: Mary's Garden
Week of 08/10: Wheels on the Bus
Week of 08/17: The Ants go Marching
Week of 08/24: August Roundup