Sydney the Snowman’s Nose

by | Listen & Learn Music, Uncategorized

sydney-snowman

Poor Sydney.  All he wants in life is a new nose, but for now he’s stuck with this old carrot (like so many of his snowman friends).  Cute song idea, right?  But don’t give me any of the credit…that goes to my friend Brian, who suggested this topic on my Facebook page.

When I first started writing this song, I had the intention of letting Sydney find the new nose for which he was searching.  But then it hit me that I had an opportunity for a lesson in self-esteem (though I kept it subtle).  Notice the nods to “Frosty the Snowman” — I just couldn’t resist!

Sydney the snowman had one wish, just one,
And it didn’t have anything to do
With the bright, hot sun.
His wish was for a brand new nose,
Made of anything but carrots,
Which he thought were gross.

Oh, Sydney searched high and low,
He even asked people that he didn’t know,
If they could help fill in the space,
In the middle of his face.

Sniffity-sniff-sniff, sniffity-sniff-sniff,
Watch as Sydney goes,
Over the hills and around the town
In search of a different nose.

Sydney the snowman liked most things, it’s true.
Candy canes and lollipops
And pretzels and bananas, too.
But the vegetable he did despise,
Unfortunately, was the perfect size.

Oh, Sydney couldn’t think of anything less cute
Than a nose made out of an old orange root,
And then a stranger who was kind,
Gave a compliment that changed his mind.

What a beautiful snowman face have you,
With a nose so bright and button eyes so blue.
I can tell you were made with love,
And that’s something to be proud of.

Sniffity-sniff-sniff, sniffity-sniff-sniff,
Watch as Sydney goes,
Over the hills and around the town
Proudly showing off his carrot nose.

Big props to Brian for coming up with such a clever song topic! I hope I did it justice. I received quite a few additional ideas as a result of my call for song topics, so I’m trying to decide which to tackle next. Do you have any last-minute holiday song topic suggestions? Let me know in the comments!

Sunday Singalong: The Other Eight Reindeer

by | Uncategorized

It’s been a few weeks, but “Sunday Singalong” lives on!  I’ve been waiting and waiting for this cold to go away (or at least, give me most of my voice back) so that I could make a new video, and today’s the day.

“The Other Eight Reindeer” (here’s the new recording) is a play on the old “Rudolph” song we all know and love, as you will hear in the first few bars.  In fact, when people hear it for the first time, they are thrown for a loop when they realize it’s actually not the familiar song.  Below the video, I’ll explain a bit more about how I use this song with my students.

This song works best in a group setting, especially if there are at least 8 or 9 children to “act out” each reindeer.  I wrote a post last December describing in detail how I use props and movement to turn the song into an interactive experience; rather than repeat myself here, I’ll point you to that post (complete with pictures).

Any holiday-related song suggestions for next week’s “Sunday Singalong” video?  Remember, if I choose yours, you get a free Listen & Learn album download.  Just leave a comment here or share on Facebook or Twitter.

8 Christmas Albums I Think You’ll Dig

by | Uncategorized

8-great-christmas-albumsThere are few things I enjoy more than a good Christmas album during the holidays.  I’m one of those people that feels it is completely appropriate to break them out at the beginning of November, and I’m always reluctant to remove my Christmas playlist from my iPod come January.

When it comes to holiday music, I don’t discriminate: I’m happy just to listen to the Christmas radio station.  But of course I do have my favorites, which I’m so excited to share with you today.

So on this December 8th, here are my 8 favorite Christmas albums…which I hope you’ll like just as much as I do.  I’ve ordered them according to how long I’ve been listening to them (starting just as recently as last month) and linked each to the Amazon mp3 album download.

  1. Glee: The Christmas Album I’m a total Gleek, so when I got wind of this album in November, I immediately pre-ordered it.  The songs are super-fun, especially since all of these familiar tunes have been given the unique Glee treatment.  My favorite is “Deck the Rooftop” — a mash-up of “Deck the Halls” and “Up on a Housetop”.
  2. Wilson Phillips: Christmas in Harmony If you grew up listening to this female trio back in the early 90s like I did, you should immediately download this album.  Their sound is still gorgeous 20 years later, especially on Christmas songs like “Little Drummer Boy”.
  3. Martina McBride: White Christmas Even if you aren’t a fan of country music, it’s hard not to be enamored with Martina’s voice.  Out of the 16 traditional tunes on this albums, I could listen to her versions of “White Christmas” and “O Holy Night” all day long.
  4. James Taylor: At Christmas There’s not a James Taylor song I don’t love.  But this is by far my favorite album of his, and it still would be even if his poignant rendition of “In the Bleak Midwinter” was the only song on it.
  5. Kristen Chenoweth: A Lovely Way to Spend Christmas Kristen’s voice definitely ranks up their amongst my favorite ever — it’s incredibly versatile.  A couple of the songs are originals, while others (like “Sing”) are familiar and happy surprises.
  6. Bette Midler: Cool Yule For me, this is the quintessential “fun” Christmas album.  I started to list a few of my favorite tracks just now, but then I realized I would be listing nearly all of them.  So just take my word for it and check this one out, starting with the title song.
  7. Christmas With the Rat Pack I grew up listening to the Rat Pack, thanks to my dad.  Does it get any better than Frank, Dean and Sammy singing holiday songs like “Baby, It’s Cold Outside” and “Marshmallow World” in their usual charming ways?  The best part about this album is that there are 21 tracks (and not a bad one in the bunch).
  8. The Carpenters: Christmas Portrait It’s not Christmas for me until I’ve heard Karen Carpenter sing “The Christmas Waltz” and “Merry Christmas, Darling”.  This has been a staple in my CD player (and iPod now, of course) since I was a child, and is still the most-played Christmas album I own.

There are many more Christmas albums in my rotation, but if I was stranded on the North Pole (or maybe just at the airport) and could only take 8 with me, these would be it.  I hope I’ve introduced you to some potential new favorites!  Oh, and let’s keep this list going…which Christmas albums do YOU dig?

Guess What Makes Great Reindeer Hooves?

by | Uncategorized

reindeer-hooves-castanets-sound-effectsCastanets!  I realized this on Friday as I was planning the music activities for my church’s annual Breakfast With Santa event, and then I wondered how I hadn’t thought of it earlier.  Rhythm sticks have always been my go-to instrument for reindeer hooves, but not anymore.

There are lots of castanets out there to choose from, but my personal favorites are these plastic beauties from Musician’s Friend.  At 99 cents, they’re easily replaceable and sound great (if a little loud).  Mine have held up extremely well; my students are not easy on instruments, but I haven’t had one castanet casualty yet!

Last year’s Breakfast at Santa music activities were fun (read about them here), but the castanets made this year’s even better.  I always stick with a reindeer theme, so we sang classics like “Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer” and “Up on the Housetop” along with Listen & Learn originals, like Do You Hear the Reindeer? and The Other Eight Reindeer.

Have you experimented with holiday sound effects?  Maybe you have an even better suggestion for reindeer hooves…if so, please do tell.  There are plenty more school days left to fill before holiday break begins!

Friday Fave: Shopping for My Studio

by | Uncategorized

Shopping bagsOn this day one week ago, I set out at 4 a.m. in search of the perfect Christmas gifts for my friends and family.  After 8 straight hours of shopping, I returned home with a trunkful of goodies…for my home studio.

Okay, so I did buy a few gifts, but picking out useful things for my favorite space was much easier :)  I just couldn’t resist all the Black Friday deals I came across, not to mention the Cyber Monday deals online.  Here’s the run-down on my discounted haul:

Shopping for Studio

  • Multi-Color Storage Cart: I’ve had my eye on this for awhile, as it’s perfect for storing all of the forms and worksheets I use with my students.  Luckily, it was one of the doorbusters at Shopko on Friday morning and I got 60% off.
  • Blank CD-Rs: This might sound like a silly thing to be excited about, but considering how many blank CD-Rs I go through each week, I couldn’t pass up packs of 100 for ten bucks.
  • Flip UltraHD Video Camera: I’ve been using this particular video camera for almost a year to record all of my Sunday Singalong videos, courtesy of my mom.  I gave it to her as a gift last Christmas, but loved it so much that I’ve been “borrowing” it ever since.  The Flip was on super-sale, so I decided it was time to invest in one for myself and give my mom’s back.
  • Shopping for Studio DealsCommotion in the Ocean: I’m always on the lookout for good singable stories, especially when they are on sale.  Amazon is my go-to place for new children’s books, and I found this one on sale (along with a few others) during Cyber Monday.
  • Flip Video Tripod: I’ve been rigging up my own tripods all year, but when I came across this legitimate one for cheap, I added it to my online shopping basket.
  • HP Ink Combo Pack: Another seemingly boring purchase that was actually quite exciting to me!  I go through a lot of ink printing visual aides and other resources for my students, and it definitely adds up.  So anytime I can get it for less, I take advantage of that opportunity.

There were a few other items for my studio that made their way into my cart (both in the stores and online), but these were the ones that made me most happy.  Did you buy anything work-related over the Thanksgiving holiday?  If so, please spill!