The Nutcracker Ballet

4th Grade had the fantastic opportunity to attend Wichita Ballet's performance of The Nutcracker Ballet on the 13th!! We are very thankful to the Babson Foundation for generously donating the money for the students to attend :) In preparation for our field trip, we've been busy studying Tchaikovsky (the composer), the unique dance form of ballet, the storyline, characters, and the music people know and love from the ballet. We stopped for ice cream on the way back for a perfect end to the day. Ask your child what their favorite part of the performance was!

Two Thumbs Up for Kindergarten!!

Kindergarten had a wonderful time singing, dancing, and making music at their program on December 12th!! Lots of great comments and complements for the kiddos from the audience. We performed some new winter songs, spoke about what we loved about this time of year, and ended with a holiday favorite-12 Days of Christmas! Look at how nice we  looked:

Happy Holidays!

Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year to your home and loved ones this Winter Break from Marshall Music! Enjoy family time and make sure to sing some favorite carols together before school starts back up in January :) I'll sure miss the kiddos!

Five Stars for FLAKES!

1st Grade's production of FLAKES! was a wonderful reminder that each and every person is special and unique (just like a snowflake!)  in their very own way. The students did a great job singing, dancing, playing instruments, and celebrating the winter season on Thursday. Here are some photos of them having a fantastic time, it's easy to tell from their faces!! Hope you enjoyed the little concert, remember you're as special as a snowflake-or a Snirt!

November's Composer of the Month

This month's composer is Antonio Vivaldi! Here's some fun facts that your kid can tell you more about: Vivaldi was born in Italy over 300 years ago, he was the oldest of 9 children, due to his bad asthma he couldn't play outside as a child so instead he learned to play the violin, "The Red Priest" was his nickname since he was a Catholic priest with fiery red hair (although he normally wore a wig), he died a poor person after selling all of his belongings in order to travel to a new job.
His composition we've been studying is The Four Seasons which is separated into four movements (Spring, Summer, Autumn, and Winter). With each season we've worked on a corresponding Tree Worksheet which allows students to write and draw about what the music makes them feel, think, and hear.

Spring:

Summer: 

Autumn:

 

Winter: 

 

Recorder Karate!

The Recorder Corner where students can track their belt progress!

What is that sound coming out of the music room?! It is the sound of 4th, 5th, and 6th grade learning to play the soprano recorder! We are starting with the basics (correct way to hold, blow, and finger the recorder) and will steadily get to more difficult concepts as the years go on. Each grade will have recorders roughly once a week and so we will use the school's instead of requiring one to be purchased.

You may have heard your child buzzing about something called Recorder Karate. No worries, this is not an opportunity to hit someone with a recorder-it's not violent at all! This is a motivational program where students are given a chance to practice their skills and work up the belt ladder to attain a black belt in recorder! Each test song gets gradually more challenging, but the beauty is each child can work at his/her own speed. Make sure to ask your child throughout the year what belt they are on!

Students get to pick a character to be and to tie their belts to!

Flakes! Costumes