For Grown-Ups

An introduction to music through listening experiences allows for artistic expressions and reactions towards the music itself. While you have fun together, your child will learn that music can become meaningful as well as interesting and enjoyable. These listening "lessons" don't require parents to have any previous experience in music education.

Here is a suggested list for having your child and yourself draw pictures of the ocean, ocean storms, fountains, or rivers as they listen to the music.

Bedrich Smetana: Ma Vlast - The Moldau. This composer wanted to have us think about a famous river in his music. The river is big and wide and flows along. This water music shows us a picture of what a river might look like.

George Frideric Handel: Water Music - Not very picturesque, but this was composed before anyone really had the idea of "painting pictures" with music. Written for the King of England to cruise up and down the Thames on his royal barge.

Ludwig van Beethoven: Symphony No. 6 "Pastoral" - The 2nd Movement is entitled "Scenes by the Brook," the 4th Movement includes a thunderstorm, and the 5th Movement "happy, thankful feelings after the storm." This is one of the first examples of "program music," music that is supposed to tell a story, depict a scene or suggest a mood in the listener.

Ottorino Respighi: the Fountains of Rome - a composer of many picturesque works, mostly depicting scenes of life in Rome, Italy.


Ralph Vaughan Williams: A Sea Symphony - music about the sea set to the poetry of Walt Whitman.

Ferde Grofe: The Grand Canyon Suite - A ride on a mule down into the canyon where you get caught in a cloudburst. Also, Grofe composed the "Mississippi Suite," a musical portrait of the "Father of Waters."


Claude Debussy: La Mer - Already represented above, he also composed this piece, which, of course, is French for "the Sea."

Nicolai Rimsky-Korsakov: Scheherazade. Let's remind everyone that music has colors and paints pictures of stories and people. Remember that this music tells the story of a big ocean. The melody or tune that represents the ocean goes up and down and is high and low (like a tall wave crashing on a beach.) Let's listen and see if the kids can tell when the waves get tall and crash.