Here are some of my  favorites I’d like to share:

MUSIC INSTINCT: Science and Song DVD

Hosted by Bobby McFerrin and neuroscientist Daniel Levitin (The World in Six Songs and This is Your Brain on Music). Musicians including McFerrin, YoYo Ma, Evelyn Glennie, & Daniel Barenboim join forces with scientists, musicologists, anthropologists, researchers, and psychologists in quest of defining not only how music developed but more importantly why. Explores Western music, plus music in other cultures and even in the animal kingdom. We are left with wonder at the transforming, universal power of music. 120 min. DVD 5043  $29.95 Order now

B. B. KING SINGS “ONE SHOE BLUES” Book and DVD

By Sandra Boynton, starring B.B. King. “Well, I woke up this morning. Couldn’t find my shoe…” The book tells the story in words and photos, and the 15-min. DVD features B.B. King  and the Singing Sock Puppets as they sing the blues over this lost shoe.  B.B. King is priceless in his musical role. A great introduction to the blues for kids, which invites them to sing along, with or without shoes!   Hardback and DVD  6803  $10.95 Order now

BAKE YOU A PIE Book & CD

By Ellen Olson-Brown & Brian Claflin, Illus. by Jeffrey Ebbeler. This story-song book with CD introduces some pretty silly pies, with clever rhyming verses, humorous illustrations, and musical styles that match the flavor of the pie. Sing along to the verses set in various musical styles: jazz, blues, gospel, rock, country, cajun, techno, bluegrass. . .even opera!  Book & CD 6762  $15.95 Order now

FROM THE TOP AT CARNEGIE HALL DVD

Based on the wildly popular NPR radio program that features young, talented and inspiring classical performers, this DVD takes us backstage and back home for funny, passionate, everyday glimpses of their lives. Great highlights and insights into the lives of young musicians, hosted by the humorous and engaging classical pianist Christopher O’Riley. 338 minutes on 2 discs. 5732  $29.95 Order now

DOT THE MUSICAL DRAGON

He plays 4 compositions in different styles, from folk and classical to boogie woogie. Press the buttons to hear the selections played by 5 different groups of instruments, with 2 modes of play: long-play music or touch-activated music or animal sounds. Other tactile delights are the dancing lights of his buttons, the crinkly sounds of his tummy, wings and spikes, and a tail that vibrates when pulled. This huggable musical friend offers hours of delight and auditory development, stimulating little ears and brains. Ages 6 months and up. 20″ long. Tried and tested by my 5 new grandbabies (ages 4 months. to 2.5 yrs.), so I absolutely recommend this! 3752  $39.95 order now

Musicians are the “dreamers of dreams… the movers and shakers of the world forever, it seems” (Arthur O’Shaughnessy). One such “mover and shaker” is the conductor Gustavo Dudamel, who is currently leading a  musical revolution that affects thousands of young lives in Venezuela. Perhaps the repressive, authoritarian political regime now in power in Venezuela makes the transformative, liberating act of bringing music to thousands of at-risk kids  even more urgent.

This passionate, flamboyant 28-year-old conductor debuted Oct. 8 as new music director of the Los Angeles Philharmonic, to a wildly enthusiastic audience of 18,000. Dudamel also continues his 10th year with the phenomenal Simon Bolivar Orchestra, which resulted from a nationwide music education program which trained Dudamel along with thousands of young musicians, many from the poorest, most crime-ridden neighborhoods. (See The Promise of Music DVD).  Let’s hope he can help foment a similar musical revolution in the USA.

THE PROMISE OF MUSIC DVD. Gustavo Dudamel, director of Venezuela’s Simon Bolivar Youth Orchestra and classical music’s hottest young star,  showcases a musical revolution  that is the envy of the world. This incredible orchestra, one of the country’s many youth orchestras, is the result of a music education program called “El Sistema” that begins early in life and involves thousands of students,  many  from the nation’s poorest crime-ridden neighborhoods. “El Sistema”, founded in 1975 by far-sighted musical “mover and shaker” José Antonio Abreu, has opened the doors of classical music to thousands (including Dudamel himself), providing music education and free instruments to those who could not otherwise afford it.  Follow Director Dudamel and young musicians of the Simon Bolivar Youth Orchestra of Venezuela, in their day-to-day lives, in rehearsal, and in performance. Never again doubt the power of music to shape lives when you witness the most talked about phenomenon in the musical world today. 155 min. DVD

El Sistema: Music to Change Life  DVD 5092  $39.95 is now available at Music in Motion.

MAO’S LAST DANCER:  Complete Autobiography

Mao’s Last Dancer, the autobiography of one of the world’s best ballet dancers, is among the most exciting and inspiring stories you will ever read about a performing artist. Li Cunxin, from a desperately poor northern Chinese province, is chosen at age 11 from millions of children to attend Madame Mao’s Beijing Dance Academy during the Cultural Revolution. Though painfully difficult, Li persists and his training pays off when he is chosen to travel to America to dance. Seizing his opportunity for freedom, he courageously defects. Told by Li, this book offers a great insight into Chinese culture and an individual’s personal determination to gain political and artistic freedom. 490 pp. Paperback 6739  $17.00  order now

MAO’S LAST DANCER: Young Reader’s Edition

This young reader’s edition of the true story of ballet dancer Li Cunxin is well-edited and has plenty of exciting detail for Gr. 6-9. 304 pp. Hardback 6738  $16.99  order now

DANCING FOR FREEDOM: The True Story of Mao’s Last Dancer        

This children’s book, illustrated by Anne Spudvilas, tells the story of Li Cunxin for ages 4-8.  “As a boy in China, Li identified with the trapped frog in one of his father’s stories: ‘Even though the frog jumped and hopped, the well was just too deep.’ Li’s own leaps proved more successful; his selection for a rigorous dance-training program led him from his impoverished village to ballet stardom” (review from Booklist). Hardback 6737  $16. 95  order now

MAO’s LAST DANCER: The Movie

The movie and DVD has not yet released in North America, but Music in Motion will make it available as soon as it releases.

FILM SYNOPSIS/TRAILER from the official Mao’s Last Dancer website:

“From internationally acclaimed Australian film director Bruce Beresford comes the inspirational true story of a small boy’s extraordinary journey from poverty to international stardom, from a grueling apprenticeship as a classical dancer in communist China to the glory of creative freedom in America. But, there is a painful price to be paid for his quest for self expression. Mao’s Last Dancer captures the intoxicating effects of first love and celebrity, the pain of exile, and ultimately the triumph of individual endeavor over ideology. Filmed in China, the US and Australia and with a brilliant performance from Chi Cao as Li Cunxin, Mao’s Last Dancer is an exhilarating exploration of what it means to be free.”