Reviews & Previews

Metropolitan Opera at the Movies, 2011-12 Season

August 26, 2011

Take advantage of “front row” seats at the Met’s new 2011-12 HD Live opera season, and watch opening day performances (or encore evening showings) at local movie theaters throughout the world. Although nothing beats a live performance at the Met in Lincoln Center, these simulcast live performances on screen are the next best thing, and [...]

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SING ME A STORY: The Musical Approach to Children’s Literature

May 12, 2011

Jill and Michael Gallina share news of their exciting new musical that highlights the importance of literature and reading: If you are interested in a musical that takes place entirely on risers and integrates music and children’s literature into one easy-to-produce package, we hope you’ll consider our latest “Rise and Shine” musical SING ME A [...]

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Christmas in the Trenches: The “Silent Night” Truce

November 21, 2010

After months of deadly trench warfare, on Dec. 24, 1914, German and British soldiers in Belgium suddenly ceased hostilities and, through the singing of carols, celebrated Christmas together. This film documents their spontaneous musical truce with eyewitness reports, proving that "people who make music together cannot be enemies, at least not while the music lasts" [...]

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George Gershwin – Sept. 26

September 26, 2010

True music must repeat the thought and inspirations of the people and the time. My people are Americans and my time is today.      – George Gershwin Born Sept. 26, 1898 in Brooklyn, New York Died July 11, 1937 in Hollywood, California George Gershwin, the son of Russian Jewish immigrants, is the quintessential American composer. [...]

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Dmitri Shostakovich – Sept. 25

September 25, 2010

Born Sept. 25, 1906 in St. Petersburg, Russia Died Aug. 9, 1975 in Moscow, Russia A product of the Bolshevik Revolution, Shostakovich was the most famous of all  Soviet composers. He led a politically and personally troubled life, yet produced some of the century’s most celebrated and frequently performed works even today . Born into [...]

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Autumn from Vivaldi’s Four Seasons

September 24, 2010

Antonio Vivaldi (1678-1741) wrote numerous concertos, many of them for the young ladies who resided in the Venetian orphanage where Vivaldi was employed for most of his working career. (Many of these “orphans” were daughters of affluent  noblemen and their mistresses, and they lived in very comfortable circumstances and were given excellent musical training.)  Some [...]

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Ray Charles – Sept. 23

September 23, 2010

Ray Charles overcame blindness and poverty to become a legend in American music. His gritty mix of gospel, rhythm and blues, and jazz speaks to kids as well as adults.

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Opera for Kids: Free Resources from the Met

August 27, 2010

 Educator Guides to the Operas Plan an opera study unit for your students based on one of the operas in the 2010-11 Metropolitan Opera season, climaxing with a Night at the Opera in a local movie theater or at your school. The Met Live in HD series offers free opera-specific educational guides you can use [...]

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Catch the Met’s 2010-11 Operas in Movie Theaters

August 26, 2010

The fifth season of the Metropolitan Opera’s Live in HD series is coming to a movie theater near you! Enjoy front row seats at these live opening night productions. It is so easy to feel more engaged with opera on a large screen, where you can see everything “up close and personal.”  Feel the pre-performance [...]

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World Cup Music: Shostakovich’s Soccer Match

July 11, 2010

Don’t underestimate the power of either sports or music when it comes to exciting a crowd. Even as a tormented composer writing under the harsh restrictions and demands of Communism, in his 1929 ballet  The Golden Age big-time soccer fan and sometime soccer referee Shostakovich recreated a soccer match. In this ballet, a communist soccer team [...]

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The Music of Soccer: Top 5 Soccer Pieces in Classical Music

July 7, 2010

There’s a lot more to World Cup soccer music than national anthems and the penetrating blare of “vuvuzela” horns.  WQXR classical FM station, highlights the top 5 soccer pieces from 100 years of soccer-inspired classical music.

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Hidden Musical Code in Plato’s Writings

July 7, 2010

A scholar in England just announced his discovery of a secret music code in the writings of Plato.  As a closeted follower of Pythagoras, whose heretical beliefs threatened traditional religion, Plato believed that music and mathematics were closely related, and that music was a reflection of the mathematical principles that governed the universe. Pythagoras codified [...]

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Jazz Festivals 2010

June 29, 2010

Here are links & dates for jazz festivals around the world, so plan a trip around an  enticing jazz venue that beckons you to kick back and enjoy live jazz at its convivial best. Jazz Festivals in USA Jazz Festivals in Canada UK Jazz Festivals European Jazz Festivals Worldwide jazz festivals are also listed geographically, [...]

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Vienna Vegetable Orchestra: Veggies Never Sounded So Good

June 28, 2010

Since 1998, the Vienna Vegetable Orchestra has performed on musical instruments they make from fresh vegetables. (I couldn’t make this up.) They shop for veggies at the local produce market, spend a few hours making their vegetable instruments, then after their concert, they throw them into the pot and serve up vegetable soup. Contrary to [...]

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The Met Brings Opera into the Classroom

June 15, 2010

Bring full-scale Metropolitan Opera productions into your classroom! The free Live in HD school program from the Met is now available in some school districts around the country, and online educational guides put the icing on the cake.  Teaching guides for each Metropolitan opera production include classroom activities, musical highlights, story synopses, accompanying audio clips, [...]

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Enjoy Operas from the Met: At the Movies or Online!

June 3, 2010

Can’t go to the opera? Does your busy schedule or a pinched pocketbook or an illness make you miss the magic of the live performance? While there is nothing like the excitement of being in the theater for the real event, there are now 2 wonderful and affordable alternatives: Option 1. Opera Night at the [...]

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Boomwhackers on Steroids: Plastik Musik

June 1, 2010

If you thought boomwhackers were just for kids, think again. Better still, listen to the percussion group Plastik Musik in their astounding Boomwhacker performance: The first time I met Craig Ramsell, creator of the Boomwhackers, was  in Phoenix, Arizona, about 15 years ago at a music education conference.  At the time, I knew his newly [...]

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New Opera Explores Dementia & Alzheimer’s

May 17, 2010

The Lion’s Face, a new opera on the effects of ageing and memory loss, premieres in Brighton, England May 20, 2010, then tours the UK for the summer.  The music is by Elena Langer, and the lyrics by Glyn Maxwell. The creation of the opera involved an intense collaboration with scientists and doctors at the [...]

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Picasso and Music

May 7, 2010

Three Musicians by Picasso  After a day at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, mostly spent in the special Picasso exhibit (the largest ever), I was virtually blinded by “the embarrassment of riches” he left to the world. The chronological exhibit of his works gave cohesion to his life and his many artistic [...]

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Opera/Ballet Live in Cinema series: Dallas metroplex

April 20, 2010

This took a little research to find, but thought that opera and ballet fans in the  Dallas/Ft. Worth metroplex would find this theater schedule handy for upcoming productions from major opera/ballet companies around the world. How exciting is this! Gather up your friends or your music class and plan a night at the opera, Texas [...]

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See Live European Operas in Local Movie Theaters

April 18, 2010

Enjoy front row seats at the latest operatic productions from Milan’s La Scala and Barcelona’s Gran Teatre del Liceu, as well as from other European venues, all in the comfort of your local movie theater.  Join opening night audiences throughout the world to experience these outstanding operas in digital HD.  Oh brave new world that [...]

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Kids Interactive Music Link: Xploring Xtremes

April 18, 2010

ArtsEdge, Kennedy Center’s interactive website for music and arts education, is a free online resource  every teacher, librarian, parent, and caregiver should know about, but probably doesn’t.  One of my favorite features was Xploring Xtremes. Kids can explore and analyze musical extremes in dynamics, tempo, and other elements of music, through a variety of listening, [...]

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Gustavo Dudamel: A Revolutionary Musical Hero

December 15, 2009
Gustavo Dudamel

Gustavo Dudamel, classical music’s hottest young star and new LA Philharmonic director, spearheaded a musical revolution in Venezuela that affected thousands of young, poor and at-risk students.

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MAO’S LAST DANCER: Autobiography, Children’s Books, & Movie

December 15, 2009
Mao's Last Dancer

11-yr.-old Li Cunxin is taken from his family to train at the Beijing Ballet Academy during Mao’s Cultural Revolution. He dances his way to freedom and international acclaim when he courageously defects to the USA. 3 versions of this incredible true story: for adults, young readers, and children.

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