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Description
I haven't posted one of my takes on a children's song in a while. It's good for me to periodically remind myself that first and foremost I'm an educator. The dabbling in songwriting and producing I do is just a hobby.
Back in the summer of of 2009 I set about recording a batch of about 30 children's songs to use as materials during reading instruction. Now that I've moved from the 1st grade classroom to being the school's music teacher I'm revisiting these songs in preparation for the upcoming school year. As a first grade teacher the reading content was the primary focus. In the music room I'll need to focus more on the singing and music literacy aspects embedded in the songs. As a result I'm transcribing the melodies with Finale so the children learn to read some basic notation. I'm also considering changes in key and tempo to make them more singable for the children. Back when I recorded these songs the keys were picked to accommodate my limited vocal range. I thought this one might be worth posting.
These children's songs go back to my pre-MacJams days, before I was aware of the fun and potential of online collaboration. As a result I had to do it all on my own. That can be a double edged sword. On one hand you're limited by your own skills ("a man's got to know his limitations"). On the other hand it can force one to stretch and develop new skills. On this one I employed my newly acquired Yamaha EZAG MIDI guitar. That's how I played the piano and banjo parts. I also bought a cheap set of harmonicas. I couldn't believe how hard I found it to play anything remotely musical on a harmonica. Since then both the MIDI guitar and harmonicas have become things to move when dusting. It's just easier to ask for help from talented MacJamers who really play those instruments.
The train and goat sound effects where free sounds downloaded from the internet. At the time, I was sending these off to a friend and colleague to critique. He thought it terrible funny that the email message the mp3 was attached to simply read, "I may have gone too far with the goats!"
Back in the summer of of 2009 I set about recording a batch of about 30 children's songs to use as materials during reading instruction. Now that I've moved from the 1st grade classroom to being the school's music teacher I'm revisiting these songs in preparation for the upcoming school year. As a first grade teacher the reading content was the primary focus. In the music room I'll need to focus more on the singing and music literacy aspects embedded in the songs. As a result I'm transcribing the melodies with Finale so the children learn to read some basic notation. I'm also considering changes in key and tempo to make them more singable for the children. Back when I recorded these songs the keys were picked to accommodate my limited vocal range. I thought this one might be worth posting.
These children's songs go back to my pre-MacJams days, before I was aware of the fun and potential of online collaboration. As a result I had to do it all on my own. That can be a double edged sword. On one hand you're limited by your own skills ("a man's got to know his limitations"). On the other hand it can force one to stretch and develop new skills. On this one I employed my newly acquired Yamaha EZAG MIDI guitar. That's how I played the piano and banjo parts. I also bought a cheap set of harmonicas. I couldn't believe how hard I found it to play anything remotely musical on a harmonica. Since then both the MIDI guitar and harmonicas have become things to move when dusting. It's just easier to ask for help from talented MacJamers who really play those instruments.
The train and goat sound effects where free sounds downloaded from the internet. At the time, I was sending these off to a friend and colleague to critique. He thought it terrible funny that the email message the mp3 was attached to simply read, "I may have gone too far with the goats!"
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magnatone
andrew, this is like one of my most favorite songs from childhood. i did a whole essay on this song in junior high school, and nobody knew what the heck i was talking about. to wake up to THIS song is just HILARIOUS!! some of my lyrics are a wee bit different, but i'm still left not knowing for SURE if the train stopped in time or not (which is what my essay was about). this kept me up nights as a young child - "so, did the train stop in time????"
LOL - this is FABULOUS!!!