Yesterday I wrote about the importance of sleep. Today’s post will be about another ingredient that is necessary for making my day into a success. Music can be inspiring, motivating, comforting, touching, sometimes all at the same time. This is a lesson my students learned today, when we visited the royal concert hall.
We started with a workshop on classical music. We were sitting in a big hall full with instruments. Each student had to pick an instrument and make a sound that symbolized ‘fog’. Afterwards, the students were devided into two groups and had to make a composition on fog. They then learned that in stead of playing all at the same time, playing in turns can be very powerful too. After that, the two groups had to join and make a composition on ‘fireworks’. When the composition was finished, they listened to a small piece of music from Debussy, who did indeed compose two pieces titled ‘fog’ (brouillards) and ‘fireworks’ (feux d’artifice). It was remarkable to hear the resemblances between their music and Debussy’s.
After the workshop we attended a Debussy and Skrjabin lunch concert in the small concerthall. It was amazing to enjoy the music together with my students and to see them learn from the new impressions. Most of them had never been to a classical concert before and it was wonderful to share the experience.
Talking about music, last night I compiled a playlist on Youtube. I love all sorts of music: classical, jewish, Israeli, modern, and many things in between. The 60 songs I selected are from the 60′s, 70′s, 80′s and 90′s and make me happy or melancholic. Here’s my top eleven from the 80′s, 90′s and early 00′s. Enjoy! What’s your favorite song?
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Of your list? Either U2 or the Cranberries. I LOVE 90s music. Miss the alt rock of that decade terribly. And, I LOVE Debussy. I take it your students all know how to play instruments…jealous.
Coolio? Seriously?
Hey there,
I’m writing here to let you know that there are a lot more comments on the “How do you do Shabbat” post over at Jewsbychoice.org. Here’s a direct link to that post
http://jewsbychoice.org/2008/01/12/how-do-you-do-shabbat-2-2/
MWT~ They don’t know how to play instruments. They were given drums, djembes and xylophones
Super Raizy~ Guess I need to explain
Dangerous minds was the first movie I ever saw in a movie theater and I found it inspiring to see the teacher deal with her students. Somehow, hearing the song brings back those memories. I don’t know any other Coolio songs 
Tamara~ Thanks, I will check it out!
This was a field trip? That’s amazing! I wish I had more expertise/knowledge on different art forms, such as music, theatre. I have taken students to theatre and ballet performances, and I can teach the literary elements, but they could benefit even more from music and theatre instruction.
I love that Sting song- I also have it in Spanish and Portuguese. Isn’t it a Jimi Hendrix cover? Or am I thinking of a different song?
OMG…Ofra Haza! I fell in love with her voice when she sang on the Prince of Egypt soundtrack. She is stunning…I am sad she is no longer with us.
i would say sentimental mood by john coltrain..