Serendipity: Bold Brass: Let the Trumpets Sound

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August 11, 2008

Bold Brass: Let the Trumpets Sound

Trumpetsmall Our next stop in M is for Melody are the brass instruments. The brass family includes the trumpet, French horn, trombone, and tuba. They’re called brass instruments because they’re all made out of that same shiny metal. To play these instruments, musicians buzz their lips against the mouthpiece while also blowing air through the horn. Brass instruments can make loud, powerful, important sounds, and are often used to announce kings, queens, and even presidents!

Read the sidebar in M is for Melody and add a page to your main lesson book.

Smallfrenchhorn Visit here to see pictures and listen to the different brass instruments. Here is another site with more detailed information. Classics for Kids offers this great virtual orchestra to explore. Listen to the brass instruments.

As we study the different instruments throughout the year, there are some resources you might like to have that we will use several times.

These cards from Montessori for Everyone are great for learning the names of instruments and what they look like. As you get used to hearing what the different instruments sound like, you can play a simple game by having the children hold up the right card as they listen to a piece of music.

Here are some simple drawing of the brass instruments for a young child to color and label. Older children can sketch the instruments (so many interesting shapes) into a main lesson book and add a written description. To extend it even further, ask children to describe what the sound they make is like. This could make for some very creative narrations.

Another good resource is a book about the orchestra. You may already own one you love. Feel free to use it to read about brass instruments this week. Some recommendations:

Meet the Orchestra by Ann Hayes
Musical Instruments from A to Z by Bobbie Kalman
The Story of the Incredible Orchestra: An Introduction to Musical Instruments and the Symphony Orchestra by Bruce Koscielniak
Story of the Orchestra : Listen While You Learn About the Instruments, the Music and the Composers Who Wrote the Music! by Robert Levine
Those Amazing Musical Instruments! With CD-ROM by Genevieve Helsby
The Young Person's Guide to the Orchestra (Book & CD) by Anita Ganeri

For fun and enrichment:

Musical Instruments Coloring Book by Ellen J. McHenry
Music Activity Book by Ellen J. McHenry
Musical Instruments Stickers (Dover Little Activity Books) by Winky Adam

At this site, you can print out a drawing of an orchestra. As you learn the different families of instruments, color in the page. By the end of the year, you'll have a a colorful picture of the orchestra.

Books to extend the lesson:

Primary:
Tuba Lessons by T.C. Bartlett
Tubby the Tuba by Paul Tripp

Elementary:
Mr. Putter and Tabby Toot the Horn by Cynthia Rylant

Middle:
The Trumpet of the Swan by E.B. White

Composer Study:

"For unto us a child is born...and his name shall be called Wonderful! Counselor! the Mighty God!, the Everlasting Father! the Prince of Peace!"

Handel One year for my birthday, my present was a trip to the Kennedy Center to listen to Handel's Messiah. Ever since, I have a very special love for this piece of music. When I was young I loved it because it sounded so important and impressive. Now that I'm older, and I've matured in my faith, I can also treasure the beautiful lyrics, the majesty of which they speak about Christ our Savior. Handel is our composer study for brass instruments to highlight a portion called "The Trumpet Shall Sound". Listen carefully and you can hear how this is almost like a duet between man and trumpet, with Handel challenging the human voice to keep up with the trumpet. Listen to other parts of Messiah and you will notice why brass instruments are indeed the perfect instruments to be heralds of great and important people and news. After you've spent time learning about him, add a page to your Book of Centuries.