Winter Wonderland 2013 - "Zum Gali Gali"

Winter Wonderland '13 - Zum Gali Gali from Richard Lawton on Vimeo.

Winter Wonderland 2013 - "Hitotsu Toya"

Winter Wonderland '13 - Hitotsu Toya from Richard Lawton on Vimeo.

Winter Wonderland 2013 - "Two-Three/Salaam Al'leekum"

Winter Wonderland '13 - Two Three-Salaam Al'leekum from Richard Lawton on Vimeo.

Winter Wonderland 2013 - "Simple Gifts"

Winter Wonderland 2013 - Simple Gifts from Richard Lawton on Vimeo.

Winter Wonderland 2013 - "Little Moses"

Winter Wonderland '13 - Little Moses from Richard Lawton on Vimeo.

Winter Wonderland 2013 - "Still, Still, Still"

Winter Wonderland '13 - Still, Still, Still from Richard Lawton on Vimeo.

Winter Wonderland 2013 - "African Noel"

Winter Wonderland '13 - African Noel from Richard Lawton on Vimeo.

Winter Wonderland 2013 - "Good King Wenceslas"

Winter Wonderland '13- Good King Wenceslas from Richard Lawton on Vimeo.

Winter Wonderland 2013 - "Jingle Bells"

Winter Wonderland '13 - Jingle Bells from Richard Lawton on Vimeo.

Winter Wonderland 2013 - "Ode to Joy"

Winter Wonderland '13 - Ode to Joy from Richard Lawton on Vimeo.

Winter Wonderland 2013 - "Snowflake Song"

Winter Wonderland '13 - Snowflake Song from Richard Lawton on Vimeo.

Winter Wonderland 2013 - "Pojdzmy Wszscy Do Stajenki"

Winter Wonderland '13 - Pojdzmy Wszyscy Do Stajenki from Richard Lawton on Vimeo.

Winter Wonderland 2013 - "S'vivon"

Winter Wonderland '13 - S'vivon from Richard Lawton on Vimeo.

Winter Wonderland 2013 - "Follow the Drinking Gourd"

Winter Wonderland '13 - Follow the Drinking Gourd from Richard Lawton on Vimeo.

Winter Wonderland 2013 - "Jambo Bwana"

Winter Wonderland '13 - Jambo Bwana from Richard Lawton on Vimeo.

Winter Wonderland 2013 - "Zumba, Zumba"

Winter Wonderland '13 - Zumba, Zumba from Richard Lawton on Vimeo.

Winter Wonderland 2013 - "Must Be Santa"

Winter Wonderland '13 - Must Be Santa from Richard Lawton on Vimeo.

Winter Wonderland 2013 - "Oh Hanukkah"

Winter Wonderland '13 - Oh Hanukkah from Richard Lawton on Vimeo.

Winter Wonderland 2013 -- Congratulations on a job well done!

Hello Wonderland Community -- I want to thank everybody for making this year's holiday show a success, but especially the kids.  As the videos I will be posting here indicate, you guy sang and played your hearts out, and I was thrilled to be part of it.   I hope you will enjoy these clips (thank you, Michael Ford!) and will enjoy sharing them with friends and family over the holiday.  Safe travels everybody.  I will see you all in the new year!

5th Grade Magnet Rehearsal - "Zum Gali Gali"

Hi Fifth Graders -- excellent job at yesterday's rehearsal.  With so many kids it had the potential to go completely crazy, but you did such an excellent job maintaining your focus.  I thought you and your loved ones would enjoy this little preview going into the weekend.

Ms. Weiss's & Ms. Abu Bakir's classes - "Good King Wenceslas" vocal

Greetings students -- here at long last is a recording of the words to "Good King Wenceslas" Most of you are singing this pretty well by now, but remember, you will need to have the words memorized for the show.

Coyote String Band -- "Bile Them Cabbage Down" for Banjo and Mandolin

Hi String Band Members -- with a week to go before our first concert, there is still a lot we can get done if we practice.  Here is a short video of the banjo roll and the mandolin picking part for "Bile Them Cabbage Down."  Remember that the banjo needs to be capoed in the 2nd box in the key of A, whereas the mandolin plays just fine in A with a capo.

You have a week so get to picking and rolling!

A taste of what's to come - 4th graders practice "Little Moses"

It's so wonderful to have a job where I get to hear children sweetly singing holiday music every day.  And this year we are expanding our definition of "holiday music" to include this country/bluegrass standards by the legendary Carter Family.  We just started handing out the ukes, and the kids already sound great strumming along.  Can't wait to hear what it sounds like in two weeks.

Join us for Winter Wonderland!  Write down the date:  Thursday, December 19 -- shows at 8:30, 10:30, and 1.

Mr. Anderson's, Mr. Austin's and Ms. Lopez's classes - "Still Still Still"

Hi 4th graders. It seems like forever since I posted the "Little Moses" video (you can find it archived in "November"). Here is a recording of our other song "Still Still Still." This arrangement is similar to the one we will be using, including the first verse in German, but it is missing the counter melody and the parallel third harmony. Try adding those parts as you sing along.

Mr. Earl's & Mr. Oasay's classes - "Zum Gali Gali"

Here's our other holiday show song - "Zum Gali Gali" -- in an arrangement very similar to the one we will be using. This recording does not include the English verse but I am betting you can figure out how that fits the music.

Mr. Oasay's & Mr. Earl's classes - "Hitotsu Toya"

Here's a recording of "Hitotsu Toya."  I'm only posting the Japanese verse. Try singing the English verses against the instrumental section. The B section that we composed we will obviously need to work on together.

Mr. Oasay's & Mr. Earl's classes - "Hitotsu Toya" -- pronounciation

Hi fifth graders -- here is a pronunciation practice track for the Japanese verse in "Hitotsu Toya." Japanese is a very different language than English, so take a little time to practice your vocabulary and accent.

Kindergarten - "Oh Hanukkah"

Here is our other song, which we will sing twice through, just like they do on the recording. It has a very different mood from "Must Be Santa." When songs have a different "feel" we say they have "contrast."

Kindergarten - "Must Be Santa" 2013 ver.

Hi Ms. Jane's, Ms. Lacy's and Mr. Song's classes. Here is the first of two songs we will be singing for Winter Concert, with the special lyrics that you guys wrote. (I think this might be the best version of "Must Be Santa" ever!)

Ms. McLeod's & Ms. Zarakowski's classes - "Snowflake Song"

Here's our second song. Remember we will sing this twice, with the instrumental B section you wrote in between. Don't forget your movements.

Ms. McLeod & Ms. Zarakowski's classes - "Pojdzmy Wszycy Do Stajenki"

Here is a first verse of our Polish Carol in Polish. Again, concentrate of good pronunciation. There are also two verses in English, but you won't have any problem with those.

"Pojdzmy Wszycy Do Stajenki" - pronunciation

Hi 2nd graders -- here is a pronunciation track for the Polish verse of "Pojdzmy Wszycy Do Stajenki." Polish is a language with what are for most of us some very different sounds. Use this pronunciation track to develop your accent.

Ms. Lamoureaux's & Ms. Sae-Tang's classes - "Follow the Drinking Gourd"

...and here is our other song. This arrangement covers all but the last verse. Try singing that over the instrumental section in the recording. And don't forget to practice your dance moves.

Ms. Lamoureaux's & Ms. Sae-Tang's classes -- "S'vivon"

Hey first and second graders -- here is the first of our two songs for Winter Wonderland. We will be working on the xylophone parts in class, but it will help if you come in knowing the words.