Gregory Brigham
Listening Project
Title: Maps
Album: V
Artist: Maroon 5
This an upbeat pop song that uses bass guitar, standard guitars and a drum set. Each instrument
has a unique but standard rhythm that older children can identify. Letting the children create their
own rhythms to the song an activity that can be used.
Title: La fille aux cheveux de lin (The Girl With the Flaxen Hair)
Album: Breaking Dawn
Composer: Claude Debussy
Artist: Edward Cullen
This is a solo piano piece that uses the G-flat pentatonic scale. This piece can be used to play
“follow the leader” (or melody). The children can move around freely as long as the melody is
moving. This promote listening skills, melody identification, and introduces them to new sounds.
Title: Go
Album: Refractions
Composer: Mike Forbes
Artist: Sotto Voce Quartet
Duration: 2:45 second
This pieces is an instrumental piece for euphonium quartets. The piece is in duple meter, but uses
off set entrances to through off the feeling of a duple meter. This piece has lot of movement and
dynamic change the children would enjoy.
Title: I’m Seventeen Come Sunday
Album: TMEA 2014 Clark Middle School Symphonic Band
Compose/Arranger: Percy Grainger/L.Daehn
Artist: Clark Middle School
The song is a traditional British folk tune played by a symphonic band. This piece is in a different
mode and can be used to introduce the different instrument families.
Title: Life in Color
Album: Native
Artist: OneRepublic
This is a pop song by OneRepublic in duple meter. This song is fun any children would in joy
using different color scarfs while using flow to move around.
Title: Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy
Album: That’s Christmas to Me
Artist: Pentatonix
This is a pop A Capella arrangement by Pentatonix. This song takes a classic piece and gives is
fresh new feel to it. An activity could be comparing the pop A Capella arrangement to the
orchestral version.
Title: Mungojerrie and Rumpleteaser
Album: Cats
Composer: Andrew Lloyd Webber
This song is a musical theatre piece by Andrew Lloyd Webber. It has mixed meter and would give
student the opportunity to act like cats.
Title: Concerto for two Violins in a minor
Album: A Baroque Feast
Composer: Antonio Vivaldi
Artist: Tafelmusik Baroque Orchestra
This piece is in the Baroque style and in duple meter. This piece has a lot of contrasting dynamics
would make for a fun exercise and movement game.
Title: Let Beauty Awake
Album: The Vagabond
Composer: Ralph Vaughn Williams
Artist: Bryn Terfel
This is a classical solo art song for baritone in compound triple meter. The piano yields itself for
creative movement and flow and the solo sings.
Title: Gia il sole le dal gange
Album: Arie Antiche
Composer: Alissandro Scarlatti
Artist: Cecillia Bartolli
This song is an Italian art song that takes the form of ABA. This song is fun and child can
harmonize to it by singing the tonic and dominant because they occur frequently.
Additional Popular Songs
Title: Budapest
Album: Wanted on Voyage
Artist: George Ezra
With this song you could have students create rhythmic ostinatos under the solo. You could also
have the student learn the bass line on Orff instruments.
Title: A Thousand Mile
Album: Best Of
Artist: Vanessa Carlton
“A Thousand Miles” is pretty easy structurally so I would have my students sing chord roots under
the solo.
Title: This is Me
Album: Camp Rock
Artist: Demi Lovato and Joe Jonas
“This is Me” is from the Disney movie “Camp Rock”. I would have my student’s beak up into
group so they could create rock star choreography to the song.
Title: Brave
Album: The Blessed Unrest
Artist: Sara Bareilles
This song has powerful lyrics and a powerful message. I would have an all grade level performance
of this pieces as the finally to a “No Bullying Campaign” Younger students would learn chord
roots, middle aged student would play instruments, and the older students would sing the melody
and ostinatos.
Title: Brighter Than the Sun
Album: All of You
Artist: Colbie Caillat
For this song I would have my student create body percussion ostinatos in groups.
Additional Recorded Music
Title: Toccata and Fugue in D minor
Album: Toccatas and Fugues
Composer: Bach
Artist: E. Power Biggs
This piece is a great way to introduce the term “fugue” to students. It be even more impactful to
use this piece if on Halloween.
Title: O Fortuna
Album: London Philharmonic Orchestra: Orff Carmina Burana
Composer: Orff
Artist: London Philharmonic Choir and Orchestra
O Fortuna is a fun and exciting piece that really stresses dynamic contrasts. For K-1 you could
explore those and dynamic shift and for the older grade you could introduce the percussion used
in the orchestra.
Title: Le Carnaval des Animaux: Aquarium
Album: The Yellow Lounge Classic Mix Volume Tow
Composer: Camillie Saint-Saens
Artist: Alfons Kontarsky, Aloys Kontarsky, Wiener Philharmonkier
This piece is a good example of flow. You could have students pretend they are in an aquarium
and have them move as if they are swimming.
Title: Peter in the Meadow
Album: Prokofiev: Peter and the Wolf, Britten: The Young Persons Guide to the Orchestra, SaintSaens: Carnival of the Animals
Composer: Prokofiev
Artist: Czechoslovakian Radio Symphony Orchestra
This piece is a great way to introduce the term “tone poem” to older students. You could also read
the book to students as the music is playing.
Title: Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious
Album: Mary Poppins
Composer: Robert B. Sherman
Richard M. Sherman
George Stiles
Artist: Julie Andrews, Dick Van Dyke, The Pearly Chorus
This song is a fun way to introduce musical theater to students. This song can also help younger
student become more articulate.