Introduced in the fall of 2016, this class is geared towards kids from JK - Gr2 who have already had some exposure to music and show interest in continuing their creative development. Building on the basics of rhythm & time signature, song structure, instrumentation, theme, and collaboration, children in this class will work together to "write" (i.e. make up) original compositions around a wide range of themes, and explore the basic nature of sound and music.
Over the course of each session, the class will spend time listening to and discussing a wide range of different kinds of music such as:
Prokofiev’s Peter and the Wolf | Pete Seeger and folk music | Holst's The Planets
Terry Riley's in C | Steve Reich | Björk | Radiohead
Miles Davis | John McLaughlin's Shakti | Jimi Hendrix
Blood Sweat & Tears | The Beatles | Débussy | Talking Heads
... and doing musical activities and games while chatting about things like genre, sound, major vs. minor tonalities, all building on concepts & ideas that children have already begun to learn by this age (e.g. geometric shapes, the use of patterns, advancing language acquisition, & identifying the "emotion" of a particular piece), and just generally trying to figure out what this "music" thing is and how it works.
Of his past work with a group of students at the Oakville Academy for the Arts where this program was first developed, teacher Berri Hoch said,
“Ben is a natural and skilled communicator, able to effortlessly adjust his style to his audience regardless of age, learning style or ability. He is equally effective in large group, small group, and individual settings. Ben has an intuitive understanding of differential learning, as he operates from a standpoint of respect for the needs of each individual. Further to his tangible skills, Ben brings a strong work ethic and a warm and loving heart to his work with children.”
Little Larks runs on Saturday mornings from 11:30 till around 12:15 (sometimes a little later depending on what we're working on).
