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Spotlight on . . .Music
by Jodie Brown, Music Teacher
While becoming certified to run a secondary level public school choral program at LSU in the late 1970’s (and for a long time after that!), I never imagined myself teaching elementary music. Even less so could I have imagined myself being interested in working with the uniformly higher-pitched and sometimes harder to train voices of kids that age. How ironic it has been for me to discover (over the last 15 years or so) that young children’s voices have the power to bring tears to people’s eyes, goosebumps to the flesh and hope to the heart. All this combined with the sheer fun of singing is what compelled me to start the SRV Chorus last year and I’ve had no regrets since!
Approximately 35 kids from 1st through 6th grade spill into the music room each Wednesday after recess for chorus practice. As you can imagine, it’s no easy task to channel the high-level energy of recess in to the much less physical act of singing, but somehow the transition is made. Stretching is done, voices are warmed up and then the real music making begins.
Some of the most wonderful (and heart-warming) occurrences during chorus practices and performances have had to do with individual children’s enthusiasm for taking musical risks, i.e. sharing their voices with others. This willingness to be heard/watched while in such a position of vulnerability is a remarkable thing. The singers of SRV love to sing solos and learn harmony parts to chorus songs. What could be better? (For a music teacher, not much!)
The new chorus “season” began on 1/12. In the next month, the group will likely be singing at a local retirement home, and the warmer weather months will see other performances, as well. If your child has expressed an interest in joining the chorus, this is the last chance for this year.
One last thing: the children have asked me about having a special piece of clothing (T-shirts have been mentioned) to make them distinctive during performances. If any parent(s) would be willing to tackle this project, the children would be thrilled. Please call or e-mail me if you’re interested and able to help..
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